Chapter from Healing Plants of the Bible
Apple
Malus sylvestris
Rosacea
Genesis 2:9 and 17 and the tree of knowledge of good and evil, but of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it.
Genesis 3:6 and when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her, and he did eat.
Joshua 15:53: and janum, and beth tappuah , but tappuah and aphekah.
Joshua 17:8 : now Manasseh had the land of Tappuah , but Tappuah on the border of manasseh belonged to the children of Ephraim.
I Chronicles 2:43 and the sons of Hebron, Korah, and Tappuah ,
Proverbs 25:11 a word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.
Song 2: 3 and 5: as the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste comfort me with apples.
Song 7:8 the smell of thy nose like apples .
Song 8:5 I raised thee up under the apple tree
Joel 1:12 the vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth, the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered.
Welcome to the world of biblical scholarship and controversy! Because the Bible was written so long ago and it is so widely read, much of the Holy Book is widely debated. In this case, biblical scholars cannot agree as to whether the apple mentioned in the above quotes was really an apple. The “apple” of the Bible could have been the apple we know and or it could have been a different fruit altogether. The two leading contenders for the “apple slot” are the apple and the apricot. Unless an archaeological dig produces some concrete facts shortly, it is unlikely that we will ever know for sure which it was.
The solution to this problem is to learn about both plants as they were both cultivated in Israel during the biblical period. Evidence strongly suggests that the apple in the Bible was what we know as an apple, though some will disagree. The biblical and modern Hebrew word for apple is tappuah, the Arabic word is tuffah. Hebrew became a dead language, meaning that for a period of time people did not speak it. It is for this reason we do not always know exactly what is what in the Bible. Arabic on the other hand has been spoken continuously. The similarities between the ancient Hebrew word tappuah and the modern Arabic word tuffah suggest that the apple of the Bible is the apple we know today. These words are quite similar and it is unlikely that the two words refer to different fruits.
Tappuah is mentioned in the Talmud and there we find a reference to a cider made from it. Apricots do not yield a cider to my knowledge which again suggests to us that the fruit referred to in the Bible is the apple we know. Apparently in the biblical days the apples that were grown were quite aromatic as we find mentions of the smells that came off the orchards in Genesis 27:27. Even today, an apple orchard in bloom produces a magnificent scent.
In the Talmud the tappuach tree is spoken of in great terms and it is seen as one of Gods greatest gifts. The Rabbi’s felt there was a link between the fact that the apple is ripe fifty days after the tree blooms and that it was fifty days between the Exodus and the time the Law was given by God in the Sinai. The Talmud states that one is to dip apples in honey and eat them while saying this prayer, “May it be thy will, O Lord, that the year just begun be as good and sweet a year”. Apples ripen just about the time of the Jewish New Year!
Apples have been found in ancient ruins in the Arab world and we know that the Phoenicians grew them in their gardens. In an ancient Egyptian text written on papyrus dating to the Ramses II period (1298-1235 BC), the writer clearly states that the Nile Delta was loaded with apple orchards. The apple’s original home is obscure, though a wild Malus sylvestris can be found growing in Turkey. Unlike some of our other biblical plants, the apple tree is almost a native. Some scholars believe that the domesticated apple was brought to Israel from Iran or Armenia in and around 4000 BC. It is estimated that the apple tree has been a source of food for over 8000 years in the Near East.
Moving around the Mediterranean slightly, we find that Apples were mentioned by Sappho, Theocritus, Tibullus, Theophrastus, Cato, Pliny, and Palladius. Varro, in the first century BC, said that when he and his army arrived in Germany, the apple was not available. The Romans liked to have foods from home with them wherever they went. By the time the Roman empire fell, the apple could be found growing from Rome to northern Germany. The Romans spread culture and introduced crops where ever they kept a fort. It seems the original Johnny Apple Seed was really Roman.
By the year 1597 the apple was so commonly grown in England that doctors were aware of its medicinal uses. Gerard said, “Apples are also good for all inflammations or hot swellings, but especially for such as are in their beginning, if the same be outward applied. The iuice of apples which be sweet and of a middle taste, is mixed with compositions of divers medicines, and also for the tempering of melancholy humours, and likewise to mend the qualities of medicines that are dry. There is likewise made an ointment with the pulpe of the apples and swines grease and rose water, which is used to beautify the face, and to take away the roughnesse of the skin, which is called in shops pomatum, of the apples whereof it is made.” The original pomades were made of pommes, the Latin name for apples.
The adage that an apple a day will keep the doctor away is so tired it does not bear repeating. However, it seems it needs to be repeated as firstly it is true and secondly not everyone has gotten the message. It is the truth and was a fundamental belief in Ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman culture. It is still firmly held to be the case today. The fact remains, people that eat apples on a regular basis spend less time being sick as compared to non-apple eaters. Remember, 4000 years ago, getting sick had a higher price tag attached to it than it does today. In those days, you got sick and you died. End of story. In the ancient day people were motivated to take advantage of any health preserving technique available. They searched far and wide for plants that could keep them well and the apple was on their list.
On a herb research trip to Northern Spain I ran into people working the fields, many in their late eighties and early nineties. Fascinated by their strength and health, I inquired about their diet and health practices. I was working in Asturias, a province famed for its apples. Surprise, surprise, all the geriatric battle axes ate several apples a day. Apples and apple by products, namely cider, sweet and alcoholic, jams, and candies. Apples are a staple in the northern Spanish diet. Asturianos are quick to tell you that the source of their strength is apples.
Scientific research has now proven that an apple a day will keep you healthy. It has been proven to be a heart protector, a blood sugar reducer, a preventer of the common cold and viral infections, and an anticancer agent. That pretty well takes care of all the angles. Lets take a closer look at how apples can keep you healthy.
On the cardiovascular front, it has been clinically proven that eating apples reduces blood cholesterol. High Cholesterol is one of the risk factors thought to contribute to a person developing heart disease. By reducing blood cholesterol, in theory , you reduce the risk of heart disease. Apples are loaded with pectin which is an established anti-cholesterol agent. Here’s the fun part and something that happens over and over again in herbal medicine. When purified, pectin doesn’t reduce cholesterol as much when it is in its more whole form, as in an apple. Frequently researchers isolate one active chemical in a plant and try to use it singly to see if it will be more effective than the raw form. The result is always the same, whole plant extracts work better than the pieces removed. Nature is infinitely wise.
The apple also contains chemicals known as proanthocyanidins which have been proven to act on the heart in a beneficial manner. They are able to increase circulation to the heart by opening up the coronary arteries, reduce blood pressure, and prevent damage to both the heart and to the circulatory vessels. With high blood pressure and cholesterol lowered, you are less likely to develop heart disease. The good news about apples doesn’t stop here.
When it comes to blood sugar, the apple acts in a rather interesting manner. Most sugar rich foods cause an instant spike in blood sugar levels shortly after you take them into your body. In the case of the apple, this does not occur. In fact the sugars of an apple are slowly absorbed and help to maintain a constant blood sugar level for a period of time. This means that apples are long lasting energy food and perfect if you are planning to exercise or have a long day planned.
One of the current problems facing modern people is constant exposure to illness. Working in office buildings with sealed air systems is a bacteriological nightmare. When somebody does the world a favour and comes into work sick, with the aide of sealed air systems, their germs get sprayed via the air ducts to hundreds of people sitting in their cubicles. Germ pollution is a serious problem today and the apple may be the perfect solution.
The apple contains phenolic compounds which are powerfully antimicrobial. Having an apple a day is in a manner of speaking like taking a daily dose of antibiotic. Along these lines, apples have been long used to treat infections, even when topically applied. Gerard refers to them being used to treat skin infections, “Apples are good also for all inflammation or hot swellings, but especially for such as are in their beginning, if the same be outwardly applied.” The phenolics can do quite a job on bacteria, whether on the skin or in you! If you work in an office building and you find yourself coming down with colds all the time, think about having an apple now and again.
The dread disease of our age is cancer. It is something that should be avoided if at all possible. Apples are loaded with chlorogenic and caffeic acid, both of which have been proven to be anti-cancer. The effect is cumulative, you need to eat an apple a day to reduce your risk. Cancer doesn’t develop in one day, and keeping it from developing doesn’t happen in one day.
Herbalists in Europe recommend eating the seeds inside the apple as they contain substances that are anti-cancer. Annette Zeylstra, an instructor at the College of Phytotherapy, told me of this traditional use of the seeds. She also told me a rather sad story relating to eating apple seeds. Apple seeds contain minute doses of cyanide, which, in small amounts, acts as an anticancer agent. The story involved a gentlemen that knew about this use. Our hapless student of herbal medicine started saving his apple seeds. One day, when he had a cupful saved up, he decided to take the whole lot as a serious cancer preventing supplement. His thought was that if a few were good, a whole bunch would be better. Unfortunately, this is not the case, and what he had in his hands was a lethal dose of cyanide. Customs are customs for a reason. The custom was to eat two or three apple seeds a day, not a cupful. He wont make that mistake a second time. This story raises a serious subject. Before using herbal medicine, make certain you know what you are doing.
The key here to using the apple to stay well is daily intake. That means you need to have one a day for your entire life. There are worse medicines to take, and working in herbal medicine, I can promise you that. The other thing to remember is that most of the active chemicals contained in the apple are found in the skin. No skin, no active constituents. You need to eat the peal. In that so many of our apples are sprayed with chemicals, it would be wise to give the apple a wash with some mild detergent before consuming it. Eating an apple for health with a load of cancer causing chemicals on the skin rather defeats the point.
Beyond the general health stimulant uses, apples have some specific uses. Joe Nasr, Lebanese herbalists, told me that in Lebanon apples are used to treat the diarrhoea of children. The apples are pealed, boiled, mashed, mixed with sugar and cinnamon and eaten freely to get the diarrhoea to stop. Fortunately, this herbal medicine goes down easily. The children will not have to be tied down or bribed to take a dose of this medicine. Boiled apples having been pureed can also be used to improve skin conditions.
Not only are apples a great additional to the home medicine chest, apple cider vinegar is use traditionally to treat a number of ills. Stuart Fitzsimmons told me this about the foul smelling liquid. “It is an old Welsh practice to drink cider vinegar to ease joint problems, whether it is rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis. Apple juice is used for the same purpose, and it will make a difference pretty quickly. It should be real apple cider and one glass in the morning will do the job.” The only problem with this suggestion is getting down a glass of apple cider vinegar. You can sweeten that stuff till the cows come home and it continues to be a tall order. However, it is known to be effective in all manner of joint complaints.
The message here is as follows, “an apple a day keeps the doctor at bay”.