Apples can help you breathe

Apples can help you breathe

Eating an apple a day may be good for the lungs, researchers have discovered.

A team from St George's Hospital Medical School, London, studied the diets and lung function of more than 2,500 men aged 45-49.

The researchers measured the ability to breathe out sharply using a special test called an FEV1.

This study highlights a new way that people can potentially protect their lungs

Dr Mark Britton, chairman, British Lung Foundation

They found that good lung function was associated with high intakes of vitamins C, E, and beta-carotene, citrus fruits, apples, and fruit juices.

However, after they took into consideration factors such as body mass, smoking history and exercise the only food that seemed to make a significant difference was apples.

It was found that eating five or more apples a week was linked to a slightly better lung function.

Those who ate apples had a lung capacity 138 millilitres higher than those who did not.

There was no evidence to suggest that the natural decline in lung function with age could be slowed by short term increases in the number of apples eaten.

But the fruit might slow deterioration caused by other factors such as pollutants.

Eating a lot of apples might simply reflect a healthy diet, suggest the authors.

Antioxidant role

But apples contain high levels of an antioxidant flavonoid called quercetin which is also found abundantly in onions, tea and red wine, and may be important in protecting the lungs from the harmful effects of atmospheric pollutants and cigarette smoke.

Dr Mike Pearson, a former press officer for the British Thoracic Society, said the theory was "plausible".

He said there were several studies supporting the idea that diets high in Vitamins C and E may be good for preventing asthma, and it might be that apples contained other antioxidants that produced the same effect.

Dr Pearson said: "The idea is that people with high levels of antioxidants circulating in their blood are in a better position to deal with an inflammatory reaction when it occurs."

The body produces an inflammatory reaction in response to foreign invaders, such as pollutants. This reaction releases highly reactive molecules known as free radicals which cause damage to the tissue.

Antioxidants work by mopping up these free radicals before they can cause damage.

Dr Pearson said that if Vitamins C and E were shown to be effective in helping asthma sufferers, they might also act to slow deterioration of lung function in other people.

Chairman of the British Lung Foundation, Dr Mark Britton, said the research provided more "exciting evidence" of a link between a healthy diet and healthy lungs.

He said: "More importantly, this study also highlights a new way that people can potentially protect their lungs - as well as helping people with lung disease breathe easy."

The research is published in the medical journal Thorax.

Fenu greek

Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) seeds contain volatile oils, alkaloids, saponins, flavonoids, and mucilaginous components. These seeds have a long history of use as a spice, and have been widely used in the ancient Ayurvedic system of health practices for thousands of years. In botanical literature, Fenugreek has been documented as a supporter for the natural relaxation of the bronchial muscles. Combined with other qualities it becomes an outstanding food for maintaining healthy lung function.

 

Cooking veg.

Health

Cooking vegetables 'improves benefits'

The greater benefits of raw vegetables is a misconception

Vegetables can offer better heath benefits when they are cooked and mashed, helping to lay rest to a popular misconception, scientists have said.

Although many people think raw vegetables offer the best protection against heart disease and cancer, this simply is not true, they said.

Now a Europe-wide study has shown that the body can absorb more of an important substance from cooked vegetables than from raw ones.

The research suggests that cooking can improve the performance of carrots, broccoli and spinach when it comes to protecting health.

However, nutrition specialists say there is no point in people focussing on how to eat vegetables until they are eating enough of them in the first place.

Cancer prevention

The active ingredients studied in this research were carotenoids. They are one of a group of chemicals known as antioxidants that are thought to protect against cancer.

Dr Sue Southon, from the Institute of Food Research in Norwich, led the research, which is reported in New Scientist magazine.

She said that while the gut could absorb between three and four per cent of the carotenoids in raw carrots, that could increase by up to five times if the carrots were cooked and mashed.

"One of the problems with getting carotenoids into your body is the structure of the food, particularly the tough-walled cells like those in carrots. Cooking helps to release them," Dr Southon told the magazine.

The team also found that it was easier for the body to absorb vitamins from vegetables than from supplements.

The scientists - from the UK, the Netherlands Spain, Ireland and France - conducted their study using an artificial gut.

Producing guidelines

Interim results from the study were presented to the European Commission last month.

The researchers hope in future to work out precise amounts of carotenoids absorbed from food prepared in different ways so they get set recommended daily amounts.

But Sarah Schenker, a nutrition scientist at the British Nutrition Foundation, said people did not yet eat the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables per day, and so there was little point getting too concerned about how food was prepared.

She told BBC News Online: "It's a common misconception that raw vegetables are better for you, and perhaps this study will help rectify that, but it is far more important that people eat a variety of fruit and vegetables.

"It doesn't matter whether they're frozen, raw, mashed or whatever - just as long as you have five."