An apple a day . . .

‘Don’t be afraid to go out a limb – that’s where the fruit is’ – Mark Twain

We all know the saying ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away’ (credited to Benjamin Franklin) but it appears that it’s not just a generalised thing about eating more fruit, apples really do have super powers!

I first read about the powerful benefits of the humble apple back in 2019. I was an occasional apple eater at the time but I started buying them regularly and making sure I had my ‘apple a day’. As with so many other things, it only lasted a few months, as before long I forgot to buy them one week and the daily habit was broken and subsequently forgotten. The idea of the tiny tweaks method is to build into our daily lives lots of small things which, when added together, really make a difference to our health and happiness. If we build habits slowly and gradually, in theory at least, they should last and become second nature. When I started this blog, one of my reasons was that I would have an easily accessible bank of tiny tweaks that I could remind myself with regularly.

As it happens, I had bought some apples this week, the first time in weeks, in fact probably months, and then this morning I came across the magazine cutting which started me off eating apples daily in the first place. As I said, a bank of easily accessible tiny tweaks is much more efficient than torn out pieces of paper with no real home that you might only come across when having a sort out! So now I have reread the cutting and done some additional research, I can not only recycle the piece of paper but I am fired up and ready to start a daily apple habit again!

So what is it about apples that make them so good? Well, first of all it’s important to note that many of the benefits come from the skin of the apple so always wash well under cold running water before eating, rather than peeling, to reap the maximum benefit! Apples don’t need to be kept in the fridge necessarily, they also keep well in a cool, dark place. Having said that, I plan to keep 2 or 3 in my fruit bowl so that I see them all the time which will hopefully help to keep me on track.

Apples are packed with a fibre called pectin which is important for maintaining healthy digestion, reducing cholesterol and the risk of strokes and heart attacks. They also are a great source of vitamin C which helps reduce inflammation and infection as well as important minerals such as calcium, potassium and magnesium. Each apple counts as one of our five a day, and contains around 100 million probiotics which help keep our gut healthy.

On top of all this, apples contain polyphenols, including flavonoids, which protect cells from damage and inflammation and improve the functioning of blood vessels. Several studies have shown that dietary flavonoid intake is linked to a lower risk of dying from any cause. In fact, one Australian study followed 1400 women over 70 years of age for 15 years and found that those who ate an apple a day had a 35% lower risk of dying than those who only ate apples occasionally or never. I don’t know about you, but that’s a pretty compelling reason for me to take up this daily habit again!

So, not too difficult to guess the tiny tweak this week! I’m definitely going to be eating an apple a day from now on. Pink Lady are my favourite, cut up into chunks and served with small squares of dark chocolate and a handful of nuts. How do you like yours?!

Until next time xx