One Tasty Way to Prevent Strokes and Heart Disease
By
Natalie Moore
Posted April 15, 2016
- Stop two of the world’s greatest killers in their tracks in just a few bites
- No need for comparisons any longer… find out why!
- Protect yourself with a portion so small it hardly qualifies as a snack
Dear Reader,
Remember the old saying “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”?
As it turns out, new science backs it up. (Moms are cheering everywhere!)
And to make the news even sweeter — apples, or any type of fruit for that matter, aren’t just good for overall health. As it seems, new scientific research shows fruit has the amazing power to lower your risk of heart disease and stroke — the top two killers in the world.1
But the benefits don’t stop there. A new study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, reports that eating a small amount of fruit daily not only decreases your risk of stroke to a fraction, but is also linked to lower glucose levels and lower blood pressure.2
And the best part of this news? It’s truly a small portion.
I will reveal the magic amount in a bit, but first let’s find out more from the researchers.
Apples and Oranges
University of Oxford and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences researchers followed the dietary habits of 500,000 adults living in both rural and urban China for seven years.
The study data were collected mostly from electronic medical records and death records. Participants in the study had no history of heart disease or high blood pressure treatment when the study began.
At its conclusion, the lengthy and massive study revealed that eating fruit (mostly apples and oranges — no need to not compare them any longer!) is strongly linked to factors like not smoking, education, and, as I previously mentioned, lower blood glucose levels.
However, even after adjusting for these factors, the scientists revealed that fruit consumption significantly lowers your risk of heart disease by one-third!
Senior author Zhengming Chen from the University of Oxford remarked about the results, “It’s difficult to know whether the lower risk in people who eat more fresh fruit is because of a real protective effect. If it is, then widespread consumption of fresh fruit in China could prevent about half a million cardiovascular deaths a year, including 200,000 before age 70, and even larger numbers of nonfatal strokes and heart attacks.”3
The Magic Number
So exactly how much fruit were the participants eating?
One hundred grams, or around 3.5 ounces — this translates into a small orange (or three mandarin oranges), or just a bit more than half an apple — an amount that hardly qualifies as a snack in the U.S.
Left: Five apple slices equal about 100g.
Right: Three mandarin oranges are about 100g.
While the results are very positive for fruit eaters, it’s important to eat fruit when it’s raw and fresh.
Dr. Huaidong Du, study author, highlights the significance of raw fruit in relation to the study results:
The association between fruit consumption and cardiovascular risk seems to be stronger in China, where many still eat little fruit, than in high-income countries where daily consumption of fruit is more common. Fruit in China is almost exclusively consumed raw, whereas much of the fruit in high-income countries is processed, and many previous studies combined fresh and processed fruit.
So it looks like the old saying is mostly true, expect you don’t even have to eat a whole apple to reap the benefits!
As always, organics are best. If they aren’t available, be sure to wash your produce thoroughly before consumption.
Live well,
Natalie Moore
Managing editor, Living Well Daily
Ed. Note: Please send your feedback: nmoore@lfb.org – and click here to like us on Facebook.
Sources
[1] The top 10 causes of death
[2] New England Journal of Medicine
[3] Fresh fruit associated with lower risk of heart attack and stroke
Written By Natalie Moore
Natalie Moore is a dedicated health researcher with a passion for finding healthy, natural, and science-based solutions. After a decade of direct healthcare experience in western and natural medicine, she was involved in public health research before joining Living Well Daily.
View More Free Articles
Stop Obsessing Over Diet Trends
Can we stop with the endless diet debates already? Every other week there’s a new headline shouting about which diet is best for weight loss, heart health, or diabetes. Paleo, keto, low-carb, high-protein… it’s exhausting. And now, a new meta-analysis is out comparing the Mediterranean diet, the DASH diet, and something called AHEI (that’s “Alternative...
A New Reason to Ditch Processed Junk
If you’ve ever walked the inside aisles of your local grocery store and thought, “This is all just junk,” your instincts were spot on. A new study published in the journal Thorax just added another red flag to the list of dangers linked to ultra-processed food—a 41 percent higher risk of lung cancer. That’s right....
When Being Winded on Stairs Is Serious (And When It Isn’t)
I had an athlete visit me recently because he experienced shortness of breath while climbing stairs. He is in great shape, so he was worried about what it might mean. “Doc,” he said, “I run five miles three times a week. Why am I huffing and puffing after two flights of stairs?” His concern is...
Study EXPOSES Hidden Danger Lurking in Your Car
We think of our homes and cars as safe havens. But according to a startling new study, they may be flooding your lungs with microscopic plastic particles—every single day. Researchers in France recently found that adults inhale an average of 68,000 microplastic particles daily from indoor air alone. To put that in perspective, that’s about...
Mailbag: Is Modern Food Making You Snore?
“What can cause snoring, and is there a way to correct this issue?” —Seeking Silence Hi Seeking, Snoring happens when the soft tissues in your throat relax and vibrate as air passes through during sleep. While several factors can cause snoring—from sleep position to nasal congestion—I want to share one trigger that might surprise you....
Simple Food Swap SLASHES Dementia Risk 28%
Let’s be honest… who would jump at the chance to cut their dementia risk by 28 percent. And no, you don’t need to run marathons, survive on broccoli, or learn to play the zither (whatever that is) to make it happen. All it takes is one easy swap—something that’s probably already in your refrigerator. Researchers...
This SMART Floss Exposes Hidden Health Danger
Scientists have created dental floss that doesn’t just clean between your teeth—it also tracks your stress while you’re flossing. Now, I know what you’re thinking… “Great—now even flossing is going to stress me out by telling me how stressed I am.” But this fascinating new tool from Tufts University could be a game-changer for understanding...
Is This "Safe" Sweetener Damaging Your Brain?
The headlines are alarming… “Popular Sugar Substitute Linked to Brain Cell Damage” and “Erythritol Could Damage Critical Brain Barrier” are just two of the dozens I’ve spotted recently. But before you toss every sugar-free product in your pantry, let’s take a closer look at what this study actually shows—and what it doesn’t. The latest research...
This Summer Threat Could SPIKE Your Blood Sugar
Picture this… It’s another scorching hot summer day. You crank up the air conditioning while watching the weather forecast, which predicts yet another “record-breaking” heat wave. It’s starting to feel like just another miserably uncomfortable summer. But what you might not realize is that—if you have diabetes—those rising temps could do far more damage to...
Move Over Yogurt—5 Foods That Pack MORE Probiotics
Let’s talk about your gut. The microbiome is the collection of trillions of bacteria and other tiny organisms that live in and on your body—especially in your gut—and help keep you healthy. I’ve written often about how vital it is to maintain a healthy microbiome. And you might have dutifully added yogurt to your shopping...