2025/11/19-How Healthy Are Apples?

How Healthy Are Apples?

From LearnAndRecord

“An apple a day” might seem like overkill, but America's most popular fruit — currently weighing down branches in orchards everywhere — is packed with health benefits.

overkill-n.多此一举，过火；weigh down-压弯；orchard-果园

They're good for your gut.

gut-肠道，直觉，核心

Apples are rich in dietary fiber, a type of complex carbohydrate that our body isn't capable of digesting on its own. That fiber acts as food for many of the bacteria species that reside in our guts. These bacteria have a powerful impact on our health, affecting everything from cancer risk, to weight, to mood.

dietary fiber-膳食纤维；carbohydrate-碳水化合物；bacteria-细菌；species-物种，种；reside-居住

A diet high in fruits and vegetables, including apples, has been shown to increase the number of beneficial bacteria and decrease the number of harmful bacteria in people's guts, said Marie van der Merwe, a nutrition scientist at the University of Memphis. That could lead to better overall health, Dr. van der Merwe said.

nutrition-营养

In addition, apples themselves contain a host of beneficial bacteria. (While this is true for all fruits and vegetables, one study found that apples have a greater variety of bacteria than most.) When you eat an apple, some of those bacteria may become part of your microbiome. The apple is “acting like a probiotic in addition to acting like a prebiotic,” Dr. van der Merwe explained.

microbiome-微生物群系；probiotic-益生菌；prebiotic-益生元

They're heart healthy.

Apples have high amounts of pectin, a dietary fiber that can help you maintain healthy cholesterol levels. In a 2012 study, 160 postmenopausal women ate either 75 grams of dried apples (equal to about two medium sized apples) or prunes every day for one year. After six months, the women who consumed apples experienced a 13 percent drop in their total cholesterol and a 24 percent drop in “bad” LDL cholesterol, while the women who ate prunes experienced a 3.5 percent drop in total cholesterol and an 8 percent drop in LDL cholesterol.

pectin-果胶；cholesterol-胆固醇；postmenopausal-绝经的；prune-a dried plum(李子)

Apples are also one of the biggest dietary sources of polyphenols — tiny, health-promoting molecules that plants produce to defend themselves from the elements. Certain polyphenols in apples, called flavonoids, are particularly good at stimulating the production of nitric oxide(NO), a gas that flows through our blood vessels, causing them to dilate. That's good for blood pressure, said Nicola Bondonno, a postdoctoral researcher at the Danish Cancer Institute who has coauthored several studies on apples.

polyphenol-多酚；molecule-分子；flavonoid-类黄酮；stimulate-刺激，使兴奋；blood vessel-血管；dilate-扩张，扩大；postdoctoral-博士后

They can reduce chronic inflammation.

chronic-慢性的，长期的；inflammation-炎症

Polyphenols in apples can reduce inflammation — and, in turn, possibly help reduce disease risk. Researchers published a study in August that analyzed health data from more than 119,000 people collected over nearly 20 years, including records of everything they ate over a 24-hour period on five separate occasions. The study found that those who reported eating more than two apples a day in the meal logs had a 30 percent lower chance of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease later on.

log-日志；obstructive-有意阻碍的，阻塞的；pulmonary-肺的