In a new study published in the Nutrients journal, researchers in New Zealand compared the effects of consuming red-fleshed apples (high anthocyanin content) and white-fleshed (control, low anthocyanin content) among healthy adults.
The flavonoid composition of apples reportedly affects the risk of cancer and alters immunological pathways such as the nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) levels.
Thereby, polyphenol intake may influence the incidence and progression of inflammatory diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and neurodegenerative disorders. Flavanoid-enriched apple intake also increases the abundance of beneficial microbes in the colonic microbiome.
The metabolization of flavonoids by intestinal microbes makes it critical to determine the association between polyphenol intake and the gut microbiota to ascertain the potential health benefits of consuming polyphenol-rich foods.
