An Apple A Day Helps the Pounds Drop Away? by Nancy Schramm

Remember that old saying, "an apple a day keeps the doctor away"? Recent research appears to be supporting the idea that eating apples can help you lose weight.

So, they not only taste good, make a great cobbler or pie, can be center stage at Halloween parties either covered in caramel or floating in a bucket of water, and are a staple in the Flowers to Eat Strawberry Apple Banana Bliss™ bouquet, but they could help me lose weight?

How you ask?

Well, the fiber pectin in them does help you feel fuller, as well as the other benefits of having a sufficient amount of fiber in your diet. But there's more.

There is a chemical that occurs naturally in apples, ursolic acid, that has been linked to maintaining muscle mass. In one experiment with mice, the mice that were fed chow to which ursolic acid from apples was added:

• Gained 33% less belly fat
• Had an 11% higher metabolic rate
• Ran 38% longer on a treadmill exercise
• Stored 24% less fat in the liver

More research needs to be done with humans, but what a great way to preserve  muscle mass, which is important for maintaining a  metabolic rate that is sufficiently high enough to lose weight.

Read more about it on the Dole newsletter blog: http://newsletter.dole.com/2012/anti-obesity-apple/