I’m celebrating with the color green this month, in honor of Saint Patrick’s Day, so I’m going to write about avocados! Avocados are a super powerhouse food! This fruit is packed with nutritional benefits and has a delicious creamy rich flavor, which makes it the perfect food for you and your family.
Why are avocados so healthy for us?
First of all, they contain monounsaturated fat, which is a “good fat.” According to the Harvard School of Public Health, “Unsaturated fats are called good fats because they can improve blood cholesterol levels, ease inflammation, stabilize heart rhythms, and play a number of other beneficial roles.” (1)
Back when the food and nutrition industry started to promote that fat was bad, they said it caused weight gain and heart disease. They started promoting low fat foods. When they did this, people started getting really fat, and Alzheimer’s skyrocketed.
According to Harvard, in the 1960s, fats and oils supplied Americans with about 45 percent of calories; about 13 percent of adults were obese, and under 1 percent had type 2 diabetes, a serious weight-related condition.
Today, those numbers have more than doubled, Americans take in less fat, getting about 33 percent of calories from fats and oils; yet 34 percent of adults are obese, and 11 percent have diabetes, most with type 2 diabetes. (2)
Fat is critical to our brain health, our energy levels, and our well-being. It also makes our food taste savory. When food companies started taking the savory flavor of natural fat out of food, they had to make it taste good somehow. So, they started adding sugar and refined salt. Sugar and refined salt can harm the body even more than the normal fat levels would.
Also, our body craves those good fats to function properly and give us energy. The bad fats are trans fats, meaning fats that have been changed in their molecular form, and saturated animal fats.
The good fats are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, which “do just the opposite of the bad trans fats. They are good for the heart and most other parts of the body.” (3)
Avocados provide good, unsaturated fats, but they also give us so much more. Avocados are a nutritional powerhouse providing many health benefits.
Avocados provide protein, approximately four grams per fruit. They are very low in sugar. Avocados are an excellent source of potassium, and they are rich in vitamins K, B, C, and E.
One avocado has approximately 11 grams of fiber, which is almost half of the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) recommended by the FDA.
Studies conducted using people with metabolic syndrome (which is named for a group of people at risk for diabetes, stroke and coronary heart disease), published in The Nutrition Journal, showed that after a week of following the avocado-enriched diet, the patients experienced a 22 percent decrease in bad cholesterol and triglyceride levels and an 11 percent increase in good cholesterol.(4)
The researchers concluded that “avocado consumption is associated with improved overall diet quality, nutrient intake, and reduced risk of metabolic syndrome.”(5)
If that isn’t enough to make you a fan of avocados, they are also high Avocatin B. Avocatin B is reported to help prevent the development of certain cancers.
According to Prof. Paul Spagnuolo, of the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, in the journal Cancer Research. “Using a high-throughput cell-based screen to assess the effects of avocati B on human leukemia stem cells, the researchers found the compound selectively targets and destroys them while leaving healthy blood cells unscathed. Not only does avocatin B eliminate the source of AML (Acute myeloid Leukemia), but its targeted, selective effects make it less toxic to the body, too,” Prof. Spagnuolo explains. (6)
In conclusion, healthy fat, like the fat in avocados, is essential for every cell in our body. It can support our brain, boost our immune system, increase our nutrient absorption and create a glowing complexion. So, if you want to have optimum health, eat an avocado once in a while and know you are providing essential nutrients the body needs.
Notes:
1, 2, 3, 4: Harvard School of Public Health. Fats and cholesterol: Out with the bad, in with the good. The Nutrition Source. Retrieved from http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/fats-full-story/
5: Nordqvist, Joseph. (February 11, 2015). What are the health benefits of avocados? Medical News Today. Retrieved from http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/270406.php
6: Targeting mitochondria with avocatin B induces selective leukemia cell death, Paul Spagnuolo et al., Cancer Research, doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-14-2676, published online 15 June 2015, abstract. University of Waterloo news release, accessed 16 June 2015.
Photo above is from an article in Dallas Morning News,
Arts & Life Section, April 5, 2016
“Smart Foods, Wise Moves” by Leslie Barker,
quoting Nancy Addison concerning healthy fats.
Recipe
Avocado-Sprout Sandwich
This is a yummy sandwich I have enjoyed since I was a teenager. I grew up eating sprouts and butter sandwiches. Now I add avocado instead of the butter.If you won’t be eating the sandwich right away, stop the avocado from turning dark by wrapping the sandwich tightly to keep out the air, or mash the avocado with a little lemon juice. You may want to put it in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat it.
Ingredients:
1 avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
2 slices soft, whole, sprouted-grain bread of choice
unrefined sea salt
½–1 c. sprouts of choice (alfalfa, broccoli, etc.)
Directions:
- Mash avocado.
- Toast bread if desired.
- Spread some avocado on each slice of bread.
- Sprinkle with sea salt.
- Heap sprouts on top of avocado.
- Cover with the other piece of bread.
Remember, the main ingredient
is always love!
My book,
“How To Be A Healthy Vegetarian” 2nd edition is the
Winner for “Best Diet And Nutrition Book of the Year!” by
The Beverly Hills Book Awards, 2017
Please leave a comment and join the conversation!
I love to hear what you think! copyright@nancyaddison2015
