(NaturalNews) An apple a day... you know the rest. This old adage has seen its day but is now becoming appropriate again. Several studies are re-examining the health values of bioactive compounds in apples over time. Now, non-bioactive compounds are being discovered to help balance bowel microbiota as prebiotics.

A study performed by Washington State University's Department of Food Sciences observed that apples contain indigestable compounds that created fecal microbial balances in obese mice that duplicated the microbial balance of thinner, healthier mice.

All apples contain these indigestable compounds that pass through the gastrointestinal (GI) tract intact and are not metabolized by the body, allowing them to go into the bowels intact to finally become fermented and help create more probiotic bacteria in the colon. The association to obesity versus normality was obvious.

Several types of apples were used with the mice to determine if there were differences in the influences of indigestable compounds on their colon -- bowel microbial balance. The varieties of apples researched: Braeburn, Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, McIntosh, Granny Smith and Red Delicious.

Granny Smith apples won this colon/fecal microbial balance contest. Though the obesity issue was addressed directly, related preventions against and potential solutions for diabetes and inflammation, the root cause of many autoimmune disorders, are what the researchers wish to "further study" for medical ramifications.

But since most of us already know apples may help reduce inflammation, we don't have to wait. There is only one caveat.

Apples must be organic

Non-organic apples are among the most heavily sprayed produce out there. They made it into the Environmental Working Group's Dirty Dozen. If you know a local apple orchid owner who doesn't spray his trees or put herbicides into the soil but isn't "USDA certified" organic, you may get a better deal through the local source. But will that source provide Granny Smith apples?

You may have read or heard that organic apple orchids are sprayed with antibiotics to resist an airborne bacterium that causes "fire blight," which lives up to its name by spreading rapidly and leaving trees looking scorched within days, as though there had been a fire.

It's argued that antibiotic spraying occurs during apple blossom time, before apples appear. The amount of residue on apples, if any, is extremely negligible, according to the EPA. Oh well, take that with a grain of salt. So are trace amounts of fluoride in drinking water.

Since 2002, the USDA has allowed the use of tetracycline and streptomycin by organic growers to combat the bacteria that cause fire blight. Not all apple growers use antibiotics. According to The Cornucopia Institute, an organic consumer watchdog, 56 percent don't, mostly to enable exporting to areas that ban the use of antibiotics on produce.

Organic apple/pear growers spray less antibiotics than conventional growers. And some organic growers claim that they'll not bother with organic certification and resort to normal commercial standards if they're prohibited from using antibiotics to protect against fire blight.

Nevertheless, there are a few biological controls cited by the USDA to prevent fire blight. Some farmers claim that they do not work. Others say they do work but require diligence and are more costly. But apparently, Canadian and European apple orchids are managing without using antibiotics to prevent fire blight.

As a result of a huge petition initiated by the Organic Consumers Association and Cornucopia and sent to the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) in early 2013, the NOSB didn't muster enough votes to get the 2/3 majority necessary to allow fire blight antibiotic use during 2013-14.

But the NOSB is pushing to allow for "emergency use" of tetracycline for fire blight after 2014. Tune in and ask questions, apple and pear consumers.

Sources:

http://www.sciencedirect.com

http://www.ewg.org

http://www.pccnaturalmarkets.com

http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com

http://science.naturalnews.com