Benefits Of Avocado

Boost Your Health With Avocado

The health benefits of avocado include weight management, protection from heart diseases and diabetes, treating osteoarthritis, and enhancing the absorption of nutrients for the body. It also reduces the risk of cancer, liver damage, and vitamin K deficiency-related bleeding. Avocado helps in keeping the eyes healthy and protecting the skin from signs of aging and the harmful effects of UV rays. It also helps in maintaining blood sugar levels and has antioxidant properties. It even increases circulation, boosts cognitive abilities, and builds stronger bones!

According to a recent research study, avocado seeds are used for the treatment of diabetes, inflammatory conditions, and hypertension, as well as for improving hypercholesterolemia. Another research studyshows that consumption of avocado leads to improved diet quality and nutrient intake, including a lowered risk of metabolic syndrome.

Nutritional Value Of Avocado

Avocados are considered a “superfood” and have a special position in the food calorie pyramid. Avocados are rich  in various nutrients, vitamins, and minerals. They are also a good source of monounsaturated fatty acids and have a low sugar content.  They are a good source of energy and contain a number of essential vitamins and minerals. Avocados contain calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, copper, manganese, phosphorus and zinc. They also contain minerals such as vitamin C, B6, B-12, A, D, K, E, thiamin, riboflavin, and niacin. Furthermore, they are a great source of dietary fiber, and a single serving can provide more than 40% of the daily requirement!

Avocados are rich in potassium and successfully balance the potassium to sodium ratio which is vitally important to overall health. According to CAC (California Avocado Commission), a medium-sized Hass avocado contains almost 22.5 grams fat. Two-thirds of this fat is of the monounsaturated variety, and they are also very low in fructose. Perhaps most importantly, avocados have a unique collection of organic compounds like phytosterols, carotenoids, and flavonoids.

Health Benefits Of Avocado

Avocados have many health benefits. They are packed with nutrients and are therefore considered as one of the best foods you can eat. Avocados are most beneficial when eaten raw. Many of the well-researched and important health benefits of avocados are as follows:

Aids in Digestion

It is believed that avocados are soothing for the intestine and therefore aid in digestion. They contain soluble and insoluble fibers that help to keep the digestive system running smoothly. These types of fiber are very important for digestion because they bulk up stools and help ensure the smooth passage of food through the intestinal tract. Furthermore, they stimulate gastric and digestive juices so nutrients are absorbed in the most efficient and rapid way. Finally, they reduce the symptoms from conditions like constipation and diarrhea. All in all, the huge amount of fiber found in avocados (40% of daily requirement per serving) makes this a very important food for optimizing your digestive health.

Dental Care

Consumption of avocados also helps in preventing bad breath, which is primarily caused due to indigestion or an upset stomach. Halitosis can be eliminated by improving digestive health, and the antibacterial and antioxidant flavonoids found in avocados also kill the bacteria in your mouth that can result in bad breath. Avocados have also been connected with preventing oral cancers!

Skin and Hair Care

Avocados are packed with  nutrients that are beneficial for maintaining healthy skin. It enriches skin that is dry, chapped or damaged. They are added to a variety of cosmetics due to their ability to nourish the skin with essential vitamins and make it glow. It is also used for nourishing dry and damaged hair. Many people use avocados to prepare skin and hair masks. Above all, avocado oil helps in treating  plaque psoriasis. Beta-carotene and lycopene are two organic compounds found in large quantities in avocados. Both of these have been connected to improving the health and tone of your skin and eliminating signs of premature aging.

Liver Care

Avocados are very good at reducing  liver damage. It has certain organic compounds that help in improving liver health . Liver damage is normally caused due to Hepatitis C. Findings of a recent research study suggest that avocados may play a major role in toning up and protecting your liver from a wide variety of conditions.

Improves Vision

Avocados help keep your eyes healthy. They contain carotenoids such as lutein and zeaxanthin, which help to protect your eyes against cataracts, eye diseases related to age, and macular degeneration. These conditions are often caused by free radicals that accumulate in the tissues of the eyes. The antioxidant activity of these special carotenoids in avocados neutralize the effects of those dangerous free radicals.

Promotes Healthy Heart

The health benefits of avocados include a healthier heart. Beta-sitosterol, which is found in avocados, helps maintain healthy cholesterol levels. Research studies [14] suggest that the intake of avocado may enhance antiatherogenic properties of HDL cholesterol, which helps in protecting the heart from atherosclerosis, also known as arteriosclerotic vascular disease. The significant levels of potassium also make avocados a powerful fruit in the fight against hypertension. Potassium is a vasodilator, which relaxes the tension of blood vessels and arteries, thereby reducing the chances of clotting, heart attacks, and strokes.

Kidney Health

Diet plays a very important role in maintaining the balance of minerals and fluids in those who suffer from chronic kidney disorders. Potassium is one of the minerals that help in maintaining a normal heart rate. Avocados are a good source of potassium and their inclusion in your diet may provide other benefits as well. It is important to make sure that potassium levels are not too high as that can also be dangerous for the heart. Potassium is a key aspect of maintaining fluid balance through chemical channels for cells and organs. This balance of fluid is also vital for the functioning of the kidney, which handles the movement of fluid and toxins through the body.

Treats Arthritis

The anti-inflammatory properties of avocados are perhaps its most valuable attribute, and between the wide range of phytochemicals, flavonoids, carotenoids, phytosterols, fatty alcohols, and omega-3 fatty acids it contains, avocados are one of the best foods for reducing the inflammation in tissues, joints, and muscles. Arthritis affects  tens of millions of people around the world, and by consuming a proper amount of avocados, studies have frequently shown the symptoms and associated pain of arthritis can be efficiently reduced!

Healthy Skin

Avocados contain  many vitamins and minerals that help in maintaining healthy skin. Carotenoids found in avocados are associated with reducing UV-induced inflammation of the skin due to exposure to the sun. Oil made from avocado helps in protecting the skin against sunburn damage. The high levels of beta-carotene in avocados can be enzymatically split into provitamin A, which has long been connected to protecting the skin from a variety of conditions and the damaging effects of the sun.

Anti-aging

Consuming avocados is also associated with healthy aging. It contains compounds such as xanthophyll, which has antioxidant properties. Research studies suggest that an intake of xanthophyll may decrease signs of the aging process on various parts of your body.

Blood Glucose Level

Apart from the fruit, the leaf extracts of avocados also provide health benefits. A study conducted on non-diabetic and diabetic rats suggest that the leaf extracts may help in lowering blood glucose levels. For diabetic patients, the metabolism of starch-based foods into simple sugars like glucose can cause the spikes and plunges that are dangerous for diabetics. Fiber helps to slow the breakdown of food into usable sugars, so it is absorbed by the body in a more balanced way. Furthermore, the majority of carbohydrates in avocados are made up of 7-carbon sugars, a relatively rare form of sugar that actually inhibit the enzyme hexokinase. This helps avocados control the way that glucose is metabolized by the body, thereby protecting the overall health of diabetic patients.