Next time you need a sugar boost, skip the chocolate bar and pick an apple instead. Apples can help you manage your blood sugar and lower your cholesterol. With a little imagination, apples can even add some nutrition to your baking.
Apples have both a low glycemic index (GI) and low glycemic (load), which makes them perfect for satisfying your sweet tooth without sending your blood sugar soaring.
1. Low Cal Choice
At about 80 calories each, apples are the perfect snack size just the way nature grew them.
2. Soothe Sugar Swings
Eating an apple a day can help you control your blood sugar and gain all the benefits that come with that control. Researchers have discovered that women who eat at least one apple a day are 28 percent less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those who don’t eat apples.
3. Fill up on Fibre
A medium apple dishes up an impressive 4 grams of fibre, mostly pectin, which is also known for its ability to lower cholesterol. But to get these benefits you need to eat the apple, not drink it. Apple juice is not much better than apple-flavoured liquid sugar.
4. Trim Your Tummy
A study from the State University of Rio de Janeiro found that eating three small apples a day as part of a reduced-calorie diet helped women not only lose more weight but also lower their blood sugar more than women who ate another food instead of apples.
5. Smart Substitutions
Instead of raisins:
- Try sliced apples on your oatmeal or other cereal. Unlike apples, raisins (and other dried fruit) have concentrated sugars that raise blood sugar more quickly than apples do.
- Instead of oil: Replace three-quarters of the butter or oil called for in cookie, cake, and brownie recipes with an equivalent amount of unsweetened applesauce.
- Instead of pickles: Add thinly sliced apples to sandwiches for a bit of tang and crunch.
Important Notice: This article was originally published at www.readersdigest.ca by Magic Foods, Reader’s Digest Canada where all credits are due.
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