Apples Lower LDL

Apples Lower LDL. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report.

I’m a big fan of eating fresh foods. Lots of fruits and veggies in my diet and many days I start with a nice Washington apple. Little did I know that that simple act was doing my old body a load of good. The Ag Information Network’s KayDee Gilkey has more.

GILKEY: The United States has been talking about good and bad cholesterol for quite some time. We are always looking for ways to clear out the bad and there just might be a simple one sitting on your counter. In a study of healthy, middle-aged adults, consumption of one apple a day for four weeks lowered by 40 percent blood levels of a substance linked to hardening of the arteries.The study found that the apples lowered blood levels of oxidized LDL — low-density lipoprotein, the “bad” cholesterol. When LDL cholesterol interacts with free radicals to become oxidized, the cholesterol is more likely to promote inflammation and can cause tissue damage.

Thanks KayDee. The research was performed by Ohio State University and also found that daily apple consumption as significantly more effective at lowering oxidized LDL than other antioxidants he has studied, including the spice-based compound curcumin, green tea and tomato extract. Again that was from one apple a day for 4 weeks. What a tasty way to make your heart a bit healthier.

That’s today’s Fruit Grower Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.