Eating pears linked to a lower body weight

An apple a day might keep the doctor away, but a pear a day could keep obesity away.

Adults who ate pears had a lower body weight than those who didn’t consume pears, according to a recent study. They also were 35 percent less likely to be obese.

“Americans fall short on dietary fiber,” said Dr. Joanne Slavin, study author, in a news release. “The high content of dietary fiber in pears and their effects on gut health set pears apart from other fruit and deserves further study.”

The study also found that eating pears was associated with higher diet quality. Eating one pear a day was also tied to consuming more fiber, vitamin C, magnesium, copper, potassium and lower intake of monosaturated fatty acids, saturated fatty acids and added sugars.

Jamie Portnoy, a registered dietitian with Advocate Weight Management in Libertyville, Ill., says that adding fruit, like pears, to person’s diet is beneficial.

She shares the following health benefits:

• Packed with nutrients such as dietary fiber (5.52g/serving)
• High in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals
• Very low in calories, 4 ounces of fresh pear contains approximately 60 calories

Portnoy encourages individuals to eat the skin of most fruit, including pears.

“Recent studies have shown that the skin of pears contains at least three to four times as many phenolic phytonutrients as the flesh,” she says. “These are antioxidants, anti-inflammatory flavonoids and potentially anti-cancer. The skin of the pear has also been shown to contain about half of the pears total dietary fiber.”

A few ways to incorporate pears into person’s diet include:

• 4 ounces fresh pear by itself as a snack
• 4 ounces fresh pear with a serving of low-fat cheese
• Cut-up a pear and place it into a salad
• Pear-quinoa salad (quinoa, walnuts, pears, salt, pepper)
• 4 ounces fresh pear and one serving of almond butter