10 favorite fruits and the nutrients they contain

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1. Apple: An apple a day may not keep the doctor entirely away, but apples are nutritious, convenient, and always available. Apples get an A+ in fiber content, since they contain a lot of the soluble fiber, pectin, that helps to lower cholesterol. They also contain some cancer-fighting flavenoids. Eating a whole apple is more nutritious than drinking apple juice, since the fiber, vitamins, and minerals may be processed out of the juices. When the flesh of an apple turns brown, it means some of the nutrients have oxidized and are lost. To get the best that any fruit has to offer, eat it fresh.

2. Apricot: Five apricots contain around the same number of calories as one apple, but they have much more protein, calcium, iron, vitamin K, zinc, vitamin A, and folic acid. Apricots are high in beta carotene, as well as potassium and fiber. You'll find them on our list of the top ten nutritious fruits.

3. Apricot, dried: Dried apricots are a particularly good source of beta carotene, potassium, and fiber (3 grams per 10 dried apricot halves). When purchasing dried apricots, read the label. Preservatives, such as sulfites or sulfur- dioxide, are often used to maintain apricots' orange color. These will be listed on the label. Sulfites can be an allergen for some people. You can purchase sulfite-free apricots in health food stores. Even though they are a less appealing, brownish color, they are equally nutritious. It is not worth consuming extra sulfites just so the apricots look more orange.

4. Avocado: Avocados are usually thought of as a vegetable, but they are really a fruit, with more nutrition than any other fruit. Avocados are especially high in protein, fiber, niacin, thiamin, riboflavin, folic acid, and zinc. Avocados get the lion's share of their calories from fat, and while these are the heart-healthy monounsaturated fats with no cholesterol, you pay a caloric price. While weight-conscious adults might want to stick to an apple a day rather than an avocado a day, the high calorie content of avocados makes them a good food for growing children. The fat content of avocados depends upon the variety. Florida avocados have about half the fat and two-thirds the calories of California avocados. Another healthy fat that avocados contain are Omega 3 fatty acids.

5. Banana: Bananas mash easily for baby food and blend nicely into a sweet smoothie. They contain a lot of potassium, so eating a daily banana is helpful to people on certain medications, such as diuretics, which may deplete the body of potassium. Even though most bananas are imported, the easy-to-peel feature of bananas makes it easy to peel the pesticides off.

6. Blueberries: On the surface, blueberries don't seem to pack any particular standout nutrient. Yet recent studies have shown that blueberries have healthy stuff in their skin, an antioxidant, cancer-fighting phyto, called anthocyanin . Blueberries are an excellent fruit for making smoothies. Their sweet taste and rich purple color give any smoothie a more appealing taste, texture, and color.

7. Cherries: Cherries contain some beta carotene, and sour cherries contain more beta carotene than sweet cherries.

8. Grapefruit: Grapefruit is a great fruit, low in calories, high in fiber, with lots of vitamin C. If you get the pink or red variety instead of the white, grapefruit is also rich in beta carotene. Half the fiber is the insoluble type (good for the intestines) and half is soluble pectin fiber (good for the heart). Remember, though, that a lot of fiber is in the stringy walls that separate the segments. If you're digging out grapefruit segments with a spoon, you'll miss out on much of the fiber.

9. Kiwi: Kiwi is a great source of vitamin C. Try cutting it in half and eating it out of the peel with a spoon.

10. Orange: Oranges are known for their vitamin C content, but they're also a good source of folate and fiber. They even contain some calcium. As with grapefruit, the white membrane under the skin of the orange contains more vitamin C than the flesh and a lot of the pectin fiber. When peeling the orange, try to leave the white inner peeling on and eat it with the flesh (if you don't mind the slightly bitter taste).

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4. Avocado: Avocados are usually thought of as a vegetable, but they are really a fruit, with more nutrition than any other fruit. Avocados are especially high in protein, fiber, niacin, thiamin, riboflavin, folic acid, and zinc. Avocados get the lion's share of their calories from fat, and while these are the heart-healthy monounsaturated fats with no cholesterol, you pay a caloric price. While weight-conscious adults might want to stick to an apple a day rather than an avocado a day, the high calorie content of avocados makes them a good food for growing children. The fat content of avocados depends upon the variety. Florida avocados have about half the fat and two-thirds the calories of California avocados. Another healthy fat that avocados contain are Omega 3 fatty acids.

i eat almost 3 a day