Polyphenols, which are very beneficial for cardiovascular health, are mainly found in the outer parts of fruits, including the outer tissue, leaves, and peel. The distribution of vitamin C follows the same pattern. This is because the sun is the source of energy for plants, and the plant's "nutrient synthesis base" is also located in places close to sunlight. Therefore, even within the same fruit, the content of health-promoting components can vary due to differences in sun exposure.
Cherry tomatoes also follow this rule; their flavonoid content is significantly higher than that of regular large tomatoes because they have a larger contact surface area with sunlight.
In terms of vitamin C, because of the higher proportion of surface area, the vitamin C-rich part is also increased, giving cherry tomatoes an advantage over large tomatoes.
In terms of dietary fiber, the very small cherry tomatoes contain a larger proportion of peel. And the peel of a tomato is an excellent source of dietary fiber, which has certain anti-cancer properties. It's obvious that small tomatoes score higher in this regard.
The same principle applies: smaller fruits are actually more nutritious.
For example, the most nutritious part of an apple is the flesh just under the red peel. For plums, eggplants, grapes, and other colored fruits, the highest nutritional value is found near the peel. In citrus fruits, the highest concentration of flavonoids is found in the white tissue just under the peel. It is clearly advisable to eat kumquats, including their peel.
Only for fruits like strawberries, cherries, and mulberries, the nutrient content is fairly consistent from the inside out. However, these fruits are naturally very small to begin with.
Understanding this principle, we don't need to pursue larger fruits. As long as they are normally ripe, we can obtain more nutrients by choosing fruit varieties that are of normal or smaller size! In this way, fruit growers would not need to blindly pursue larger fruits by spraying various "growth promoters" or "expanding agents." Wouldn't that be a perfect combination of nutrition and health?