Bobbing for Health at Halloween
The purpose of this article is to provide you with historical facts and current health related information surrounding our love affair with the apple. And, as a bonus, there is a short quiz at the end to further expand your knowledge of the ultimate snack. Okay geocachers, have you ever wondered what food to take on your next geocaching trip? Look no further; apples are quite possibly the ultimate geocaching snack.
For millions of people around the world, eating 'an apple a day' is a phrase to live by. It is no secret that apples are good for our bodies and new scientific data suggests that apples may be much better for us than first thought. The purpose of this article is to provide you with historical facts and current health related information surrounding our love affair with the apple. And, as a bonus, there is a short quiz at the end to further expand your knowledge of the ultimate snack.
Humans have enjoyed the benefits of apples for centuries. According to the Midwest Apple Improvement Association, the ancients were truly enamored with fruit. From historical record, the MAIA developed the following time line:
8,000 B.C. - Nomadic hunter/gatherer societies invent agriculture and begin to "settle" in places throughout the "fertile crescent" from the Nile through the Tigris and Euphrates, the Indus, and Yellow River Valleys. Previously isolated gene pools from some of the 25 distinctly different species of apples found throughout the world are now brought in contact with each other and gene transfer among apple species occurs.
6,500 B.C. - Remains of apples are found among excavations at Jericho in the Jordan Valley and dated to this time period.
1,500 B.C. - A tablet found in northern Mesopotamia records the sale of an apple orchard by Tupkitilla, an Assyrian from Nuzi, for the significant sum of 3 prized breeder sheep.
401 B.C. - Greek historian and essayist, Xenophon is so inspired by walled fruit gardens throughout the Persian Empire that he establishes one on his own estate in Greece. He then proceeds to coin a new Greek word from the Persian pairidaeza, or walled garden, later becoming the Latin paradises, and finally in English paradise.
200 A.D. - Famous Greek physicians living in Rome, Galen and later Hippocrates, recommend sweet apples with meals as aids to digestion and sour apples only for fainting and constipation.
1100 A.D. - The Medical School of Salerno teaches the therapeutic value of apples with regard to disturbances of the bowels, lungs and nervous systems.
1665 A.D. - Sir Isaac Newton watches an apple fall to the ground and, wondering why it fell in a straight line, is inspired to discover the laws of gravitation and motion.
1904 A.D. - "An apple a day keeps the doctor away", proclaimed J.T. Stinson in an address to the St. Louis Exposition.
1988 A.D. - The great Alar hoax is perpetrated on the public as a scare tactic for fund raising by the Natural Resources Defense Council. Apple demand falls to zero as the media rushes to report one sensationalized story after another about harmless, nearly non-existent chemical residues on apples. Perception overrides reality and the U.S. apple industry goes into a steep economic decline. It is the year of peak apple production for Lynd Fruit Farm Inc. at 240,000 bushels. The consequential losses were enormous.
2000 A.D. - Researchers at the University of California discover powerful new anti-oxidants in apples.
It is believed that the Romans took cultivated apples with them into England when they conquered that country. Apple growing then became popular in England as well as the rest of Europe. Both apple seeds and plants were brought to America by Europeans sometime around 1629. The cultivation of apple trees quickly spread westward from the Atlantic coast. Today, the U.S. is the principle apple-producing country in the world.
There are many reasons to eat apples. From a health standpoint, apples appear to help fight many diseases as well as provide nutritional needs. According to the Washington State Apple Commission, the disease-fighting profile of apples provides a multitude of health benefits, including a potential decreased risk of cancer and heart disease. Several recent studies suggest apples may provide a "whole-body" health benefit.
A number of components in apples, most notably fiber and phytonutrients have been found in studies to lower blood cholesterol and improve bowel function. It may also be associated with a reduced risk of ischemic heart disease, stroke, prostate cancer, type II diabetes and asthma. Preliminary research from Finland indicates diets with the highest intake of apple phytonutrients were associated with a 46 percent reduction in the incidence of lung cancer. Findings indicate that two apples a day or 12 ounces of 100% apple juice reduced the damaging effects of the "bad" LDL cholesterol.
The University of Illinois Extension reports that apples are a source of both soluble and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber such as pectin actually helps to prevent cholesterol buildup in the lining of blood vessel walls, thus reducing the incident of atherosclerosis and heart disease. The insoluble fiber in apples provides bulk in the intestinal tract, holding water to cleanse and move food quickly through the digestive system.
Eat apples with their skin. Almost half of the vitamin C content is just underneath the skin. Eating the skin also increases insoluble fiber content. The nutritional quality of an apple varies on the type and size, however, for a typical medium sized apple the following is a nutritional breakdown.
Apple Nutrition Facts
(*One medium 2-1/2 inch apple, fresh, raw, with skin)
|
Calories 81 |
Iron .25 mg |
Source: USDA Nutrient Data Laboratory - Apple
Today, in the U.S. we consume about 19 pounds of apples per person per year. That is a little more than one per week, compared to the Europeans who consume 46 pounds of apples per year. The apple can provide geocachers a chance to improve their quality of life by making a healthier choice in their daily diet.
In conclusion, remember these five reasons to eat an apple everyday*:
Your Heart - Research confirms it! The antioxidant phytonutrients found in apples help fight the damaging effects of LDL (bad) cholesterol.
Your Diet - Apples are the perfect portable snack: great tasting, energy boosting, and fat free.
Your Lungs - An apple a day strengthens lung function and can lower the incidence of lung cancer as well.
Your Bones - Apples contain the essential trace element, boron, which has been shown to strengthen bones - a good defense against osteoporosis.
Your Digestion - Just one apple provides as much dietary fiber as a serving of bran cereal.
*Facts from www.virginiaapples.org
1. A medium apple contains approximately how many calories?
a.) Less than 10
b.) 50
c.) 80
d.) More than 100
2. Which of the following is not a part of the apple anatomy?
a.) Ear
b.) Cheek
c.) Flesh
d.) Eye
3. The average size of a United States apple orchard is?
a.) 50 acres
b.) 100 acres
c.) 500 acres
d.) Over 1,000 acres
4. The flower or apple blossom no longer exists once the fruit is mature.
a.) True
b.) False
5. Apples are grown in all 50 states.
a.) True
b.) False
6. Apples have how many seeds?
a.) 4
b.) 5
c.) 6
d.) 8
7. A bushel of apples weighs about how many pounds?
a.) 15
b.) 36
c.) 42
d.) 60
8. How many apples does it take to create one gallon of apple cider?
a.) 12
b.) 36
c.) 45
d.) More than 50
9. What is the most valuable fruit grown in the United States?
a.) Oranges
b.) Apples
c.) Grapes
d.) Bananas
10. The science of apple growing is called pomology.
a.) True
b.) False
11. What variety of apple is the most widely grown in the United States?
a.) Jonathan
b.) Granny Smith
c.) Gala
d.) Red Delicious
12. Which of the following is not a word used to represent the shape of an apple?
a.) Oblong
b.) Flat
c.) Round
d.) Oval
13. The fine apple aroma develops in what part of the apple?
a.) Core
b.) Stem (stalk)
c.) Skin
d.) Flesh
14. The normal life span of an apple tree is how many years?
a.) 50
b.) 100
c.) 200
d.) 300
15. The seeds of an apple contain traces of a deadly poison.
a.) True
b.) False
16. How many varieties of apples are grown throughout the world?
a.) 1000
b.) 2500
c.) 7500
d.) Over 10,000
17. The practice of 'bobbing for apples' was started by what group of people?
a.) Romans
b.) Greeks
c.) Early American settlers
d.) Celts
18. Bobbing for apples was first used to determine what event?
a.) Marriage
b.) Successful harvest
c.) Death
d.) Birth
19. Apples are member of what plant family?
a.) Evergreen
b.) Maple
c.) Red Bud
d.) Rose
20. The largest apple ever picked was thought to be how many pounds?
a.) 1
b.) 3
c.) 5
d.) 7