proverb · Words worth keeping
An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The rhyme makes one daily apple keep a doctor away. It promotes a simple food habit through an exaggerated health promise.
What the words are saying
The checked observational study did not support the literal physician-avoidance claim and could not establish cause and effect. A responsible explanation recognises the rhyme without treating it as a prescription or reason to postpone needed care. The supplied general fruit-health gloss is not proof of the promise.
Everyday example
A reader treats the line as a familiar health rhyme rather than deciding medical needs from it.
When to use it
Use it to explain the health slogan with its literal promise qualified.
What it does not mean
No prevention guarantee, treatment or reason to avoid needed care is established.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
United Kingdom
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin.- Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided proverb reference
Supplied reference A; unit 727; PDF page 104
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
References for factual context
- The study did not support the literal physician-avoidance claim; its cross-sectional design does not establish cause and effect. — Abstract: Conclusions and Relevance; Discussion: study limitations, 30 March 2015