There seems to be some truth in the old saying: "An apple a day keeps the doctor away."
A new study in the Chinese population said Wednesday that people who eat fresh fruit on most days are at lower risk of heart attack and stroke than people who rarely eat fresh fruit.
The findings, published by the New England Journal of Medicine, came from a seven-year study of half a million adults in China, where fresh fruit consumption is much lower than in countries like the UK or the United States.
Researchers from the University of Oxford and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences conducted a large, nationwide study of 500,000 adults from 10 urban and rural localities across China, tracking health for seven years through death records and electronic hospital records of illness.
The participants did not have a history of cardiovascular diseases or anti-hypertensive treatments when they first joined the study.
The study found that eating fruits, mainly apples or oranges, was strongly associated with many other factors, such as education, lower blood pressure, lower blood glucose, and not smoking in China.
But, after allowing for what was known of these and other factors, a 100-gram portion of fruit per day was associated with about one-third less cardiovascular mortality and the association was similar across different study areas and in both men and women.
"The association between fruit consumption and cardiovascular risk seems to be stronger in China, where many still eat little fruit, than in high-income countries where daily consumption of fruit is more common," study author Huaidong Du of the University of Oxford said.
Also, fruit in China is almost exclusively consumed raw, whereas much of the fruit in high-income countries is processed, and many previous studies combined fresh and processed fruit, said Du.
Senior author Zhengming Chen, professor at the University of Oxford, noted that it's difficult to know whether the lower risk in people who eat more fresh fruit is because of a real protective effect.
"If it is, then widespread consumption of fresh fruit in China could prevent about half a million cardiovascular deaths a year, including 200,000 before age 70, and even larger numbers of non-fatal strokes and heart attacks," Chen added.
GMT 14:01 2018 Thursday ,30 August
Expat with rare heart disorder gets life-saving surgeryGMT 00:18 2018 Tuesday ,23 January
Boy with 10-pound tumour on face diesGMT 21:23 2018 Monday ,22 January
All set for first global medical tourism conference in DubaiGMT 22:46 2018 Sunday ,21 January
Second face transplant for FrenchmanGMT 07:51 2018 Saturday ,20 January
Trio aquitted of negligence in Canada railway disasterGMT 10:57 2018 Thursday ,18 January
Breastfeeding for 6 months cuts diabetes risk in half: studyGMT 16:10 2018 Wednesday ,17 January
Child mummy in Italy had hepatitis, not smallpoxGMT 18:36 2018 Tuesday ,16 January
Greece strikes cause transport chaos, healthcare delaysMaintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Send your comments
Your comment as a visitor