Juicing and drinking fruit juices are a superb way to get your daily allowances of fruit and vegetables. They are becoming more and more popular as part of health and fitness regimes. A particularly common and nutritious fruit to juice are apples. There are many tasty varieties of apples which can produce as many different blends of juice.

Apple juice is excellent in helping the function of the digestive system and for aiding the function of the kidneys. It is in the digestive tract that its cleansing properties makes apple juice a very popular drink. However, apple juice is also capable of purifying the blood and is very useful as a general tonic for the liver and skin.

Apples each have around 16 calories per ounce and contain a great number of vitamins including riboflavin, thiamine, carotene, vitamin B6, biotin and folic acid. It was once believed that apples contained high levels of vitamin C, however, it has since been discovered not to be the case.

The levels of vitamin C can vary quite a bit from apple to apple, and range from about 2mg to 35mg per hundred ounces. The types of apples that contain the highest levels of this vitamin are, Golden Noble, Ontario and Bramleys.

Citrus fruits such as lemons and, especially, oranges contain the highest concentrations of vitamin C. Apples, however, contain more antioxidants, like tannic acid, and minerals.

When apple juice is made fresh it has the tendency to discolor and turn brown quickly due to the process of oxidization. One way to diminish this effect and add extra taste to the juice is to add a little juice from a freshly squeezed lemon.

Many fruit juices like apple juice also contain higher quantities of polyphenols. Research has demonstrated that these chemicals may in fact assist in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease. Apples also contain important nutrients that act in a similar way to red wine and tea which help in the breakdown of LDL or bad cholesterol therefore helping reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Therefore, the phrase that an apple a day keeps the doctor away may in fact be quite true.

Apples could be considered a wonder fruit as they are not only a tasty, healthy food, that kids love, but drinking them in a juice can provide a significant boost to your health.