The avocado fruit is arguably one of the most sought-after delicacies in the world. Be it a takeaway or home-cooked, avocado offers a nutritious and delicious boost to a meal.
Kenyan farmers grow both dark-skinned green-skinned and traditional avocados with almost dark red skin. The subtropical climate makes the country an ideal place to produce three avocados: Fuerte, Hass and regular avocados.
Because of its versatility, I enjoy it cooked or raw while mashing it in sauces or mixing it with salads. The breakout of silent killer diseases from leading a sedentary lifestyle pushed me to the Paleo, vegan, and ketogenic diet, and the avocado has come in handy in all my meal plans.
Avocados offer some of the richest vitamins and fats, with their immense health benefits splashed all over the internet. However, have you ever taken the time to discover the truth of all the information you read?
I took the initiative to research and talk to some dietitians regarding this buttery fruit’s benefits.
1. Suppresses hunger
Since avocados have a high fibre percentage, it provides an extended sense of fullness in that when a person feels full most of the time, the urge to overeat decreases.
However, it’s worth noting that avocados don’t help with weight loss as some people imagine. For one to attain the desired body size, energy balance must be present. It’s paramount to release more calories than what goes into the body.
Eating more food or avocados doesn’t help to shed the extra weight. Despite having a lot of nutrients, avocados contain high calories; hence it’s advisable to consume the fruit in moderation.
Eating too many avocados won’t help shed off that bulge because the fruit contains about 300 calories, equivalent to two bowls of cooked rice.
2. Speeds up nutrient absorption from other meals
Incorporating avocado into your beans or salad will interestingly speed up the absorption of the entire meal. Because of its high healthy fat content, the stomach quickly digests some fat into soluble nutrients.
Add avocados to foods with vitamin A such as tomatoes and pumpkins, for the best results.
3. Maintains good eye health
Avocados contain the coloured plant pigment carotenoids that the human body uses to make vitamin A. The zeaxanthin and lutein in avocados enhance eye health. Additionally, carotenoid reduces macular degeneration of the eyes due to age.
Using avocados in salads containing oranges, papaya, corn, mustard greens, spinach, and kale will further improve eyesight.
4. Contains cancer-fighting agents
Avocados contain phytochemicals, a property that naturally occurs in plant foods. Although research is still underway, it’s believed that the property plays a vital role in fighting cancer.
Are you aware that avocado seed contains remarkable antioxidants that reduce swelling? However, for its benefits to be realized, the seed must undergo some form of processing, which includes blending or roasting the pit with other edibles.
There’s currently little research on whether one can get the antioxidants by consuming the seed directly.
5. It cuts the risk of contracting heart disease by half
Avocado contains both healthy and monosaturated fat. Since it’s a suitable type of fat, it lowers triglycerides and bad cholesterol in the human blood. This, in turn, reduces the risk of strokes and cardiovascular diseases.
Moreover, avocados have plenty of antioxidants, such as carotenoids, phytosterols, and vitamin E.
These chemicals help to protect the cardiovascular system from oxidimetry. It is a condition that comes about when free radicals in human cells overproduce oxidants.
