Quince and Annurca Apple
“An apple a day keeps the doctor away“: one of the most famous sayings that enhances the importance of maintaining good eating habits thanks to the preventive action of the apple to have a healthy and strong body. Let’s find out the benefits of this fruit together, in particular today we are talking about two little-known apple varieties with beneficial properties. These are the quince typical of the Lodi area and the Campania Annurca apple, considered the queen of apples.
The fact that it has few calories makes this fruit precious for those who want to keep fit and above all for all sports enthusiasts thanks to its water, potassium and rapidly absorbed sugar content. Furthermore, the fiber contained in the peel slows down the absorption of sugar, thus creating a lower glycemic peak.
The quince fruit, Cydonia oblonga, belongs to the Rosaceae family and is rich in vitamins, minerals (especially calcium, potassium, magnesium and iron), amino acids (including glycine, aspartic acid and asparagine), pectin and tannins. All these active ingredients are present in every part of the fruit (pulp, peel and seed) giving organoleptic characteristics of excellent quality and food safety. Nating has produced a quince extract associated with AmaChol® amaranth with clinical studies under the name QuincyNat®. Thanks to the physical-chemical analysis carried out, this extract has a high titer of mucilage (25%) and this makes it very useful for reducing the absorption of bad cholesterol (LDL) in the blood and modulating blood sugar levels with a view to prevention for diabetes, overweight and metabolic syndrome. Furthermore, QuincyNat® is suitable for regulating intestinal activity and slowing down stomach emptying times, thus increasing satiety times. It is usually eaten cooked and is very versatile in its use precisely because it has numerous properties1.
In terms of food safety, the quince fruit and AmaChol® amaranth both have beneficial effects on the body as they are recognized and admitted by the Ministry of Health (Annex 1-Botanicals of the DM 10 August 2018), respectively for regularity of intestinal transit, emollient and soothing action on the digestive system and cholesterol metabolism. Characteristic of the annurca apple, on the other hand, in addition to the high fiber and vitamin content, is the high concentration of polyphenols such as quercetin, procyanidins, chlorogenic acid and florizin: these active ingredients make the annurca apple a functional food with significant free radical scavenging activity and anti-inflammatory activity (2). The fruit of the annurca apple, Malus pumila Mill, contains a good percentage of pectin with positive actions on the intestinal bacterial flora, favoring the development of beneficial species, and on the control of blood sugar and cholesterol. In this regard, a clinical study was conducted which showed improvements in the cholesterol levels of slightly hypercholesterolemic healthy subjects with the intake of Annurca apple (3).
Why choose these types of apples? Because both the quince and the annurca apple are healthy, satiating and therefore allies in counteracting nervous hunger and improving digestive processes. Versatile, good and excellent from a nutritional point of view.
Here are the main properties:
√ low glycemic index
√ rebalancing of metabolic parameters
√ anti-inflammatory
√ antioxidant and free radical scavenger
√ antimicrobial
√ astringent
√ hepatoprotective
Nating focuses on the wholesomeness of the product as an excellent source of phytonutrient extraction for applications in the nutraceutical and food fields. A real made in Italy heritage with a delicious and characteristic scent where food safety and sustainability mix to enhance the raw materials of the Italian territory.
