Office fruit box news:

Can fruit be romantic? Apple marketer Pink Lady has teamed up with up-market retailer Harrods to launch a limited selection of apples bearing heart-shaped ‘birthmarks’, just in time for Valentine’s Day.

Growers in the south of France developed 2,000 of the pink-skinned apples – each with a unique heart-shaped imprint – by placing heart-shaped stickers on individual fruits during cultivation.

The apples will be available from Harrods from February 8th at a slightly steep £3 each.

However, all proceeds will be donated to the Kiss It Better campaign, run by Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital Charity to raise money for research into childhood cancer.

Apples are a natural source of energy and packed with vitamin C – a single fruit supplies a quarter of a person’s recommended daily allowance of vitamin C.

However, almost half of the vitamin C content of an apple lies directly under its skin – making it more beneficial to eat them unpeeled.

Office fruit box news:

Fruit plays an important part in many religious ceremonies, not least the Jewish celebration Tu BiSh’vat.

Beginning today (January 29th), Tu BiSh’vat continues until January 30th, and sees peaches, grapes, bananas and other fruits consumed as part of the celebrations.

Traditionally, Tu BiSh’vat marks the time when trees are nourished by the rains of the new year, as opposed to the rain of the previous year.

The involvement of fruit in the celebrations dates back to the days of the Temple in Jerusalem, when taxes were collected on fruit trees.

This tax was determined by the age of the tree, and as Tu BiSh’vat was considered the birthday of the trees it was particularly symbolic.

The Tu BiSh’vat ceremony includes four blessings. In the first, fruits hard on the outside and soft on the inside, such as coconuts, are eaten to symbolise the protection of the earth.

In the second, fruits with a pit in the centre – such as peaches and apricots – are eaten to remind worshippers of internal spirituality and strength.

The third blessing involves fruits which are completely edible, such as figs and grapes, which symbolise God’s omnipresence.

Finally, the fourth blessing involves fruits which have a tough skin on the outside but are sweet within, such as mangos and bananas, which symbolise the mystery of the world and the study of Torah.

Snacking on fresh fruit from the office fruit box is much healthier than eating packs of dried fruit, BBC’s Panorama has claimed.

In the programme What’s Really in Our Kids’ Food?, screened on January 28th, Panorama presenter Shelley Jofre investigated the growing market in ready meals and pre-packed snacks aimed at children.

Consultation with a leading nutritionist revealed ‘healthy’ snacks such as Fruit Flakes – also a popular lunchbox addition for adults – were little better than sweets thanks to their high sugar content.

Surprisingly, the company that manufactures Fruit Flakes agreed.

"I must say, our view is very similar to that of [Panorama's] nutritionist," Ian Ding, managing director of Stream Foods, said in a statement.

"The healthiest option for a child’s snack is a piece of fruit and we make no pretence of anything else."

He added, however, that Stream Foods believe Fruit Flakes offered an alternative to chocolate and crisps that is nutritionally beneficial as well as tasty.

According to the Food Standards Agency, dried fruit is lower in certain vitamins, including vitamin C, and contains more sugar because the water has been removed.

Office fruit box news:

Eating a healthy diet with lots of fruit can help women control their weight during and after pregnancy, as well as offering their child the best start in life, a leading nutritionist has said.

Dr Jacquie Lavin, head of nutrition and research at Slimming World, underlined the importance of new mums maintaining a healthy diet – both during pregnancy and once they have given birth.

In addition, she noted that developing healthy eating habits would give new mums the best possible chance of a healthy life for the whole family.

Her comments follow a study recently published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, which found that most married women gain an extra 5lbs post-pregnancy.

Dr Lavin said that while weight gain was understandable before and after having children, it was a common misconception that pregnancy meant women should be ‘eating for two’.

She said that preventing excess weight gain in pregnancy has been found to reduce the risk of complications such as premature birth or pre-eclampsia and may also help improve the future health of the child.

Office fruit box news:

Fruit is the key to success, according to American freeskier and Winter X Games athlete Sammy Carlson.

"I definitely eat a lot of fruit," Mr Carlson told ESPN.

"Some days it’s a half of a pineapple, a banana, an apple and some oranges."

He says a healthy diet makes him feel "a lot better and more energetic", which is important seeing as he spends a lot of the time performing big jumps and daredevil stunts on the slopes.

And while the 17-year-old admits he had a weakness for sweet when he was younger, these days he satisfies his sweet tooth with fruit snacks.

Everyone knows it is recommended to eat five portions of fruit and veg a day for optimum health, but with a busy lifestyle it is not always easy to achieve.

A quick way of getting the right amount could be to start the day with a glass of orange juice and a banana, have an apple as a mid-morning snack, a pear in the afternoon and strawberries and blueberries to follow your evening meal.

Office fruit box news:

Low calorie diets – which can be aided by swapping junk food snacks such as chocolate and crisps for a healthy piece of fruit – are shown to be of greater benefit for helping overweight Brits lose weight than conventional diets.

A twelve-month trial carried out by the Centre for Obesity Research and Epidemiology at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen found that people with a body mass index (BMI) at or above 35, who consumed 600 calories less than the recommended daily levels, lost an average of 31 kilograms.

Study leader professor Iain Broom said that the "energy deficit" for those on a very low calorie diet was "quite large, and consequently the weight loss will be somewhat faster".

However, he noted that there was no difference in the body composition change with a longer term use of VLCDs than with standard diets.

A healthy weight is a BMI of between 20 and 25 according to the British Nutrition Foundation.

Office fruit box news:

Blueberries can help to improve memory and could even reduce the risk of developing dementia, according to recent research.

A report published this month in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry features the first evidence from human clinical trials suggesting that blueberries are beneficial as a memory enhancer.

The study involved a group of volunteers over the age of 70, all of whom were experiencing early memory decline.
One group drank the equivalent of between two and two-and-a-half cups of a commercially available blueberry juice every day for two months, while a control group drank a beverage without blueberry juice.
At the end of the study, the blueberry juice group showed significant improvement during learning and memory tests, scientists said.

Eating healthily is an important way to reduce your risk of developing dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Society.

A spokesperson confirmed that evidence suggests antioxidants found in fruit – of which blueberries are one of the richest sources – could help prevent oxidation, a process associated with cell damage and aging.

"Growing evidence also suggests that antioxidants can help lower the risk of developing dementia," the spokesperson added.

Oranges and grapefruit are essential in maintaining a healthy diet, particularly in the midst of the current cold and flu season, a nutritionist has said.

Toronto registered dietician Lydia Knorr told the Canadian Press that to ensure a healthy diet it is essential to eat foods with vitamin C, antioxidants and components like potassium, which is important for regulating blood pressure.

Fresh citrus fruits eaten along with their membrane, pith and flesh are also high in fibre, Ms Knorr says.

However, she adds that it is better to eat whole fruit – such as that found in the office fruit box – to maximise your vitamin intake as fresh juice, while still a good choice, will not contain as much fibre.

Half a grapefruit and one medium -sized orange each equate to one of your five daily servings of fruit and veg, as recommended for optimum health by the NHS.

Office fruit box news:

Every school in London should start growing their own fruit and vegetables, Boris Johnson said today.

The Mayor of London has written to more than 2,300 primaries in the capital urging them to join the Capital Growth scheme, which encourages schools to create gardens or expand the ones they have.

Schools entering into the scheme will also take part in a contest to create the best gardens, with a chance to win a visit from Chris Collins, the Blue Peter gardener.

Whether tending plots in paint pots or on the perimeter of a playing field, Mr Johnson said the fruit and veg growing scheme would help keep children healthy, as well as providing them with a lifelong skill.

"What better way to bring alive elements of the school curriculum than through hands-on experience in growing your own grub?" he said.

Fresh fruit is a good source of vitamins and minerals, including folate, vitamin C and potassium as well as being an excellent source of dietary fibre, states the NHS.