Why you should eat an apple a day

But Dr Paul Kroon of the Institute of Food Research, says that they - along with other fruit and veg -are not ‘superfoods'. "The benefits of some fruits are over-hyped," he said. "Fruits can come out as a good source of antioxidants after a laboratory test, but when you eat an apple for instance, not all the nutrients that are in the apple go into your bloodstream. "Superfood is a term for the media and a great term for people trying to sell products, but the science behind
superfoods is complex and difficult and the data used to support superfoods is very superficial.

"Only a small portion of what we eat is actually found in the blood after it has been modified by our body. Compounds found in food are not always found in the blood." 

But if you're looking for the best fruit, go for blackberries, cranberries, blackcurrants, strawberries, raspberries and apples. According to Dr Kroon, they have high levels of polyphenols, antioxidants which IFR research has proved will stay in the blood.

"There are real health benefits to polyphenols. There is good evidence from our controlled experiments that shows that eating foods with high levels of polyphenols can reduce blood pressure and relax arteries, reducing the risk of heart attacks and strokes," said Dr Kroon. The real challenge is cancer. Despite claims to the contrary, Dr Kroon said there is no hard evidence of foods reducing the risk of cancer.