It's man's creativity which has enhanced the tastes of various foods and dishes. Man has designed various recipes to suit his individual tastes, and nature has offered him all the ingredients that he requires to make his favorite dishes. It is a known fact that Avocado is a healthy, delicious fruit. But how can you use the fruit differently in different recipes? There are numerous options available! Avocado can be included in a fruit salad containing other ingredients like fennel, oranges and fresh mint. You can also choose to garnish your favorite black bean soup with chopped avocados. In fact, this fruit is commonly used in some traditional Mexican recipes.
Consuming Avocado in any of the above mentioned forms would mean something which is greater than its taste or flavor! Avocado, also known as "butter pear" (and "butter fruit" in parts of India), due to is fat content, contains vitamin K, potassium, fiber, folate, vitamin B6, vitamin C and copper. About 75 percent of its calories come from fat (mostly monounsaturated fat), and it has around 60 percent more potassium than bananas.
What are the Health Benefits of Avocado?
Avocado has a lot of health benefits to offer to mankind. Here, we come up with the top 5 health benefits:
- Promotes Cardiovascular Health: A study published in the American Journal of Nutrition suggests that people who eat diets rich in folate have a much lower incidence of heart diseases. Avocado contains significant amount of vitamin B6 and folic acid, which help in regulating the homocysteine levels (increased level of homocysteine is associated with an increased risk of heart disease), hence supporting the cardiovascular health. Besides folate, avocado also contains vitamin E, Glutathione and monounsaturated fat which help in promoting heart health.
Avocado is high in its fat content, but it is mostly the monounsaturated fat which contributes the major percentage of its calories. But this seems to get compensated when we look at the other actions of avocado like decreasing the inflammatory factors, reducing the level of oxidants and regulating the total cholesterol level. All these actions support the functioning of the cardiovascular system. Heart health also improves because of the presence of primary fatty acids like oleic acid and alpha-linolenic in avocado.
High intake of avocado has also been shown to have a beneficial effect on blood cholesterol levels. According to a study, after a seven-day diet rich in avocados, mild hypercholesterolemia (high blood cholesterol and triglycerides) patients showed a 17 percent decrease in total blood cholesterol levels, a 22 percent decrease in both LDL ("bad" ccholesterol) and triglyceride levels, and a 11 percent increase in HDL ("good" cholesterol) levels. - Provides Anti-Inflammatory Benefits: The anti-inflammatory role of avocado is unquestionable in the world of health research. Avocado has received special research attention due to its anti-inflammatory benefits in the treatment of conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Avocado contains multiple factors which contribute to its anti-inflammatory action. Phytosterols (beta-sitosterol, stigmasterol and campesterol), antioxidants which are carotenoid based (lutein, neoxanthin, zeaxanthin, alpha and beta carotene), other antioxidants like flavonoids and vitamins C and E, minerals like selenium, manganese and zinc, omega 3 fatty acids and polyhydroxylated fatty alcohol are the vital nutrients which exhibit anti-inflammatory properties.
- Regulates the Blood Sugar Level: Avocado is a low carb fruit, with only 19 percent of its calories coming from carbohydrates. Avocado falls in the low glycemic index category of foods. This, in combination with its high fiber content, helps in maintaining a steady blood sugar level.
- Provides Anti-Cancer Benefits: Some preliminary researches and laboratory studies suggest that avocado can be a good anti-cancer food due to its unusual mix of inflammatory and antioxidant properties. The results have proved to be quite impressive though human researches are yet to be performed. During the research, when avocado extract was used on cancer cells, it increased the oxidative stress on the cells and pushed them towards the death cycle called apoptosis. This in turn, lessened the total number of cancerous cells while reducing inflammation and oxidative stress on the normal cells and supporting their wellbeing at the same time.
- Supports Nutrient Absorption: Avocado intake is linked with increased absorption of nutrients. In one study where the subjects were made to eat salad, it was observed that the absorption of carotenoid was five times better in those subjects whose salads contain avocado in comparison to the ones who did not have avocados in their salads.
You may not be interested to include this Mexican fruit in your salads after thinking about its fat content. But you also need to consider its health benefits in terms of its anti-inflammatory actions and the presence of heart healthy nutrients. Moreover, the high fat content should not bother you much because these are heart healthy fats!
