The health benefits of apples

Can eating an apple a day really help keep the doctor away? It can certainly help you control your blood sugar and gain all the benefits that come with that control. Here are some suggestions to make apples a part of your everyday diet.

Apples of any kind, from tart Granny Smiths to sweet, juicy Pink Ladies, are loaded with soluble fibre — number one for blunting blood sugar swings. A medium apple dishes up an impressive four grams of fibre, mostly pectin, which is also known for its ability to lower cholesterol. Apples aren't particularly rich in vitamins or minerals, buttthey're loaded with antioxidant compounds called flavonoids, believed to reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease.

Looking to trim your tummy? (Remember, belly fat is bad for blood sugar.) Try eating three small apples a day. A study found that doing so as part of a reduced-calorie diet helped women not only lose more weight but also lower their blood sugar more than women who ate another food instead of apples. To press every bit of benefit from apples, opt for whole, unpeeled fruit.

At about 80 calories each, apples are the perfect snack size just the way nature grew them. Here are a few snack ideas.

• Snack on half an apple with a smear of peanut butter.
• Add thinly sliced apples to sandwiches for a bit of tang and crunch.
• Mix chopped apples with low-fat yogurt and wheat germ for a healthy mid-morning snack.
• Doctor up jarred salsa by adding chopped apples, cucumbers, onions, jalapeño peppers and lime juice.
• Put together an apple-cabbage skillet dinner with chopped apples, shredded cabbage, low-fat turkey sausage, chopped onions, cider vinegar and fresh parsley.
• Make applesauce by cubing apples and simmering them in a small amount of water until desirably mushy. Add a sprinkling of cinnamon.

Smart substitutions

• Instead of raisins, try sliced apples on your oatmeal or other cereal. Unlike apples, raisins have concentrated sugars that raise blood sugar more quickly than apples do.
• Instead of oil, replace three-quarters of the butter or oil called for in cookie, cake and brownie recipes with unsweetened applesauce.

Whether you eat them raw or cooked in your favourite dishes, you need to eat apples to fend off illness and reduce your blood sugar level.