BATON ROUGE, La. – Many children do not consume the daily recommended servings of fruit, but those who do with apples have better overall health and are less likely to become obese, research has shown.
The research was published in the May edition of the Nutrition Journal.
Apples are the second most popular fruit in the United States. When children consume them in any form such as whole, in apple sauce or 100 percent apple juice, the quality of their diets and weight improved.
The study looked at the association between various apple types and forms with diet quality and weight adiposity in a nationally representative sample of children. Children participating were aged 2 to 18 from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2003–2010.
The rate of apple product consumption was determined using the cycle-appropriate USDA Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies food codes. Total diet quality and component scores were determined using the Healthy Eating Index-2010.
What was found that those who ate apples or apple products had a lower body mass index score, and those who consumed apples regularly were up to 30 percent less likely to be obese or become obese.