An Apple A Day - Might Make You Live Longer
There’s an old adage that an apple a day will keep the doctor away. It might just keep the grim reaper away for a while, too. Apples, like most brightly colored fruits such as blueberries, tomatoes and the green leafy vegetables like kale and broccoli, are known to contain anti-oxidants which can combat damaging substances known as free radicals.
Previous studies with apples and, in particular, antioxidants contained in them known as polyphenols, showed signs of life extension in test animals. It is thought that free-radicals, as well as causing damage to the body, also adversely affect the aging process. The polyphenols contained in apples are thought to combat this damage and in some cases, have been shown to extend the life of the test animals.
Now a study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry has shown that consumption of apples
extended the average lifespan of fruitflies by up to 10%. It also showed significant benefits to the ability of the insects
to maintain mobility into later life. They also found that biochemical signs of deterioration associated with aging and
onset of death in the fruit flies were significantly reversed after the introduction of the polyphenols.
Whether or not the study bodes well for human life extension remains to be seen. According to Zhen-Yu Chen, who
carried out the study with colleagues, there are similarities between these findings and others that have tracked the
benefits of apples on health, including one which found that women who ate apples regularly had a double figure
percentage reduction in the risk of coronary disease.
