Eating More Fruit Is The Secret To A Healthy Weight, This Study Says

An apple a day doesn't just ward off doctors; it also keeps the pounds away.

A new study published by the British Medical Journal confirms what many nutritionists have said for years: eating fruit is essential to maintaining a healthy weight.The secret, according to the Boston-based researchers, is in the flavonoids. Flavonoids are naturally found in many plants, especially citrus fruits like oranges and grapefruits, and they were found to largely contribute to weight maintenance in adults.

Researchers looked at the diet and exercise lifestyles of 124,000 people middle-aged and older. They found that those who ate foods rich in flavonoid were able to maintain their weight better than those who did not, and some were even prone to losing weight faster than their fruit-abstaining peers.

According to the USDA, foods and drinks richest in flavonoids include tea, apples, bananas, blueberries, peaches, strawberries, pears, oranges, grapefruit, tomatoes, lemons, and even beer. The strongest flavonoids that seem to impact human weight the most are anthocyanins. Get your daily dose of anthocyanin from eating berries.