Apple is familiar to man from ancient times: it is mentioned in the myths of ancient Hellas, in the Old Testament, its images were found in ancient Egyptian drawings. To him, from the earliest times, medicinal properties were attributed: in folk medicine, an apple was used for problems with digestion, anemia, a gruel from the frayed fruit pulp, mixed with butter, and cracks were treated on the lips.
Exceptional dietary, and some medicinal properties, recognizes the apple and modern medicine - for example, this fruit is able to adjust the digestive organs, removes toxins from the body, helps to reduce cholesterol and blood sugar. Such useful qualities are due to the substances that make up the apple.
Ingredients and calorie content of apples
In apples, as in many other fruits, a lot of water - up to 87% by weight. The remaining 13% fall on:
- Proteins - 0,4%;
- fats - 0,4%;
- carbohydrates - 9.8%;
- vitamins and minerals - 2.4%;
- food fibers - 1,8%.
The latter are the main wealth of an apple. Their main component is pectin, it can purify the intestines, remove many toxic substances from the body, reduce the level of cholesterol and sugar in the blood. In addition, pectin absorbs fats from other foods and interferes with their absorption, which, given the low caloric value: 45 - 50 calories makes an apple one of the best components of dietary nutrition.
Vitamin composition of apples
In terms of vitamins, the composition of an apple is not rich: although this fruit contains a whole range of these biologically active substances (vitamins A, C, E, H, PP, K, and almost all B vitamins), they are all contained in small amounts, not covering even the 10th share of the daily human needs.
However, apples contain a lot of vitamin-like substances, which are antioxidants. These compounds, called catechins, interfere with free radicals to damage the cells of the body and are able to slow the aging process.