We all remember the old saying ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away,’ don’t we? It’s a bit of sage advice that most Irish mammies tend to rely on when it comes to feeding their brood something that’s actually healthy. But did you know that this saying could actually be true?
A new scientific study is claiming that if we want to keep our health in tip top condition then we should turn to the humble apple more often.
According to researchers, fruit and vegetables (including apples) are rich in antioxidants, and they can actually reduce the risk of a heart attack amongst women in later life. Really.
Scientists studied 30,000 women aged 49 to 83 over the space of ten years until December 2007. During this time, the women involved in the study completed a food frequency questionnaire, where they were asked how often they consumed each type of food or drinking during the past year.
The researchers then calculated the amount of antioxidants the women ate over the period of time.
Do you eat an apple every single day?
One of the most popular sources of antioxidants was the apple, and the findings revealed that women who had the highest antioxidant capacity (women who ate around seven servings of fruit and vegetables a day) had a 20 per cent lower risk of having a heart attack than the women who only ate 2.4 servings a day.
So if you want to give your breakfast, lunch or dinner a bit of a health-boost simply add in an apple or another bit of fruit. Even if you don’t really like fruit or veggies, just think of it in this way: those extra antioxidants are not only great for your health, they’re also excellent for your skin, nails and hair.
In fact, regularly eating fruits and vegetables can make your skin glow and help even out your skin tone. If that isn’t incentive, we don’t know what is!
