By Jenny Sugar, POPSUGAR
The woman behind me in the checkout line said, "Like bananas much?" I smiled as I unloaded the three bunches from my cart. "My family is like a barrel of monkeys!" That was a lie. Really, I was the banana-loving monkey. I never miss my one banana a day . . . OK, sometimes two — I can't resist when they are just the right amount of speckly sweetness (my fellow banana-lovers know what I'm talking about!).
My slight obsession with this sweet, yellow fruit doesn't do me any favors in the bathroom department. In case you haven't heard, bananas can cause constipation. So, for one week, I decided to swap my once-a-day banana for a big, bright red, juicy apple. An apple a day is supposed to keep the doctor away, but, really, what I hoped was that it would keep me regular.
I mixed it up between Fuji and Honeycrisp apples. I was shocked. I noticed a difference in the first day! Without going into too much detail, I had a wonderful trip to the loo. I didn't feel bloated or gassy from the extra fiber, which I was worried might happen. I also no longer felt that uncomfortable pressure in my abdomen from needing to go.
I continued eating one apple a day for a few days, just to see if that first day was a coincidence. It wasn't. Every time I made eating an apple my number one priority, I'd go number two. It was that simple. I was so happy that my digestive system was so happy that I kept my apple experiment going for two weeks.
Aside from helping me — ahem — stay on track, even though an apple contains slightly fewer calories than a banana, I also noticed that eating an apple made me feel fuller longer. Another bonus? The sweetness of the banana often left me craving sweets (hello, chocolate chips in the fridge!), but after eating the apple, the sweet juiciness was just enough.
While I'm definitely not going to give up my beloved bananas, this little experiment encouraged me to switch up my postlunch fruit. I also now have a secret weapon whenever I'm stressed or traveling. If I anticipate that my digestive system is going to be a little wonky, I can nosh on an apple, knowing I've got nothing to worry about.
The woman behind me in the checkout line said, "Like bananas much?" I smiled as I unloaded the three bunches from my cart. "My family is like a barrel of monkeys!" That was a lie. Really, I was the banana-loving monkey. I never miss my one banana a day . . . OK, sometimes two — I can't resist when they are just the right amount of speckly sweetness (my fellow banana-lovers know what I'm talking about!).
My slight obsession with this sweet, yellow fruit doesn't do me any favors in the bathroom department. In case you haven't heard, bananas can cause constipation. So, for one week, I decided to swap my once-a-day banana for a big, bright red, juicy apple. An apple a day is supposed to keep the doctor away, but, really, what I hoped was that it would keep me regular.
I mixed it up between Fuji and Honeycrisp apples. I was shocked. I noticed a difference in the first day! Without going into too much detail, I had a wonderful trip to the loo. I didn't feel bloated or gassy from the extra fiber, which I was worried might happen. I also no longer felt that uncomfortable pressure in my abdomen from needing to go.
I continued eating one apple a day for a few days, just to see if that first day was a coincidence. It wasn't. Every time I made eating an apple my number one priority, I'd go number two. It was that simple. I was so happy that my digestive system was so happy that I kept my apple experiment going for two weeks.
Aside from helping me — ahem — stay on track, even though an apple contains slightly fewer calories than a banana, I also noticed that eating an apple made me feel fuller longer. Another bonus? The sweetness of the banana often left me craving sweets (hello, chocolate chips in the fridge!), but after eating the apple, the sweet juiciness was just enough.
