Apples Increase Muscle Tone and Reduce Fat: Study

Who would have thought, eating an apple is like pumping iron? Okay, maybe that's a bit on the optimistic side of D, but hey, apples are good tasting and now a rival to Popeye's favorite strength builder. And at the same time the apple builds our muscles its eating our fat? Waiter, I'll have some apples with a side of apples!

Will an apple a day actually make you a big hit on the beach?

It's possible, as new research suggests that ursolic acid, which is found in abundance in an apple's peal, builds muscles while reducing fat.

In fact, in tests performed on lab mice, ursolic acid increased muscle tone by up to 15 percent, and reduced body fat by half.

Ursolic acid also appears to reduce blood sugar levels and cholesterol.

The next step for the University of Iowa scientists who made this discovery is to test ursolic acid's effects on humans.

If you like looking your best, you might as well get a head start and add more apples to your diet now - it can't hurt. (At the very least, now you know what to do if you want to own a really buff pet mouse.)

[Telegraph]