Latest research suggests that drinking a glass of cider a day could keep the doctor away.

Cider, a beverage made from the fermented juices of apples or pears, is one of the oldest alcoholic drinks and has a 2,000-year-old tradition. It originated in Britain but is now produced wherever apple cultivation is high like in the US, New Zealand and Australia.

The drink is also popular in France, Ireland and northern Spain. World over, cider sales are estimated at about 22 per cent of annual beer sales.

Scientists have found that the drink contains health-boosting antioxidants and has the ability to ward off cancer, heart disease and stroke, reported the online edition of Daily Mail.

Serena Marks, a scientist at the Glasgow University said the new findings could have important implications for health - and for the cider industry.

She said the type of apple, exposure to light, soil composition and storage conditions all affect phenolic concentration. "Previous research suggests there may be an association between phenolics and protection against some serious diseases," she added.

"The more information we can get about the phenolics in cider and what happens to them in the body, the more chance we have of positively influencing the phenolic content of cider, for example, by helping manufacturers chose varieties of cider apple which have naturally higher levels of phenolics" the scientist said.

United Kingdom has the highest per capita consumption, as well as the largest cider producing companies in the world. Overall, it produces about 500 million litres of cider per year.

The drink is also available in several part of India including Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Chandigarh, Gurgaon and Rajasthan. In India, cider started as a fresh draught drink and is now available in a carbonated form.

Source-IANS
SRM/V