Shelf Life: How Long Does Fruit Stay Nutritious?
You've got a ripe banana and a juicy plum. Which one's antioxidants will hold up best after a couple of days in your fruit bowl?
The answer: Eat the banana now. Turns out bananas may lose their antioxidant qualities quickly. Dark plums, on the other hand? They could actually get a tiny antioxidant boost with short storage. Here's how other fruit holds up.
Time on My Side
The antioxidants in black grapes, apples, oranges, and tomatoes (yes, tomatoes are fruit!) also seem to hold up well during storage. But not so much when it comes to apricots and cherries.
Fun with Polyphenols
Researchers are busy finding the best way to measure the antioxidant power of individual pieces of fruit. Not an easy task, because the content can vary from piece to piece within the same variety of fruit, depending on the fruit's genes, the environment in which it grew, when it was harvested, and how it was stored. But you don't have to wait for the final results. Start boosting the colors in your diet right now with these tips.
RealAge Benefit:
Eating a diverse diet that includes 4 servings of fruit per day can make your RealAge as much as 4 years younger.
Evolution of antioxidant capacity during storage of selected fruits and vegetables. Kevers, C., Falkowski, M., Tabart, J., Defraigne, J. O., Dommes, J., Pincemail, J., Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 2007 Oct 17;55(21):8596-8603.
