Apple vs Pear – Which is Healthier?

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Our Verdict

When comparing apple to pear, we picked the pear.

Why?

Both are great! But there’s a category that puts pears ahead of apples…

Looking at their macros first, pears contain more carbs but also more fiber. Both are low glycemic index foods, though.

In the category of vitamins, things are moderately even: apples contain more of vitamins A, B1, B6, and E, while pears contain more of vitamins B3, B9, K, and choline. That’s a 4:4 split, and the two fruits are about equal in the other vitamins they both contain.

When it comes to minerals, pears contain more calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, and zinc. A resounding victory for pears, as apples are not higher in any mineral.

In short, if an apple a day keeps the doctor away, a pear should keep the doctor away for about a day and a half, based on the extra nutrients ← this is slightly facetious as medicine doesn’t work like that, but you get the idea: pears simply have more to offer. Apples are still great though! Enjoy both! Diversity is good.

Want to learn more?

You might like to read:

From Apples To Bees, And High-Fructose Cs: Which Sugars Are Healthier, And Which Are Just The Same?

Take care!

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  • Vaginal Probiotics: What Does The Science Say?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    It’s Q&A Day at 10almonds!

    Have a question or a request? We love to hear from you!

    In cases where we’ve already covered something, we might link to what we wrote before, but will always be happy to revisit any of our topics again in the future too—there’s always more to say!

    As ever: if the question/request can be answered briefly, we’ll do it here in our Q&A Thursday edition. If not, we’ll make a main feature of it shortly afterwards!

    So, no question/request too big or small 😎

    ❝Is there any merit to vaginal probiotics?❞

    What a fun question! First let’s break it down, as this could mean two different things:

    1. Probiotics, which you consume, using your mouth, which are marketed as benefiting vaginal health
    2. Probiotics taken as a vaginal pessary/suppository, to act directly there

    The former has limited evidence for it, but generally speaking, improving one’s gut health improves all other areas of health, so it’s not surprising if it helps this too.

    See for example:

    Ingestion of yogurt containing Lactobacillus acidophilus compared with pasteurized yogurt as prophylaxis for recurrent candidal vaginitis and bacterial vaginosis

    Some notes:

    • candidal vaginitis means a yeast infection causing vaginal inflammation
    • bacterial vaginosis means a vaginal bacterial imbalance (generally also featuring vaginal inflammation, though it can be asymptomatic)

    In the latter case, the “imbalance” in question is usually a shortage of Lactobacillus sp. (that is to say, the diverse species of the Lactobacillus genus) resulting in an overgrowth of other kinds of bacteria, which in turn results in changing the vaginal microbiome to make it warmer and more acidic than it should be.

    While a healthy vagina shouldn’t smell of roses, it shouldn’t smell fishy either; if it does, that’s a sign of bacterial vaginosis.

    What it’s supposed to be like: slightly bitter, slightly salty, distinctly umami, along with a cocktail of personal pheromones (and if menstruating or otherwise* vaginally bleeding, then of course add: iron/”metallic”). The pheromones will also reflect any hormonal changes, but should never make anything smell bad, just different.

    *e.g. due to PCOS, fibroids, etc. Note that in the case of PCOS, it may also smell a little different (if it does, then usually: a little more musky), due to often different hormone levels. Again: it still shouldn’t smell bad, though, just different.

    In the above-linked study, taking more live Lactobacillus acidophilus (in yogurt, eating it, with their mouths) improved levels of L. acidophilus in the vagina. While the study authors concluded “this ingestion of yogurt may have reduced episodes of bacterial vaginosis”, which is rather a weak claim, it can be argued that it merely improving the levels of L. acidophilus in the vagina was already a win.

    That was a small (n=42, and only 7 followed through to completion) and old (1996) study, and it bears mentioning that most of the studies into this seem to be small and old, but conclude similarly with weakly positive statements.

    However, it does make a difference what kind of Lactobacillus is used, for example in this next study…

    • L. fermentum RC-14 worked well (90% success rate)
    • L. rhamnosus GR-1 worked somewhat (40% success rate)
    • L. rhamnosus GG did not work (0% success rate)

    So, diversity is key, and getting a wide range of Lactobacillus sp. seems to be a safe bet.

    Short version: enjoying probiotics as part of your diet probably improves vaginal health, just like it improves pretty much everything else.

    See also: Make Friends With Your Gut (You Can Thank Us Later)

    You would think that this would mean that taking probiotics as a vaginal pessary/suppository would be even better, but the results are weaker, as in this study, which produced temporary improvements in about half the study group, with only 3 out of 28 being free of bacterial vaginosis the next month:

    Treatment of bacterial vaginosis with lactobacilli

    This study got better results, with a 61% success rate:

    Effectiveness of Lactobacillus-containing vaginal tablets in the treatment of symptomatic bacterial vaginosis

    Important note

    Do note that this last category, involving topical treatments (i.e., manually introducing Lactobacillus sp. to the vagina) were all in cases of pre-existing bacterial vaginosis, not as a prophylactic and/or general health-improving thing.

    If your vagina seems happy right now, then do not mess with its happy bacterial balance!

    And at all times (regardless of whether it seems happy right now or not): do not douche (it does not need it and will not benefit from it; the vagina is self-cleaning*) as this will wash out many of your Lactobacilli and will do absolutely nothing against any Candida there (C. albicans being a rooted fungus, whereas Lactobacillus is a sausage-shaped bacterium with many tiny appendages but no actual ability to stay put), so Candida will flourish in the Lactobacillus’s absence.

    *by the vagina, we are referring to the vaginal canal. The vulva—the outside part consisting of the two pairs of labia, the glans clitoris, and clitoral hood—are not self-cleaning, and should just be washed gently per your normal bath/shower routine; that’s perfectly fine and good.

    And definitely don’t put any “cleansing” toiletries inside the vagina (or any toiletries at all, for that matter), even if they are sold and marketed for that purpose; they will not help and they will harm.

    Also, due to their neighborliness, messing up the microbiome inside the vagina is a common way to also get Candida inside the urethra:

    How To Avoid Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs)

    One other option

    Finally, unless you have a “very good friend” you have a pressing urge to swap germs with, you might want to leave this one to the scientists, but we share this paper just for interest:

    The effectiveness of vaginal microbiota transplantation for vaginal dysbiosis and bacterial vaginosis: a scoping review

    Lastly…

    Going back to oral supplementation, if you’d like to try that then check out this for further notes on what, why, how, etc:

    How Much Difference Do Probiotic Supplements Make To Health?

    Take care!

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  • The Immunostimulant Superfood

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Eat These Greens!

    Chlorella vulgaris, henceforth “chlorella”, is a simple green algae that has a lot of health benefits.

    Note: most of the studies here are for Chlorella vulgaris specifically. However, some are for other species of the Chlorella genus, of which Chlorella vulgaris is by far the most common, hence the name (vulgaris = common). The relevant phytochemical properties appear to be the same regardless.

    Superfood

    While people generally take it as a supplement rather than a food item in any kind of bulk, it is more than 50% protein and contains all 9 essential amino acids.

    As you might expect of a green superfood, it’s also full of many antioxidants, most of them carotenoids, and these pack a punch, for example against cancer:

    Antiproliferative effects of carotenoids extracted from Chlorella ellipsoidea and Chlorella vulgaris on human colon cancer cells

    It also has a lot of vitamins and minerals, and even omega-3.

    Which latter also means it helps improve lipids and is thus particularly…

    Heart healthy

    ❝Daily consumption of Chlorella supplements provided the potential of health benefits reducing serum lipid risk factors, mainly triglycerides and total cholesterol❞

    ~ Dr. Na Hee Ryu et al.

    Read more: Impact of daily Chlorella consumption on serum lipid and carotenoid profiles in mildly hypercholesterolemic adults: a double-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled study

    Its heart-healthy benefits don’t stop at lipids though, and include blood pressure management, as in this study that found…

    ❝GABA-rich Chlorella significantly decreased high-normal blood pressure and borderline hypertension, and is a beneficial dietary supplement for prevention of the development of hypertension. ❞

    ~ Dr. Morio Shimada et al.

    Read more: Anti-hypertensive effect of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-rich Chlorella on high-normal blood pressure and borderline hypertension in placebo-controlled double blind study

    About that GABA, if you’re curious about that, check out:

    GABA Against Stress, Anxiety, & More

    May remove heavy metals

    We’re going with “may” for this one as we could only find animal studies so far (probably because most humans don’t have megadoses of heavy metals in them, which makes testing harder).

    Here’s an example animal study, though:

    Enhanced elimination of tissue methyl mercury in [Chlorella]-fed mice

    Immunostimulant

    This one’s clearer, for example in this 8-week study (with humans) that found…

    ❝Serum concentrations of interferon-γ (p<0.05) and interleukin-1β (p<0.001) significantly increased and that of interleukin-12 (p<0.1) tended to increase in the Chlorella group.

    The increments of these cytokines after the intervention were significantly bigger in the Chlorella group than those in the placebo group. In addition, NK cell activities (%) were significantly increased in Chlorella group, but not in Placebo group.

    The increments of NK cell activities (%) were also significantly bigger in the Chlorella group than the placebo group.

    Additionally, changed levels of NK cell activity were positively correlated with those of serum interleukin-1β (r=0.280, p=0.047) and interferon-γ (r=0.271, p<0.005).❞

    ~ Dr. Jung Hyun Kwak et al.

    tl;dr = it boosts numerous different kinds of immune cells

    Read more: Beneficial immunostimulatory effect of short-term Chlorella supplementation: enhancement of natural killer cell activity and early inflammatory response (randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial)

    PS, if you click though to the study, you may be momentarily alarmed by the first paragraph of the abstract that says “However, there were no direct evidences for the effect of Chlorella supplementation on immune/inflammation response in healthy humans“

    this is from the “Background” section of the abstract, so what they are saying is “before we did this study, nobody had done this yet”.

    So, be assured that the results are worthwhile and compelling.

    Is it safe?

    Based on the studies, it has a good safety profile. However, as it boosts the immune system, you may want to check with your doctor if you have an autoimmune disorder, and/or you are on immunosuppressants.

    And in general, of course always check with your doctor/pharmacist if unsure about any potential drug interactions.

    Want some?

    We don’t sell it, but here for your convenience is an example product on Amazon

    Enjoy!

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  • Sometimes, Perfect Isn’t Practical!

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    It’s Q&A Day at 10almonds!

    Have a question or a request? We love to hear from you!

    In cases where we’ve already covered something, we might link to what we wrote before, but will always be happy to revisit any of our topics again in the future too—there’s always more to say!

    As ever: if the question/request can be answered briefly, we’ll do it here in our Q&A Thursday edition. If not, we’ll make a main feature of it shortly afterwards!

    So, no question/request too big or small

    ❝10 AM breakfast is not realistic for most. What’s wrong with 8 AM and Evening me at 6. Don’t quite understand the differentiation.❞

    (for reference, this is about our “Breakfasting For Health?” main feature)

    It’s not terrible to do it the way you suggest It’s just not optimal, either, that’s all!

    Breakfasting at 08:00 and then dining at 18:00 is ten hours apart, so no fasting benefits between those. Let’s say you take half an hour to eat dinner, then eat nothing again until breakfast, that’s 18:30 to 08:00, so that’s 13½ hours fasting. You’ll recall that fasting benefits start at 12 hours into the fast, so that means you’d only get 1½ hours of fasting benefits.

    As for breakfasting at 08:00 regardless of intermittent fasting considerations, the reason for the conclusion of around 10:00 being optimal, is based on when our body is geared up to eat breakfast and get the most out of that, which the body can’t do immediately upon waking. So if you wake and get sunlight at 08:30, get a little moderate exercise, then by 10:00 your digestive system will be perfectly primed to get the most out of breakfast.

    However! This is entirely based on you waking and getting sunlight at 08:30.

    So, iff you wake and get sunlight at 06:30, then in that case, breakfasting at 08:00 would give the same benefits as described above. What’s important is the 1½ hour priming-time.

    Writer’s note: our hope here is always to be informational, not prescriptive. Take what works for you; ignore what doesn’t fit your lifestyle.

    I personally practice intermittent fasting for about 21hrs/day. I breakfast (often on nuts and perhaps a little salad) around 16:00, and dine at around 18:00ish, giving myself a little wiggleroom. I’m not religious about it and will slide it if necessary.

    As you can see: that makes what is nominally my breakfast practically a pre-dinner snack, and I clearly ignore the “best to eat in the morning” rule because that’s not consistent with my desire to have a family dinner together in the evening while still practicing the level of fasting that I prefer.

    Science is science, and that’s what we report here. How we apply it, however, is up to us all as individuals!

    Enjoy!

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    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    A quick note about the author first: he’s a physiotherapist and not a doctor, but with over 40 years of practice to his name and 33 letters after his name (CNZM OBE FCSP (Hon) FNZSP (Hon) Dip MDT Dip MT), he seems to know his stuff. And certainly, if you visit any physiotherapist, they will probably have some of his books on their own shelves.

    This book is intended for the layperson, and as such, explains everything that you need to know, in order to diagnose and treat your back. To this end, he includes assorted tests to perform, a lot of details about various possible back conditions, and then exercises to fix it, i.e. fix whatever you have now learned that the problem is, in your case (if indeed you didn’t know for sure already).

    Of course, not everything can be treated by exercises, and he does point to what other things may be necessary in those cases, but for the majority, a significant improvement (if not outright symptom-free status) can be enjoyed by applying the techniques described in this book.

    Bottom line: for most people, this book gives you the tools required to do exactly what the title says.

    Click here to check out Treat Your Own Back, and treat your own back!

    PS: if your issue is not with your back, we recommend you check out his other books in the series (neck, shoulder, hip, knee, ankle) 😎

    Don’t Forget…

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  • Psychedelics and Psychotherapy – Edited by Dr. Tim Read & Maria Papaspyrou

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    A quick note on authorship, first: this book is edited by the psychiatrist and psychotherapist credited above, but after the introductory section, the rest of the chapters are written by experts on the individual topics.As such, the style will vary somewhat, from chapter to chapter.

    What this book isn’t: “try drugs and feel better!”

    Rather, the book explores the various ways in which assorted drugs can help people to—even if just briefly—shed things they didn’t know they were carrying, or otherwise couldn’t put down, and access parts of themselves they otherwise couldn’t.

    We also get to read a lot about the different roles the facilitator can play in guiding the therapeutic process, and what can be expected out of each kind of experience. This varies a lot from one drug to another, so it makes for very worthwhile reading, if that’s something you might consider pursuing. Knowledge makes for much more informed choices!

    Bottom line: if you’re curious about the therapeutic potential of psychedelics, and want a reference that’s more personal than dry clinical studies, but still more “safe and removed” than diving in by yourself, this is the book for you.

    Click here to check out Psychedelics and Psychotherapy, and expand your understanding!

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  • Tasty Tofu Scramble

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    If you’re trying to eat more plant-based, this is a great way to enjoy a culinary experience that hits the same notes as scrambled egg, with many similar nutritional benefits too, and some of its own!

    You will need

    • 1 cup (10oz) silken tofu
    • ¼ bulb garlic, crushed
    • 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
    • 2 tsp chia seeds
    • 2 tsp dried thyme, or 1 tsp fresh thyme, stripped (i.e. pulled off the stalks)
    • 2 tsp turmeric
    • 2 tsp black pepper, coarse ground
    • 1 tsp red chili flakes
    • ½ tsp MSG, or 1 tsp low-sodium salt
    • Extra virgin olive oil, for frying

    Method

    (we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

    1) Heat a skillet with olive oil in it; if you want a low-calorie option, you can use quite little oil here; the tofu is a lot more forgiving than egg in this regard and is almost impossible to burn unless you actively try. If you don’t want a low-calorie option, feel free to be generous with the oil if you prefer; it’ll go into the tofu and make it fattier, much like egg.

    2) Add the tofu. You can just drop it (carefully) straight in; you don’t need to press it or anything.

    3) Scramble it with a spatula, just the same as you would if it were egg.

    4) Add the rest of the ingredients, mixing them in as you continue to scramble it, until it reaches the desired consistency.

    5) Serve! Serving it on wholegrain toast is a great option—but this dish can also be enjoyed any other way you might use scrambled eggs (including for making egg-fried tofu-fried rice; just stir it into our Tasty Versatile Rice recipe!)

    Enjoy!

    Want to learn more?

    For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

    Take care!

    Don’t Forget…

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