Apples and their products effect on neurodegeneration and Alzheimer's disease

Abstract

Neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) are life-threatening and an economical burden to the health-care system. The current pharmacotherapy of AD is symptomatic and focused almost solely on cognition, with a lot of unmet medical needs, particulary in the area of mood and behavioural symptoms.  Therefore the requirement for supportive therapy and nutritive support in the form of nutraceuticals and complex foods has been raised and numerous studies have been conducted for the purpose of identifying the ideal nutritional compund and complex food for the support in treatment of AD. As oxidative stress in the brain is the main symptom of AD, foods that are high in antioxidant activity have been identified as potential nutraceuticals for AD. Due to their nutrient combination and antioxidant effect of the nutrients, apples seem to be one of the most promisable  complex foods in the nutritive support of AD. In this article we review the potential benfit of apples on human health, combination of apple compounds and their protective effect on neurodegeneration and AD.