It’s said that an apple a day keeps the doctor away. But could eating three apples a day have health benefits for those who are obese?
That is the question the Apple Study research team in the University of Guelph’s department of Human Health and Nutritional Sciences hopes to answer.
The team, overseen by associate professors Lindsay Robinson and Amanda Wright, is now recruiting volunteers to participate in a health and nutrition research study that will investigate the effects of eating Ontario-grown apples on those who are obese but in relatively good health. Gala apples will be used in the study.
Subjects will be required to chow down on three apples a day – three times what the doctor ordered. Financial compensation of up to $300 is available.
Danyelle Liddle, a PhD student who is the lead study coordinator, said a small body of research has been done in the past on the health benefits of eating apples. It showed that, yes, apples are good for you, for a number of reasons.
But that research was carried out on people who were basically fit and in good health, she said. This may be the first time the health benefits of apples have been studied related to obesity.
Whole apples, peel and all, are high in a bunch of good things, like polyphenols, soluble fibre, and bioactives.
The team is eager to find out what effect they have on risk factors for obesity-related chronic diseases, Liddle said in an interview.
“Basically, we’re looking to see if eating apples changes their blood lipid profile,” Liddle said.
A lipid profile consists of blood tests that screen for abnormalities in lipids, such as cholesterol and triglycerides, things that can result in obesity-related chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
“We’re also looking to see if eating apples changes their blood glucose, blood insulin levels, and particularly we are interested in their blood levels of inflammatory mediators, which are also markers of chronic diseases, or risks of chronic diseases,” Liddle said.
Liddle, along with Xinjie “Lois” Lin will conduct the study. They are looking for obese adults 18 to 65 years of age, who have elevated blood triglycerides.
There will be two groups of subjects. One will eat three apples in one sitting, just once. The other will eat three apples each day for six weeks. In this way, researchers hope to assess the short-term and long-term effects of apples on things like dietary fat digestion and absorption, blood sugar and insulin levels, inflammatory mediator production, and gut microbiota.
Liddle said gut microbiota – the complex community of microorganisms that live in the digestive tract – “plays a huge role in our health.” When it becomes dysregulated, she said, we become unhealthy.
“The question here is, can apples somehow reverse that unhealthy change, or can it maintain the health benefits of the gut microbiota,” she added.
While there may be health benefits to eating apples, apples have to be purchased to get those benefits. A component of the Apple Study will be looking at strategies for effective communication of the health benefits of apples, and look at ways to promote increased purchase and consumption of apples, Liddle added.
To learn more about the research call 519-824-4120 ext. 56967, or send an email to apples@uoguelph.ca.
