Which apple is the healthiest?

The popular saying that an apple a day keeps the doctor away hints at its undeniable health potential, but so many apples are often available at the grocery store that you may wonder if one of them is packed with better nutrients than the others.

The short answer is that there are some nutritional differences among apples, but these aren’t likely to have a significant effect on your health.

Red Delicious apples, for instance, contain a type of polyphenol that is only found in red fruits. This group of substances may help prevent cancer, heart disease, and other conditions.

An Australian study analysed several apple types and identified the varieties with the highest polyphenol content. “Our analysis found that the Pink Lady variety contained the most polyphenols,” Dr Nicky Bondonno, research fellow at Edith Cowan University and a study author, told The West Australian. However, the researchers also discovered that simply eating that variety doesn’t necessarily benefit consumers more.

“Interestingly, we found a very large variation between people in the level of polyphenol compounds in the blood. This indicates that there is a difference in how people absorb and break down these compounds and that the beneficial effects of apples on health may differ from person to person,” she said.

If red apples aren’t your cup of tea and you’d rather munch on green ones, you may find solace in the fact that the common green variety called Granny Smith has less sugar than the average apple, though this doesn’t make non-green apples unhealthy.

“A Granny Smith apple has about 16 grams of sugar,” registered dietician nutritionist Karen Ansel told Huffpost. “A typical apple has 19 grams of sugar.
Three additional grams of naturally occurring fruit sugar truly is not that big a deal. I’d much rather see people decrease their sugar intake by eating fewer highly processed foods rather than worrying about a few grams of sugar between varieties of apples.”

Other experts agree that people shouldn’t worry about which apple is the healthiest as all of them can provide nutritional benefits, while they should simply make eating any kind of apple a habit by following their taste buds.


Experts also advise to pick fresh apples as their nutritional value decreases over time


“Eat the apples you like because they’re all healthy,” said dietician Mira Ilic on the Cleveland Clinic’s website.

One reason is the amount of fibres, the nutritional powerhouses that abound in all kinds of apples.
“One apple has 10 percent of the daily value recommended for fiber, and that’s also helpful in lowering cholesterol, regulating the digestive system and preventing cancer,” said registered dietician Barbara Ruhs to the Huffpost.

Experts also advise to pick fresh apples as their nutritional value decreases over time. “After three months of storage, apples lose a significant amount of the micronutrient polyphenols,” registered dietician nutritionist Amy Gorin advised in the Huffpost.

It’s also a good practice to eat them unpeeled because many nutrients are found in the skin. “If you want to get all of the health benefits of eating apples, you’ve got to eat the whole thing,” said Dr Bondonno.

People should give apples a thorough scrub and clean them with water before eating them in order to remove potential residues of pesticides and fertilisers.