Guide to the Types and Benefits of Apricot

Originally cultivated in China, apricot is also known as Armenian plums. Apricots are small juicy fruits that look a lot like peaches. However, with regards to taste, apricots are known to have a tartness of purple plums. Apricots are packed with fiber, protein, vitamin A, C, E, and some essential minerals such as potassium. Consuming apricots is quintessential for numerous health benefits such as an improved digestive system and eye health.

Types of Apricots

1. Chinese Apricot

This type of apricot has a yellowish-orange skin. It is hard from the outside and tastes amazingly great.

2. Gold Cot

Gold apricot is grown on a very tall tree (15 ft.) which develops pink or white flowers at the beginning of the spring season. The fruit can be picked around the initial days of summer. This type of apricot is large and has orange skin.

3. Tilton

This type of apricot also has orange skin, and it is mostly used in preparing canned apricots.

4. Wenatchee

Also known by the name, Moorpark, this type of apricot has distinctively yellow skin.

5. Goldbar

Having yellow and orange-tinted skin, goldbar looks divine with a hint of red blushes here and there. This type of apricot is large and has an oval shape.

6. Gold Kist

Mostly used for preparing dried apricots, gold Kist is also large and has a rich taste.

7. Tomcot

This type of apricot is oval-shaped with about 5.4cm diameter. The skin of tomcot is light orange with a blush on the side that is exposed to the sun. It is not recommended to be used for canning.

8. Autumn Glo Apricot

This apricot is medium in size and can be picked during the first two weeks of August. It is full of rich taste and juice that defines the sweetness of apricots.

9. Blenheim Apricot

This apricot is delicious in taste and aroma. It blooms early and is mostly found in California.

10. Brittany Gold Apricot

This apricot is firm in texture and is also suitable for tougher climates. It is very juicy on the inside, and the flavor is divine.

11. Nugget Apricot

This apricot is large and has an eye-catching orange skin with red blushes. It is very soft on the inside and is quite tasty.

Health Benefits of Apricots

1. Low in calories and high in nutritious value

Consuming apricots in your daily diet is highly recommended. This fruit is packed with the following essential minerals and healthy components:

  • Calories
  • Carbs
  • Fiber
  • Vitamin A, C, and E
  • Potassium
  • Fat
  • Proteins

Apricots do not fill you up with unnecessary calories. Instead, they are an excellent source of carbs that keep you satiated for long. This helps in curbing the intermittent eating and munching of unhealthy foods. Moreover, apricots are a significant source of antioxidants, such as beta carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin. Thus, consuming apricots help fight the free radicals in your body and protect from cell damage.

2. Antioxidant property to fight the free radicals

Besides beta carotene, an important antioxidant, apricots are loaded with flavonoids such as chlorogenic acid and quercetin that are known to provide potential protection from diabetes and heart disease. Flavonoids are the compounds that help your body combat with the free radicals that are the main source of oxidative stress, which is linked to chronic diseases and obesity.

Hence, consuming apricots is necessary for maintaining a healthy body with low inflammation and oxidative stress.

3. Boosts the health of the eye

As apricots are a substantial source of vitamin A and E, they are regarded as important for maintaining your eye health. Vitamin A is found to have an important role in protecting us from several eye-related disorders, such night blindness. Additionally, vitamin E in the apricots is ascertained to play its part in protecting the eyes from free radical damage.

Beta carotene in apricots is highly important for receiving and converting vitamin A for the eye. Moreover, lutein and zeaxanthin in apricots are known as best against preventing the eye lenses from oxidative stress.

4. Beneficial for skin

Our skin is exposed to countless external factors that damage it and render it more vulnerable to various diseases, such as melanoma from exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light. Other detrimental factors for deterioration of our skin include a high percentage of pollution, cigarette smoke, and extreme exposure to the sun.

Consuming apricots is highly recommended to give natural protection to your skin from all the harmful factors. Fruits high in antioxidants, such as apricot, help in providing the body with vitamin C and E. These vitamins significantly help in fighting off the free radicals caused by the UV damage. Also, the consumption of vitamin C helps builds collagen for your skin. Collagen is extremely helpful in increasing the strength and elasticity of the skin.

Furthermore, research has indicated that beta carotene, found in apricots, is helpful in protecting from sunburns.

5. Beneficial for improved digestion

Fiber, an active component in apricots, is deemed important for maintaining the health of your stomach. There are two kinds of fiber that benefit the digestive system in different ways, and apricots are rich in both of them. The soluble fiber binds with water in the stomach and soothes the digestion process. Research has shown that soluble fiber is particularly helpful in regulating the blood sugar levels along with the cholesterol levels.

Another major benefit of including fiber-rich foods in your diet include a delay in the digestive process, which helps keeps you full for a long time. This is particularly beneficial for people aiming to tame their binge eating. Also, fiber is essential for feeding the gut bacteria, which leads to a substantially low risk of obesity.

6. Loaded with the benefits of potassium

Potassium is an essential mineral required by our bodies to maintain a healthy nervous system. Potassium plays a critical role in the sending of nerve signals concerning the movements of the muscles and fluid balance. The daily recommended consumption of potassium can be easily met by consuming 70g of apricots – which equals about two fresh apricots.

Ascertaining its role in regulating fluid balance in our bodies, potassium is known to have a significant role in maintaining the blood pressure. Research findings indicate that potassium consumption presented a significantly lower risk of stroke due to well-maintained blood pressure.

7. Keeps you Hydrated

Dehydration results in grave consequences for our overall health. It results in low blood volume, which in turn exerts pressure on the heart to work harder in pumping blood. A hydrated body also boosts a well-regulated excretory system that efficiently excretes all the wasted products.

Hence, consuming apricots not only benefits your skin and eyes, but it also helps you keep hydrated. Most of the people are unable to meet the daily requirements of water. Therefore, consuming fruits like apricots helps nourishes the body and keep it hydrated.

If you work out and have a tough routine, then it is a good idea to balance your electrolytes after a strenuous work out by eating apricots. Apricot is loaded with water and potassium, which helps maintain fluid balance in our bodies.

8. Good for the liver

Animal studies have indicated that apricots help in protecting the liver from oxidative stress. If proved in humans, this could mean substantial in curbing the adverse impacts of alcohol on the liver. The antioxidant property of apricots is ascertained to have benefits for preventing the liver from damage of the oxidative stress.

9. Boosts iron in the blood

Apricots are plant-produced that contain non-heme iron. This type of iron is ascertained to have a high absorption quality that implies that it remains in the blood for long. High consumption of iron is eminent for preventing anemia.

10. Diet-Friendly

One of the biggest advantages of apricots is that it is so easy to include in the diet. Apricots are best eaten whole (as they are). However, both dried and fresh forms of apricots can be consumed in various ways. You can mix them up in a trail mix or add them to your bowl of yogurt or fruit salad.

They are also consumed in savory dishes such as a chicken or beef stew. Cakes, pastries, and pies made of apricots are also very popular and tasty.

Final Words

Apricot is a delicious juicy fruit loaded with high water content, potassium, various vitamins, and fiber. It has antioxidant property and is thus very beneficial in preventing various skin and eye diseases along with other chronic diseases. Moreover, eating apricots is an efficient way of keeping up with the water requirements of your body.

Add them to your salad or toss them in your yogurt, apricots make the best desserts ever!