The proverb "An apple a day keeps the doctor away" is well-known to everyone. In daily life, however, the apple is more like a Cinderella: without outstanding looks or an expensive price tag, everyone has eaten it, but few may truly know it... And yet, such a fruit has quietly become the world's most popular.
The World's Most Popular Fruit
How can the world's most popular fruit be determined? A blogger in the US called "Courage Fish" conducted a seemingly boring yet interesting experiment: searching Google for all currently available fruits for sale. As a result, "apple" topped the list with 413 million pieces of information. Following closely were oranges, bananas, strawberries, and more. The blogger also mentioned in the article that they had intended to search for "apple fruit" to avoid information related to Apple Inc., but after all, "the influence of apples on contemporary culture and manufacturing also reflects the popularity of this fruit."
Professor Zhang Wen from the College of Agronomy and Biotechnology at China Agricultural University explained: "It can be said that the apple is the most important fruit in the world. Currently, apples are grown in over 80 countries worldwide, with China being the largest producer. The Fuji apple has become the world's most cultivated variety. The global annual apple production exceeds 60 million tons. What does that mean? Assuming each apple weighs 200 grams (a medium-sized Fuji apple), then nearly 400 billion apples are eaten worldwide every year. Some are eaten directly, while a large number are made into apple wine, apple juice, jam, and sold globally."
Wang Xiaowei, a senior agronomist at the Institute of Forestry and Fruit Trees at the Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, also told the *Life Times* reporter that there are many reasons for the apple's fame. First, apple cultivation has strong adaptability, with many suitable growing areas, and it is not very demanding of the environment. Second, apples are resistant to storage and can be kept for years. "The apples we eat this season, except for some early-season Gala apples, are all from last year," Zhang added. Third, apples are easy to process into various foods like wine, juice, jam, and dried fruit, further expanding their range of consumption. Fourth, apples have a crisp texture, are rich in nutrients, and suit the tastes of people all over the world.
Research has also found that the apple is a very ancient "fruit." According to a report on August 29 by the British *Daily Telegraph* and *The Sunday Times*, about 60 million years ago, the catastrophe that wiped out the dinosaurs led to the birth of the apple tree. Besides being food, the apple also reflects the progress of human civilization. Some have summarized the "four apples that influenced the world": the apple Adam and Eve stole became the origin of humanity; Paris won Venus with a golden apple; a falling green apple led Newton to solve the mystery of gravity; Socrates used a wax apple to test his students and, with a discerning eye, discovered Plato...
The全科医生 in Food
In the February 1866 issue of *Notes and Queries*, the apple was described as: "Eat an apple on going to bed, and you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread." This modified proverb has been quoted for nearly 150 years. Although the statement is exaggerated, Cheng Yiyong, chairman of the Chinese Nutrition Society, has also stated that apples are a "holistic health fruit." They are rich in nutrients such as organic acids, vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber, polyphenols, and flavonoids. In a list of "The World's Healthiest Foods," apple ranked first, becoming the veritable "king of fruits," because it is "nutritionally dense," "naturally delicious," "easy to purchase," and "affordable for everyone."
Barbara Kami, an organic food expert at the US Department of Agriculture, said that the sources of "sour" and "sweet" in apples are also very beneficial. Although apples are highly acidic, they are not harmful; their acidity is composed of 90% malic acid and 10% citric acid. The sweetness of the fruit comes from sucrose and fructose, both natural sugars that diabetics can also eat. In addition, ripe apples contain 80% water and zero fat, making them very suitable for people on a diet. One apple is equivalent to one-fourth of the daily recommended fruits and vegetables. Apples are high in potassium and low in sodium, which can partially counteract the high-salt diet of modern people. Besides, apples have a toothbrush effect; chewing them can clean teeth and kill oral bacteria.
The US *Discover Health* website recently published an article reporting that besides the well-known vitamin C and other nutrients, apples also contain three special "star ingredients" that are very beneficial to health. Pectin: This soluble fiber can help lower blood pressure and blood sugar. It can also help lower the body's "bad cholesterol" levels and, like other fibers, help the digestive system stay healthy. Boron: This nutrient, which is abundant in apples, can strengthen bones and brains. Quercetin: A flavonoid found in apples, this nutrient can reduce the risk of various cancers, including lung and breast cancer, and can also reduce the damage of free radicals to the body, delaying the onset of various degenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's.
Four Big Questions About Eating Apples
While apples are nutritious, people still have many questions about variety selection and consumption methods.
Question 1: Should you peel an apple before eating it?
"This has always been a controversial issue," Zhang said. "The nutrients in apple peels are very rich, but people are also concerned about pesticide residues. Actually, apples grown through正规 (standardized) cultivation basically meet the pollution-free standards. They are 'bagged' from a young age and have little contact with pesticides, so they can be washed and eaten directly. Generally, apples with neat shapes, smooth surfaces, lighter colors, and little difference between fruits are often grown with bags." Jiang Weibo, a professor at the College of Food Science at China Agricultural University, reminded that cheap apples bought from street vendors or fallen apples mixed in with low-quality products have a higher chance of pesticide contamination, so it is safer to peel them before eating.
Question 2: Which apple is the most nutritious?
"From Red Fuji, Yellow Delicious to Granny Smith, although these apples look very different, they only differ in sugar content, organic acids, etc., and the nutritional value is almost the same," Zhang said. However, in terms of texture and taste, Golden Delicious is soft, Fuji is crisp, Granny Smith is sour, and Guoguang is sweet, so people can choose according to their own preferences.
Question 3: How many apples should you eat every day?
Fu Jinru, chairman of the Tianjin Nutrition Society, said that the *Chinese Dietary Guidelines for Residents* recommend eating 200-400 grams of fruit per day, which can basically be met by one large Fuji apple. "But there's no need to strictly follow 'an apple a day'; 3-4 per week is fine, and you can intersperse with other seasonal fruits." In addition, because apples are relatively hard, it's best to chew them slowly to avoid wolfing them down and damaging the stomach and intestines. The best time to eat an apple is between meals. Fu said that having an apple as a snack can provide the body and brain with water and nutrients, and it can also bring a feeling of fullness, reducing the amount of food eaten during main meals.
Question 4: Can apple juice or jam replace apples?
Jinru said that among processed apple products, juice has the least nutritional loss. Jam, due to the need for heating, may lose some water-soluble vitamins and has added sugar. Dried apples come in two types: freeze-dried ones retain their nutrients relatively well, while fried ones have significant nutritional loss and high calories. Other apple products include apple wine, which has a low alcohol content and a mellow taste that the elderly can drink a little of; apple vinegar has a weight-loss effect, but try not to drink it on an empty stomach.