The Apple is one of the best fruits you can get. Apples are not only tasty, but they have a lot of benefits for our bodies. The saying “An apple a day keeps the doctor away” is not far from the truth. Apples are rich in antioxidants and other nutrients that guard our health.
Eating Apples can prevent high blood pressure, reduce bad cholesterol, protect against colon cancer, reduce risk of asthma, protect bones, reduce skin diseases, improve heart health, reduce the risk of diabetes, prevent dementia and promote weight loss.
As we can see, the benefits of apples are numerous, but are all apples the same?
Many studies have shown that different apple cultivar have different nutritional values with high variations. Generally, the darker the apple the more antioxidants it has. Also, the way the apples have been bred, grown, and stored has a measurable impact on the health benefits they can deliver. Apples are the one fruit you should always buy organic and never bother to peel since the skin of the apple has 90% of the pesticides, and 50% or more of the nutrients.
| Apple Variety | OARC* |
| Red Delicious (with skin) | 4,275 |
| Granny Smith (with skin) | 3,898 |
| Red Delicious (without skin) | 2,936 |
| Gala (with skin) | 2,828 |
| Golden Delicious (with skin) | 2,670 |
| Fuji (with skin) | 2,589 |
| Golden Delicious (without skin) | 2,210 |
| Apple Juice (unsweetened, no ascorbic acid) | 414 |
| *Source: ORACValues.com | |
If we compare the antioxidant values we can notice that some apples have higher ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) score. ORAC is a method of measuring the antioxidant capacity of different foods. Foods with higher ORAC value will more effectively neutralize free radicals what will slow the oxidative processes that can contribute to age-related degeneration and disease.
