By Editorial Staff

We've always known apples are part of a healthy diet, but here are a couple of new reasons to get your apple a day. Research has shown that babies are less likely to develop asthma when their mothers eat four or more apples per week during pregnancy.

And a study conducted by the National Heart and Lung Institute found that children who drank apple juice at least once a day had a 50 percent less chance of wheezing than those who drank it less than once a month.

Although the reasons for these benefits are unknown, experts speculate that the phytochemicals in apples, such as flavanoids and phenolic acids, exert anti-inflammatory effects in the lungs and airways, reducing wheezing and other asthma symptoms. Of course, more research is required to thoroughly understand the health benefits of apples, particularly the link between maternal diet and children's health.

Given that asthma is the most common serious chronic disease of childhood, affecting nearly 5 million children in the United States, this research gives pregnant mothers even more incentive to eat a healthy, balanced diet.