APPLES MAY REDUCE
RISK OF LUNG CANCER

Study research

Remember the Old Adage "An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away"

ATLANTA (October 30, 1997) -- Consumers have been told for years that apples are good for them. Now there is a new scientific reason why that is true. A study conducted by researchers from Finland's National Public Health Institute in Helsinki recently found that the flavonoids from apples played a critical role in decreasing the risk of lung cancer.

Flavonoids are key antioxidant compounds produced by plant metabolism. The study revealed that a cancer protective effect stems from the flavonoid content found in apples, vegetables, and other fruits -- and probably not from their vitamin C and beta carotene content. According to the researchers, not just any flavonoid made the difference. Quercetin, a flavonoid largely found in apples, provided 95 percent of the total flavonoid intake in the population studied. The likelihood of developing lung cancer among those who ate the most apples fell by 58 percent relative to those who ate the least amount of apples.

Researchers documented the diets of 9,959 cancer-free men and women ages 15 to 99 beginning in 1965. By 1991, only 997 cancer cases were diagnosed, of which 151 were lung cancer. Statistical analysis revealed that people who regularly consumed the most flavonoid-rich foods -- apples, onions, fruits, juices, vegetables, and jams -- were about 20 percent less likely to develop cancer. Lung cancer was 46 percent lower among those whose diets contained the highest amount of flavonoids, particularly from apples.

"For centuries we've been told to eat apples to maintain our health," stated Sue Taylor, R.D., director of nutrition communications for the Processed Apples Institute. "Now, science is uncovering the phytonutrients in apples and apple juice that define their important contribution to the diet."

The researchers concluded that the higher the apple intake, the lower the lung cancer risk and possibly some other malignancies, including skin cancer and colon cancer. "Of the major dietary flavonoid sources, the consumption of apples showed an inverse association with lung cancer incidence," they stated. The study was published in the American Journal of Epidemiology (vol. 146, No. 3, 1997).

APPLES MAY REDUCE
RISK OF LUNG CANCER