Delicious UK - (09)September 2020

NEEDTOKNOW

Why the late

summer harvest is

GOOD FOR Y U

It’snotjustanapplea daythatkeepsthedoctoraway.Pears,plums,

damsonsandotherorchardfruitarepackedwithnatural

ingredientsthatmayhelptoprotectyourhealth.Dietitian

Juliette Kellow picks some juicy health facts from the tree

polyphenolssuchasflavonoids,

whichhavebeenlinkedwithbetter

hearthealth.Forexample,one

studyofalmost75,000adults

foundthateatingapplesandpears

reducedtheriskofstrokeby 11 per

cent.Anotherstudyfoundthat

eatinganapplea dayaspart

ofa healthy,balanceddiethad

a similareffecttotakingstatins,

a commonmedicationusedto

lowerbloodcholesterol,whenit

comestopreventingdeaths from

vascular disease.

Eatingapples

hasa similar

effecttotaking

statins

BUYLookforfruitwithsmooth,unbruisedskinandfirmflesh.

Theyshouldfeelheavyandfirmfortheirsize.Forpears,plums

anddamsonsthatarereadyto eat, the flesh should yield slightly

whenit’sgentlypressed.

A

ssummerturnstoautumn,

orchardsalloverBritainare

ladenwithripe,juicyfruit,

readytopick– andthat’sgreat

newsforourhealth.Whileit’strue

thatapples,pears,plumsand

damsonstendtohavelowerlevels

ofthenutrientstypicallyfound

infruit,suchasvitaminC,they

offervaluablefibreandnaturally

occurringphytochemicals.Here’s

whyyoushould

includethemin

your diet...

HEART-FRIENDLYFIBRE

Apples,pears,plums

anddamsonsall

providea specifictypeofsoluble

fibrecalledpectin(thestuff

thatsetsjam).Thisbindswith

cholesterolinthedigestivesystem,

allowingit toberemovedfromthe

bodyratherthanabsorbedinto

thebloodstream.Asa result,

bloodcholesterollevelsarekept

undercontrol,whichis valuable,

asraisedlevelsincrease the risk of

heartdisease.

It’snotjustthepectininorchard

fruitthat’sbeneficialforourheart.

They’re also loaded with

STOREAppleswillkeepina cooldarkplaceforweeks– even

months– providingthere’snodamagedfruitstoredwiththem.

Pears,plumsanddamsonswillripenatroomtemperature.

Onceripe,youcanstoretheminthefridgefora fewdays.

ACHECKONBLOODSUGARLEVELS

Pectindoesn’tjustlower

cholesterol.It alsoformsa gelin

thedigestivesystemthathelps

slowtheabsorptionofsugarinto

thebloodstreamaftereating.

Thiscanincreaseinsulin

sensitivityandhelptoprotect

againstinsulinresistance,

a pre-cursorfortype2 diabetes.

Goodintakesofflavonoidsare

alsolinkedtoa lowerriskoftype 2

diabetes.InoneFinnishstudy

looking at all the dietary sources of

PREPAREPhytochemicalsareconcentratedintheskin,sodon’t

peelthefruit.Cookingvarietiesmayneedsweetening– if you’re

avoidingsugar,youcouldtrya naturalsweetenersuchasstevia.

Cinnamon, ginger and allspice can also add sweetness.

102 deliciousmagazine.co.uk