Consuming a well-balanced diet containing abundant fresh fruits and vegetables can help ensure your overall health. It can also lower your risk of several potentially serious chronic diseases. Apples, pears and bananas are three fruits that are beneficial when consumed regularly. Packed with nutrients, vitamins, minerals and healthy dietary fiber, they are good choices any time of day.
Apples, pears and bananas are good sources of energy-producing nutrients, primarily in the form of carbohydrate. Each fruit contains only a small amount of protein and essentially no fat, with the majority of its nutrients in the form of fructose, a natural and simple sugar found in fruits. Each is also relatively low calorie, with a medium apple or pear providing 95 to 100 calories and a medium banana containing 105 calories. Because your body metabolizes simple sugars such as fructose rapidly, converting them into glucose which is absorbed into your blood, these fruits are good choices when you need a quick energy boost, for example just before or after exercising.
Vitamins and Minerals
Like many fruits, apples, bananas and pears contain important vitamins. All three provide vitamins A and C, with a medium-sized fruit containing between 2 and 5 micrograms of vitamin A and between 8 and 10 milligrams of vitamin C. They also provide small amounts of all eight B vitamins, and bananas are especially rich in folate, with about 24 micrograms in a medium banana. Folate is a B vitamin critical for fetal development and for growth of infants and children. As an adult, you use it in the lifelong production of new cells. Apples, pears and bananas also provide several essential minerals, including calcium, iron, magnesium and phosphorus. Bananas are especially rich in potassium, a mineral needed by your nerves and muscles and one that helps you eliminate waste through your kidneys.
Apples, pears and bananas are all rich in dietary fiber, especially soluble fiber. Soluble fiber forms a gel when mixed with liquid in your stomach, slowing the digestive process and allowing you to obtain maximum nutrition from your food. It also slows uptake of cholesterol, an unhealthy saturated fat, and sugar from your food. This can help keep your blood cholesterol low and suppress spikes in blood glucose that occur after a carbohydrate-rich meal. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, consuming abundant soluble fiber can lower your risk of heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. When consumed with their peels, apples and pears also provide insoluble fiber, which helps keep your digestive system healthy and regular, reducing the incidence of constipation and other digestive problems.
According to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, you can increase the health benefits of your diet by consuming fruit regularly. The Guidelines recommend taking in at least 2 1/2 cups of fruits and vegetables daily. When choosing apples, pears or bananas, use fresh, whole fruit often, or consume unsweetened canned or frozen varieties. Minimize your consumption of fruit juices, especially those labeled as less than 100 percent juice or as a "fruit drink," which usually indicates sugar has been added. Other good choices include applesauce or cooked pears without added sugar. In addition, add bananas, apples and pears regularly to home-prepared baked goods to increase their content of dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals.
Articles For Your Diet
- Health.gov: 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans
- MayoClinic.com: Dietary Fiber: Essential for a Healthy Diet
- Choose My Plate: Focus on Fruits
- National Nutrient Database: Foods List
- Office of Dietary Supplements: Folate
- The Merck Manual Home Health Handbook: Potassium
- Harvard University School of Public Health: Fiber: Start Roughing It
- pears and bananas image by amlet from Fotolia.com