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Study reveals whether an ‘apple a day’ really keeps the doctor away
The phrase an apple a day keeps the doctor away, has been a popular one in the English language for years and is something youve almost certainly heard your parents say but what are the origins of the proverb and is there any actual truth in it?
While social media is often full of nifty health hacks and self-care tips, the saying an apple a day keeps the doctor away long pre-dates the likes of Instagram and TikTok and has been passed down through the generations, so much so that actual medical studies have been conducted to see if there is a genuine link between eating apples and the frequency of visits to the doctor.
Origins of the apple a day phrase
The proverb is believed to have originated in the county of Pembrokeshire in Wales.
An early variant of the phrase was recorded in 1866 as: Eat an apple on going to bed, and youll keep the doctor from earning his bread.
According to the Washington Post, the term went through several evolutions before its current guise including an apple a day, no doctor to pay and an apple a day sends the doctor away.
The phrase we know today was reportedly first recorded in print in 1887 – described then as an old saying – in a copy of The Wrexham Advertiser: He advocated the increased use of fruit, for he believed in the old saying, An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
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Study reveals whether an ‘apple a day’ really keeps the doctor away
There have been multiple studies into the health benefits of apples which are low in both calories and sodium while also high in fiber and vitamin C.
The Washington Post referenced two studies, one conducted at Ohio State University in 2012 that found that eating an apple each day helped significantly lower levels of bad cholesterol in middle-aged adults, and another carried out by Dutch researchers in 2011 which found that eating apples and pears might help prevent strokes.
A more recent study, published in the JAMA medical journal in 2015 found that evidence does not support that an apple a day keeps the doctor away when results were adjusted for sociodemographic and health-related characteristics.
The study did find, however, that the small fraction of US adults who eat an apple a day do appear to use fewer prescription medications than non-apple eaters.
While eating an apple each day may not stop you from visiting the doctor, the study concluded: There may be merit to saying, An apple a day keeps the pharmacist away.
