Peeled apples are compared head-to-head with unpeeled apples (and spinach) in a test of arterial function.
Eating apples regularly can contribute to a lower risk of dying prematurely. “Moderate apple consumption,” that is, one or two apples per week, “was associated with a 20% lower risk of all-cause mortality” (that is, dying from all causes combined), “while Those who ate an apple a day had a 35% lower risk of all-cause mortality compared to women with low apple consumption.”
You’ll often hear me talk about a lower or higher risk of mortality, but what does that mean? Isn’t the risk of dying 100 percent for everyone, eventually? As you can see in my graph below and at 0:40 of my video. Friday Favorites: For Flavonoid Benefits, Don’t Peel Apples, I present some survival curves to help you visualize these concepts. For example, if you follow thousands of older women over time, almost half succumb within a 15-year period, but that half includes those who rarely, if ever, ate apples: less than 20 apples a year. . On the other hand, those who consumed an average of half a small apple a day lived longer; During the same period, about 40 percent of them died. And those who ate a small apple or about a quarter of a large apple a day survived even longer.
Why is that the case? She seems to be less the apple of the eye than the apple of the arteries. Even a fraction of an apple a day is associated with 24 percent less likely to have severe calcifications of the major arteries, a marker of vascular disease. You may think it’s an obvious benefit, since apples are fruits and fruits are healthy, but the effect was not found in pears, oranges or bananas.
Both studies were done in women, but a similar effect was seen (with apples and onions). found for men. We think it’s because of the flavonoids, naturally. happening Phytonutrients concentrated in apples. As you can see below and at minute 2:02 in my videoit is believed that improve artery function and lower blood pressure, leading to improvements in blood flow throughout the body and brain, thereby decreasing the risk of heart disease and stroke. However, you don’t know until you put it to the test.
When I first saw an article about evidence flavonoid-rich apples, I assumed they had selectively bred or genetically modified a special apple. But not. The high-flavonoid apple was just a peeled apple, compared to the low-flavonoid apple, which was the exact same peeled apple. After eating the apples, flavonoid levels in the bloodstream spiked over the next three hours in the unpeeled apple group, compared to the peeled apple group, as you can see below, and at 2: 36 in me video. This agreed with significantly improved arterial function in the unpeeled apple group compared to the peeled group. The researchers concluded that “the lower risk of CVD [cardiovascular disease] with greater apple consumption is probably due to the high concentration of flavonoids in the skin that improve endothelial function. [arterial] function”, although it could be anything in the shell. All we know is that apple peels are especially good for us, getting better arterial function and blood pressure reduction. 
Even compared to spinach? As you can see in the graph below and at 3:14 in my video, if you give someone about three-quarters of a cup of cooked spinach, their blood pressure drops in two to three hours. If, instead, you eat an apple with a little extra peel, you’ll get a similar effect. The researchers concluded that apples and spinach almost immediately improved arterial function and lowered blood pressure. 
The good thing about these results is that we are talking about whole foods, not some supplement or extract. So, easily, “this could be translated into a natural and low-cost method to reduce the cardiovascular risk profile of the general population.”
To learn more about apples, check out the topic page and watch the related videos below.
What happens to dried apples? See Dried apples versus cholesterol. What about apple cider vinegar? Verify Flashback Friday: Does apple cider vinegar help you lose weight?. And what about apples and açai berries? See The antioxidant effects of açai compared to apples.
