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Avocados are favorite fruits for Americans, but also for people from everywhere. Besides that avocado is one of the healthiest fruit in the world, this fat-filled fruit is full with nutrients and provides so many health benefits.
They have lower Body Mass Index and better nutrient intake and compared to those who don’t take it. This has been found in many studies. There are so many health benefits of taking this highly versatile fruit. Here you will find 20 of these benefits.
Rich in Healthy Fats
Avocados have high amounts of fats. All these fats are good fats, having monounsaturated fats. These fats help in reducing risk of heart attack or stroke and bad cholesterol levels in your blood.
Helping with Weight Loss
Consuming avocados can help with weight loss. As per a study (published – Nutrition Journal), taking just 1/2 avocado with your lunch can be helpful for those who are overweight. It can make you feel satiated for longer.
The study’s participants said that they had 40% lesser desire for eating for over 3 hours and 28% lesser desire for eating over 5 hours after their meal.
Controlling Blood Pressure
According to the American Heart Association, the power of potassium in reducing sodium effects on the body means that a diet containing natural sources of potassium can help in blood pressure control.
Avocados are rich in potassium. A fruit has 28% of the recommended daily dosage of potassium. But because avocados have high fats, you should minimize your fat intake in other foods for balancing the fat levels.
Reducing Cholesterol Levels
According to stats, 1 in 3 American adults suffer from high cholesterol problems. This doubles the risk of heart disease. The good news is that you have so many natural methods for lowering cholesterol levels.
According to studies, taking avocados regularly is a great way to lower cholesterol levels. The fruit offers the following benefits:
- Lowering blood triglycerides
- Lowering total cholesterol levels
- Lowering LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol)
- Increasing HDL (good) cholesterol
Nutrient-Rich
Avocados contain high amounts of nutrients. Interestingly, there are more than 20 minerals and vitamins in each serving.
1 avocado gives you the following percentage of your Recommended Daily Values (RDV):
- Vitamin C – 33%
- Vitamin E – 21%
- Vitamin B6 – 26%
- Vitamin K – 53%
- Copper – 19%
- Folate – 41%
- Potassium – 28%
- Pantothenic Acid – 28%
Improved Nutrients Absorption
We can be taking as much nutrients, vitamin and minerals we can take. But it is most important that these nutrients are absorbed. There nutrients which are fat-soluble. This means they need fat for being assimilated by our body. The best examples include:
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin E
- Vitamin K
- Vitamin D
- Some antioxidants
When you add 1/2 avocado to salad containing carrots, lettuce and spinach, you are absorbing 8.3 times the antioxidants alpha-carotene, 13.6 times beta-carotene and 4.3 times lutein.
Preventing Diabetes
According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, diabetes is going to affect almost 40 percentpeople in the U.S. at one point in our lives. You must make sure to have your blood sugar levels balanced for minimizing this risk.
But avocados can help in the regulation of your blood sugar levels. According to a study, the participants were given 1/2 avocado with their lunch and then their insulin and blood glucose levels were measured at certain intervals.
They had avocados in their food, which raised their carb and calorie content, but they didn’t show any increase in their blood sugar levels as compared to those who took normal lunch without avocado.
Avocados for Getting Pain Relief
Avocado extract can help in reducing arthritis symptoms in your bones (osteoarthritis). Because of its anti-inflammatory properties, it is considered to even give soothing effect to other forms of inflammatory-based pains and aches.
Fighting Inflammation with Avocados
There is a belief that chronic inflammation in your body causes most of the modern diseases like allergies, Alzheimer’s, asthma, heart disease, and cancer.
The oleic acid in avocado may also help in fighting inflammation. This is the monounsaturated fat found in olive oil that gives it most of its healthful properties. There are many studies that have connected oleic acid and reduction in inflammation.
Improving Eye Health with Avocados
Macular degeneration is amongst the biggest causes behind blindness among Americans. Zeaxanthin and lutein are two ingredients that have been found to be greatly effective fighting this condition. The foods having high levels of phytonutrients are rich in offering both zeaxanthin and lutein for our body.
According to research, avocado is considered the best source of lutein in over 20 fruits which we take regularly. Avocado also contains high levels of zeaxanthin.
Avocado is Essential for Expecting Moms
According to What to Expect, avocado is among the most crucial foods for pregnant women. The fruit has potassium, vitamin B6, folate and vitamin C.
Vitamin B6 is beneficial for the baby’s tissue and growth of brain. It also helps in easing morning sickness.
Folate is required for healthy fetus development during the early pregnancy stage.
Anti-Cancer Benefits
According to some studies avocado can help in fighting cancer.
According to a study, avocado extract may be helpful in stopping or inhibiting prostate cancer cell growth. According to another study, it may be helpful in reducing chemotherapy side effects. Because the studies are restricted, you must take avocado mostly for all its other health benefits.
Avocado For Stronger Bones
Avocados have high levels of vitamin K, folate, copper and various other bone-healthy nutrients. When you take avocados regularly, they can also help in the building and retaining of stronger bones. Make sure to take it with a wide range of other fruits and veggies for great results.
Improving Digestion
A balanced diet will always have fiber as an essential component. It helps in keeping the digestive system working smoothly. So you should take more avocados – because a single fruit has 13g (that’s 54% of our daily recommended fiber dosage).
Avocado Improves Your Mood
The high levels of vitamins and minerals in avocado, particularly folate and potassium, may help in cheering you up.
According to some studies, there is some connection between depression and potassium. According to a review, many scientific studies on the connection between potassium, sodium and magnesium in depressed patients, it was found that the patients suffered from low potassium levels.
As per a 1993 study, similar kind of conclusion was reached. In this study, the depressed patients showed low levels of potassium compared to healthier subjects. Since the 60s, scientists have come to the conclusion that folate is essential of avoiding low mood and symptoms of depression.
Keeps Brain Healthy
Avocados improve blood supply and oxygenation to your brain. In a laboratory animal study published in the December 2011 issue of the “British Journal of Neurosurgery,” a combination of avocado and soybean fats prevented oxidation and protected against nerve damage after the animals were exposed to low-oxygen conditions. Benefits were noted in the prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain responsible for such functions as planning and critical thinking.
Improves Heart Health
Provides oleic acid which improves the cardiovascular system. It also contains folic acid to control homocysteine level.
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