Comparison of pesticide residue and specific nutrient levels in peeled and unpeeled apples

Abstract

BACKGROUND Studies have shown that the consumption of apples has a beneficial effect on cardiovascular diseases and some cancers, largely as a result of their micronutrient and phytoconstituent contents. Apple peel not only contains more polyphenols than the flesh, but also is likely to contain pesticide residues. The present study aimed to compare the contents of certain micronutrients and residual pesticide levels in peeled and unpeeled apples. RESULTS Peeled apples contained fewer pesticide residues at lower concentrations than unpeeled apples. However, whether samples were peeled or not, the exposure values for pesticide residues in apples never exceeded the acceptable daily intake (ADI), but ranged between 0.04% and 2.10% of the ADI in adults for food intake estimated at the 95th percentile (277 g per person per day). Determination of polyphenol, fibre, magnesium and vitamin C levels showed that the nutritional differences observed between peeled and unpeeled apples were marginal. CONCLUSION The consumption of apples, such as the apples tested in the present study, results in an exposure to pesticides that is low for unpeeled apples, and lower for peeled apples. Moreover, there was no significant loss of nutritional value from eating peeled apples based on the nutrients investigated. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.

Supercritical CO₂ Extraction of Antioxidant Bioactive Components from Apple Peels and Their Modulation of Complex I Activity in Isolated Mitochondria

“…Table 1 shows the average values of the complete set of determinations (TAC, TPs, TFs, TAs and AA) performed on each apple peel SC-CO2 extract. The data obtained were in good agreement with the existing literature for all the analytes except for ascorbic acid, which was found in all extracts at concentration levels lower than expected [17,18]. T-test showed some statistically significant differences between the extracts of the three cultivars in the five assays (p<0.05).…”

“…Apple peel is a rich source of dietary fiber [15,17], minerals [17], flavonoids [15,18] and phenolic acids [15,18]. Polyphenols and dietary fiber exert a positive influence on the prevention of various diseases and have a positive effect on human health [2,16,19,20].…”

“…Nutritionists have detected that the apple is also an essential source of vitamins, such as C, B1, B2, B3, and A [17,21,22]. Various reports indicate that, like the polyphenols, the content of vitamin C is higher (1.5-to 3.3-fold greater), in the peel compared to its flesh.…”