The festive, fermented beverage is a refreshing and warming alternative to hot chocolate, mulled wine or a peppermint mocha.<\/p>\n
The tangy drink \u2013 once served by the ancient Egyptians and enjoyed by Roman general Julius Caesar \u2013 can also be a great source of antioxidants, vitamins and plant chemicals that help protect heart health and reduce the risk of cancer-causing inflammation.<\/p>\n
\u201cApple cider contains most of the same nutrients that apples do,\u201d advice group, A Healthier Michigan, <\/a>said.<\/p>\n The U.S. is one of world\u2019s largest apple producers, growing 4.89 million metric tons<\/a> of apples each year, half of which come from Washington State.<\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Apple cider that\u2019s not unfiltered retains a lot of the health benefits found in a regular apple (Getty Images\/iStock)<\/p>\n An alphabet of health<\/p>\n Apples are a good source of vitamin A, which helps us maintain our night vision, stimulates the production of bacteria-fighting white blood cells and affects metabolism.<\/p>\n They have vitamin C<\/a>, too, which works to safeguard immune health during cold and flu season, and leg cramp-preventing vitamin K.<\/p>\n Apples have powerful plant chemicals<\/a> known as flavonoids that relax blood vessels and prevent blood clots, according to the Cleveland Clinic<\/a>.<\/p>\n The fruit is also a significant source of antioxidants: natural compounds that help prevent organ damage and dangerous inflammation that may lead to disease. Apples have gut-regulating quercetin, for example, a compound that fights harmful inflammation in the respiratory system.<\/p>\n Scientists have tied eating apples \u2013 which are hydrating and made up of about 85 percent water<\/a> \u2013 to stronger lung<\/a> and immune health<\/a>.<\/p>\n Sugar high<\/p>\n Drinking apple cider is different from eating an apple. While a medium-sized apple has 4.5 grams of fiber, a cup of cider has just under one gram.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also a good deal more sugary. A cup may contain up to 30 grams of sugar and 120 calories, depending on how it\u2019s made. Whereas, a regular apple has 19 grams and 110 calories.<\/p>\n \u201cConsuming more than a cup in one sitting could lead to a blood sugar spike,\u201d A Healthier Michigan says. \u201cIts relatively high caloric content could also lead to weight gain if you drink too much of it.\u201d<\/p>\n Experts warn that people getting in the spirit of the season should watch out for unpasteurized cider.<\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Kids can drink non-alcoholic apple cider. But the \u2018hard\u2019 stuff has become a more than $800 million industry in the U.S. (Getty Images\/iStock)<\/p>\n \u201cMost juice in the United States is pasteurized to kill harmful bacteria. The remaining small percentage of juice sold is unpasteurized. Unpasteurized juice may contain harmful bacteria that could make some people sick,\u201d Michigan State University cautions<\/a>.<\/p>\n The U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires that all unpasteurized apple cider products come with a warning label.<\/p>\n Colonial roots<\/p>\n The non-alcoholic hot apple cider found at holiday markets is made with cloudy, unfiltered apple juice that\u2019s been heated.<\/p>\n Because it\u2019s not filtered \u201cit\u2019s less processed and thereby retains more fiber and vitamins,” registered dietitian Lisa Young previously told USA Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n You can also mix in mulling spices, such as cinnamon and cloves for a heartier and more complex taste.<\/p>\n Kids and families can both enjoy non-alcoholic cider but the \u201chard,\u201d fermented alcoholic version is growing more popular. It\u2019s now a more than $800 million industry, according to the American Cider Association<\/a>.<\/p>\n Cider lovers may not know it has a long history in the U.S. and was once America\u2019s most popular drink. Already a favorite in Britain, settlers brought it to the country in the 1700s.<\/p>\n Beer took its place in popularity in the 1800s<\/a>, with the arrival of the Germans, according to West Virginia University<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":269943,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[102,6636,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-269942","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nutrition","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-nutrition","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269942","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269942"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269942\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269943"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Apple](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/iStock-1571847388.jpeg\")
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