A medium apple (3” diameter, with skin on) contains about 95 calories, 4.4 grams of fiber, and is a good source of vitamin C.
Soluble fiber (mostly found in the fruit’s flesh) – helps prevent cholesterol buildup in blood vessels.
Insoluble fiber (mostly found in the fruit’s skin) – binds water and provides bulk in the intestines, helping to move food quickly through the digestive system.
Vitamin C – helps heal cuts and wounds and keeps gums healthy; protects you from infections by keeping your immune system healthy; increases the amount of iron your body absorbs from some foods.
Eat apples with their skins on, and even if your recipe calls for peeled apples, consider leaving the skins on. The skin contains quercetin, a phytonutrient that helps the regulation of blood sugar and has an anti-inflammatory effect on our cardiovascular system.
There is evidence that eating the whole apple also makes you feel more satisfied and less hungry than eating applesauce or drinking apple juice. There’s a loss of nutrients when apples are processed into applesauce, and even more when they are processed into juice. If you do drink commercial apple juice, always choose “cloudy” juice, which contains some of the pulpy solids, rather than clear juice from which the solids have been removed.
Storing: Apples can be stored for long periods of time—up to many weeks. To minimize loss of nutrients, keep them at low refrigerator temperatures, and maintain some moisture in the storage space, e.g. by putting a damp cloth in the crisper bin.
To clean apples, rinse the entire apple under a stream of water while gently scrubbing the skin with a brush for 15 seconds. Apples are one of the fruits most often treated with pesticides
To prevent browning when slicing apples for a recipe, put them in a bowl of cold water to which a spoonful of lemon juice has been added.
The Canada Food Guide recommends that people over 50 eat at least 7 fruits and vegetables combined daily, so “an apple a day” is not unreasonable if it’s one of your favorite fruits.