An Apple Fairytale
“An Apple a day, Keeps the doctor away” – almost every one of us has heard of this quote. Either our mums say it to us or the doctors, but is it really true that apples are like fairytales, the ones with happy ending?
Snow white, a very famous fairy tale, wherein the princess sleeps after eating a poisonous APPLE is something which can definitely threaten the people who are afraid of witch craft. But in reality, lots of apples can definitely be poisonous. Not as poisonous as mercury but poisonous enough to lead to rise of sugar levels in the human body.
Before talking about the harmful effects, let us go through the very old but yet so true health benefits of apples. The above saying is very true when only a single apple is consumed within a day. You can get whiter and healthier teeth by eating apple as it helps in generating saliva which in turn helps in reducing the tooth decays by reducing the bacteria levels in the mouth.
Being rich in fiber, it helps in reducing the intestinal disorder along with some sorts of cancer, controls insulin levels, acts as detoxifier and best of all; it fills you up without costing you a lot of calories. According to a Brazilian study, eating an apple before a meal helped reduce 33 percent more weight than those who didn’t. During stress, it can act as a very good booster by fortifying your immune system.
We have all heard of an apple a day quote but with a slight modification: ‘Five apples a week’, can be the new saying because recent researches have shown that five apples a week reduces respiratory diseases like asthma. So, it becomes a really nice deal to have five in a week, isn’t it? Even in the Chinese medicine it is believed that apple strengthens the heart, quenches thirst, lubricates the lungs, decreases mucous and increases body fluids.
When it comes to the mineral and vitamin contents in apple, it is known that they are a rich source of vitamins C, A and flavonoids, potassium, phosphorous, calcium and iron. Not only this, continuous consumption of apples can also help in the reduction of cataracts.
We have talked enough about the benefits of apples, but like every fairy tale there has to be some villain and the villain of this apple fairytale is the apple itself. How? Come, let’s find out.
An average apple has 90 to 95 calories, so if any person on diet consumes more than ten apples a day, then an average of 900 calories enter his body. This much of calorie consumption from a fruit is in itself a greater deal. So if the person consumes some other food, then instead of helping in weight loss, it can actually lead to weight gain. Apples are rich in carbohydrates, hence if consumed too much then it can lead to a rise in the blood sugar levels.
Not only this, the apple seeds are very much harmful and can even lead to death. Although seeds are not consumed but still if any one eats them, it can prove to be harmful. The apple seeds contain cyanide and if consumed at large, can lead to death. When seeds are digested they release cyanide which leads to slower effects of poison spreading in the body, but eventually the person feels the effect.
Sometimes apples cause an allergic reaction in people who are sensitive to the Rosaceae family i.e. apricot, almond, plum, peach, pear and strawberry. When chemical reactivity is considered Fexofenadine (Allegra) interacts with Apple. Apple juice can decrease how much fexofenadine (Allegra) your body absorbs. Taking apple along with fexofenadine (Allegra) might decrease the effectiveness of fexofenadine (Allegra).
This fairytale is definitely quite interesting for those who have been thinking that an apple can only be beneficial. I guess this tale will definitely give its readers a thought on the doses of apple. The appropriate dose of apple depends on the age, health and several other conditions.
At this time there is no scientific information to determine a proper range of dose for apples. Keep in mind that natural products are not always necessarily safe and dosages can be important.
So Good Luck with the Apple Diet!!
