Nutritional scientist Tim Spector has spoken about how cooks shouldn’t discard a key ‘superfood’ which is often thrown away. The professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London and founder of the Zoe health app spoke out on Instagram to tell people not to throw out the peel from fruit and vegetables. Prof Spector said that it is generally laden with chemical polyphenols which have a very beneficial impact on health.
They are very good for the stomach microbiome which reduces inflammation in the body - and this can assist in avoiding dementia, arthritis and diabetes. And they frequently contain more vitamin C than the flesh inside, which helps reduce blood pressure, heart disease and dementia. They also contain much more fibre and experts say if increase your fibre intake, you can significantly reduce your cholesterol levels.
Eating 5g more fibre a day can reduce blood pressure by twice as much as reducing salt, Prof Spector has explained. He said: “Here’s a tip to help you get more nutrition from your food. I often talk about the benefits of polyphenols, for your health and particularly for promoting the growth of beneficial gut bacteria.
“Polyphenols are defence chemicals so are most abundant in the skin of plants where they are needed to protect against the elements and predators. In apples, there may be around 30 times more polyphenols in the skin than the flesh.” The professor added: “As well as polyphenols, peels are often the most fibre and .