Fresh Fruit for Your Heart

Brightly colored, naturally sweet, and pleasantly crisp—what’s not to love about fresh fruit? Add more fresh fruit to your day and your heart may tick a little longer too, says a 2016 study published in The New England Journal of Medicine. 

Chinese researchers looked at the diets of nearly half a million adults and monitored their health for about ten years. Daily fresh fruit-eaters had lower blood pressures, lower blood sugar levels and overall healthier hearts. Compared with those who never ate fruit, people who ate fresh fruit every day were 40% less likely to die from heart disease, 34% less likely to have suffered a major coronary event, and about 30% less likely to have had a stroke. Data suggests that 16% of deaths from cardiovascular disease may be attributed to low fruit consumption. 

Adding more fresh fruit to your diet is easy! Here are ten delicious ways to naturally sweeten your day: 

1. Blend fresh fruit into smoothies. Bananas and pineapple bring tropical flavor. Try the Tropical Green Smoothie. 
2. Fold berries into whole wheat muffins, quick bread or coffee cake mix.  
3. Substitute fresh grapes for jelly in a peanut butter sandwich. 
4. Try grilling fruit like pineapple and peaches. Our Grilled Tropical Split is a delicious dessert. 
5. Mix blueberries into quinoa, barley or other grain salads.  
6. Stir ripe banana into oatmeal as a natural sweetener—it adds creamy texture too. 
7. Add pineapple to chicken and vegetable stir-fry. 
8. Make a mango salsa to enjoy over grilled fish. 
9. Enjoy banana “ice cream” for dessert. Pumpkin Spice Frozen Swirl is tasty any time of year. 
10. Eat fresh fruit as a snack—apples, grapes, berries and bananas are convenient on-the-go. 

Published June 1, 2016