Why avocados should be part of your healthiest way of eating | Health Benefits Of Avocados

Why avocados should be part of your healthiest way of eating:-

While the majority of Avocados calories do come from fat, almost two-thirds of the fats they contain are the heart-healthy monounsaturated fats, like those found in olive oil. Monounsaturated fats have been noted as one of the reasons for the healthfulness of the Mediterranean diet, which features monounsaturated-fat-rich foods such as olive oil, olives and nuts. Avocados are a great tasting and nutritious food and, when eaten in moderation, can be an important part of your Healthiest Way of Eating. (For more on Health Benefits of Avocados and a complete analysis of their content of over 60 nutrients.

Health Benefits Of Avocados Promote Heart Health

Avocados are a rich source of oleic acid, with 59% of their total fat content represented by this heart-healthy monounsaturated fat. In one study of people with moderately high cholesterol levels, individuals who ate a diet rich in Avocados showed clear health improvements. After seven days on the Avocado-rich diet, they had significant decreases in total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, along with an 11% increase in health-promoting HDL cholesterol.

Avocados are also a good source of potassium, a mineral that helps regulate blood pressure. Adequate intake of potassium can help to guard against circulatory diseases, like high blood pressure, heart disease or stroke. In fact, the U.S. Food and Drug Association has authorized a health claim that states: Diets containing foods that are good sources of potassium and low in sodium may reduce the risk of high blood pressure and stroke.

Avocados are also good sources of two heart-healthy B-vitamins, folic acid and vitamin B6. Inadequate levels of these nutrients are related to elevated homocysteine levels. Since homocysteine can damage artery walls, promoting atherosclerosis, and is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease, these two B vitamins are of great importance to heart health.

Further cardiovascular protection is provided by the dietary fiber contained in Avocados. In addition to its well-known benefit to digestive health, fiber has been found to lower blood cholesterol levels.

Promote Optimal Antioxidant Status

Avocados are a good source of copper and vitamin C. These nutrients help to promote optimal health since they provide potent antioxidant activity and therefore protect cells from free radical oxidative damage. Copper is an essential cofactor of the superoxide dismutase enzyme, which disarms free radicals produced in the lungs and red blood cells. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that works its magic in the water-soluble components of the body. Uncontrolled free radical activity has been linked to increased risk of diseases including cardiovascular disease, arthritis and certain forms of cancer.

Promote Blood and Bone Health

Avocados are a good source of vitamin K, which plays a role in proper blood and bone function. Vitamin K is needed to activate a variety of clotting factors in the blood; without adequate supplies, the blood may become too thin, leading to excess bleeding. Since certain bone proteins have also been found to be vitamin K-dependent, this nutrient is important in the process of bone mineralization, which creates and maintains structural integrity.

The best way to select avocados

A friend of mine once planted an Avocado tree, and as the Avocados would grow to full size, she would let them sit on the tree, waiting and waiting for them to get soft before harvesting them; but they never got soft. The lesson: Avocados do not ripen on the tree, but only after they have been harvested. This is the reason that Avocados found at the market are often still hard and will need to be ripened after you take them home. Hard Avocados are not a sign of inferior fruit. In fact, unless you are going to be serving the Avocado immediately after purchasing, it is better to buy one that is still hard, so you can control the ripening process and have one ready when you want to consume it.Avoid overripe Avocados and ones that have dark sunken spots or cracks. Be sure not to purchase Avocados that rattle when you shake them saute since this is a sign that the pit has pulled away from the flesh and it is overripe. You should not eat overripe Avocados because the brown coloration of the overripe fruit indicates the formation of free radicals.

How Do You Know Which Avocados are ready to Eat?

Although most of the Avocados that you find at the store are hard, some stores do carry ripe, ready-to-eat Avocados. Whether you are selecting ripe Avocados at the store or ripening them at home, you can tell that an Avocado is ripe and ready to eat when its skin has turned from green to a dark brown-green or almost black color and gives slightly under gentle pressure. The best tasting, ripe and ready-to-eat Avocados are slightly soft and should be eaten within a day or two.

The best way to store avocados

If you have more ripe Avocados than you can consume, it is best to refrigerate them as this will halt the ripening process. They can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. If left for longer than 2 days, they will begin to lose their flavor and they will begin to turn dark in color. Avoid slicing Avocados before refrigerating since they will turn brown after they are cut.

Avocados continue to respire even after they have been harvested; their respiration rate at room temperature (68°F/20°C) is 190 mg/kg/hr. Slowing down the respiration rate with proper storage is the key to extending their flavor and nutritional benefits.

Avocados Will Remain Fresh for Up to 7 Days When Properly Stored

If you purchase unripe (hard) Avocados, you should store them at room temperature where they will last for up to 7 days. As they ripen, their skin color will darken. Do not refrigerate unripe Avocados as they will never ripen but merely rot in the cold environment of the refrigerator.

How to Ripen Avocados

If you want to hasten the ripening process of Avocados, you can place them in a paper bag for several days (check on them frequently to ensure that they do not get overripe). The paper bag traps the ethylene gas produced by the Avocados; ethylene gas helps the Avocados to ripen more quickly, while the paper bag allows for healthy oxygen exchange with the environment (as opposed to plastic bags, which limit oxygen exchange and will lead to premature rotting). Keep the paper bag in a dark, cool place as excessive heat will also cause the Avocados to rot rather than ripen. If you want to speed up the ripening even more, you can add a banana or apple to the bag since it will increase the amount of ethylene produced.

The best way to prepare avocados

Avocados are easy to prepare: just slice and eat. Once they are cut, Avocados are very susceptible to oxidation, which turns them brown as they come in contact with oxygen in the air.

How to Prevent Avocados from Turning Brown

One way to prevent cut Avocados from turning brown is to sprinkle them with lime or lemon juice. The antioxidants found in citrus fruits help prevent the oxidation responsible for the change in color. It is best to cut away and discard any areas that have turned brown before eating, as they are an indication of the formation of free radicals.

When Avocados are sprinkled with lime or lemon juice, the surface sometimes does not remain well coated with the juice, causing it to still turn brown. If you have half an Avocado to store, you can avoid this problem by gently removing the pit, placing the Avocado cut side down in a bowl that contains 1 TBS lemon juice and 1 cup of water, covering with plastic wrap and refrigerating it. The skin will protect the outer surface from browning. This technique should help reduce most, if not all, of the browning. Remove any brown areas gently with a knife before eating.Kitchen folklore purports that leaving the pit in halved Avocados or adding the pit to mashed Avocados will prevent them from browning. Unfortunately, this only holds true for the small area surrounding the pit the rest of the Avocado will still turn brown.

Q I make a dish with dark greens, broccoli, lemon juice and Avocado. I then refrigerate any leftovers I have. Is this OK even though you say on your website that refrigerated Avocado slices will turn brown?

A The reason I don’t recommend refrigerating sliced Avocados is because once they are cut, they become easily oxidized (causing brown coloration), which reflects the formation of free radicals in the Avocados. The lemon in your mixture should prevent the Avocados from oxidizing, and it should be fine in your refrigerator if you do not keep it for too long.

Q If Avocados are full of fat, why are they still so good for us?

A While the majority of Avocados calories do come from fat, almost two-thirds of the fat that they contain are the heart-healthy monounsaturated fats, like those found in olive oil. Monounsaturated fats are associated with reduced risk of heart disease and have been noted as one of the reasons for the healthfulness of the Mediterranean diet, which features foods rich in monounsaturated fat such as olive oil, olives and nuts. A recent study even showed that adding Avocados or Avocado oil to a salad enhanced the absorption of carotenoid phytonutrients from the vegetables, supporting another health benefit of this delicious food. In addition to being a storehouse of healthy fatty acids, Avocados are also a concentrated source of fiber, folic acid, vitamin B6, potassium and copper. Their wonderful nutrient profile may be the reason that researchers found that after just seven days on an Avocado-rich diet, individuals with moderately high cholesterol were found to have reduced levels of total and LDL cholesterol and increased levels of HDL cholesterol. Avocados are a great tasting and nutritious food and, if eaten in moderation, can be an important part of your Healthiest Way of Eating.

Q Why can’t you grate and eat an avocado pit?

A Avocado pits are inedible. They contain tannins, which are released when the pit is grated or bitten into. These tannins interact with substances in the mouth and alter them in a way similar to the process that occurs when leather is tanned.

Q A friend just told me that adding Avocados to salad is healthy as it has been found to enhance absorption of the nutrients from the salad greens. Is this true?

A Your friend must have heard about the study reported in the March 2005 edition of the Journal of Nutrition. This study found that adding Avocados to salad increased the absorption of carotenoids in the bloodstream of the lucky individuals eating the delicious salad. Compared to when they ate the Avocado-free salad, the study participants experienced a greater absorption of alpha-carotene (7.2 times), betacarotene (15.3 times) and lutein (5.1 times) when they ate salad containing Avocado. The amount of Avocado used was 150 grams, which is about 1 cup. While that seems like a lot of Avocado to add to your salad on a regular basis (it would contain over 230 calories), adding even some of that should have a great effect on carotenoid absorption as well.

Researchers also tested the effect of adding Avocado to tomato-containing salsa (since tomatoes are a concentrated source of the lycopene carotenoid) and found that once again the Avocado enhanced carotenoid absorption 4.4 times greater absorption of lycopene and 2.6 times greater absorption of betacarotene was found in those eating the Avocado-enriched salsa than the Avocado-free salsa.

The reason for the Avocados benefit on carotenoids is probably due to its fat content, since carotenoids are fat-soluble. So, the next time you make a salad, salsa or any carotenoid-containing dish, consider adding some Avocado. Not only is it filled with many important nutrients itself, but the enhancement of carotenoid absorption means more antioxidant activity happening in your body, which is a great thing for health promotion. Not only that, but Avocados taste great too.

Q Is it OK to eat Avocado each day?

A Whether eating avocado each day will be supportive of your health from an overall fat and caloric intake perspective really depends upon your individual fat and caloric intake goals as well as the rest of your diet. Since it is difficult to know how large your avocados are and since you are probably mashing your avocados for your sandwich I have based this answer on 1/2 cup of mashed avocado. One-half cup of mashed avocado contains 184 calories and 16.86 grams of total fat with 11.27 of these being monounsaturated fats. So the question is whether this amount of calories fits into your overall nutritional goals and whether your diet has room for this amount of fat. Given a 2,000 calorie diet with 30% fat intake would mean that 600 of the days calories could come from fat, which is about 67 grams. So, if these were your individual goals and the rest of your days diet didn’t exceed about 49 grams of fat then you would be in target. The other thing that would further support that eating avocado every day is health supportive would be to ensure that the rest of your diet provides you with the other nutrients in which avocadoes are not concentrated. For example, while they are concentrated in nutrients such as folate, vitamin E, vitamin B3 and vitamin B5, there are other nutrients (for example, calcium) of which they do not necessarily contain a great concentration.

How to eat an Avocado: Nutrition Benefits, Tips & Preparation
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