The fruit, avocado is native to South and Central Mexico. The fruit is like a large berry that contains a single large seed. It is popular worldwide in many cuisines, rich in Vitamin E, phytosterols, carotenoids and a good proportion of different variety of essential fats. They are famously known as ‘alligator pear’ as its outer surface is scale-like, like an alligator and it is in the shape of a pear. With its rich nutrition facts, avocado is considered as a superfood.
Overview
Avocados are black green in color when unripe and turn black on ripening. It is a nutrient powerhouse and finds its way globally in various culinary as well as cosmetic preparations.
Most fruits contain higher amounts of carbohydrates in the form of natural fruit sugar, avocado is unique in its composition, as it is the only fruit that contains a high proportion of healthy fats. About 70 % of its calories come from fat, giving it the name – ‘butter fruit’.
Avocados are used in salads, tacos, burgers, as dips and spreads, pizza toppings and in many other cuisines. Although the pulpy part of the fruit is the one that is always used, the pit or the seed of avocado also has something to offer. The ancient tribal people in Central and South America also found utility in the seed of the avocado.
Avocados have a number of health benefits to offer. It contains nearly 20 vitamins, minerals and other beneficial nutrients in 150 grams (average avocado weight). Because of its fiber and fat density, consuming an entire avocado at once would be impossible. They are cardio protective, aid in weight loss, enhance mood, slows down aging and has positive effect on skin and hair health.
Reasons why avocado is considered as superfood
Nutrient powerhouse
Avocado is concentrated source of many nutrients like vitamin E, Vitamin K, Vitamin C, B complex vitamins, minerals like potassium, magnesium, zinc and manganese. These vitamins and minerals are essential for many vital functions in the body. Not only this, but avocado also helps in better absorption of vitamins in the gut because of the high fat content. This is the most important reason why avocado rightly called as a ‘superfood’.
Copper
Copper is a micro mineral that is required along with iron, in small quantities to form red blood cells in the body. This wonder fruit provides with 14 % of daily value of copper. It also helps in maintaining bone strength, blood vessel integrity and boosts immune function.
Magnesium
Magnesium is another mineral that is essential for bone function and also plays a role in muscle and nerve contraction. It is a co-factor to many enzyme complexes involved in energy metabolism and hormone function. Avocados provide 11 % of daily value of magnesium.
Niacin
Niacin, is Vitamin B3, which serves as a co-factor to many enzymes required in body metabolism processes. It improves digestion, restores skin function and supports in efficient nerve function. 150 grams of avocados contain 13 % of daily recommended value of Niacin.
Pantothenic acid
Vitamin B5, or pantothenic acid is an essential component of Coenzyme A, which is required in energy metabolism and generating energy from the food consumed. Avocados provide 21% of daily requirement of Vitamin B5.
Vitamin C
Avocados contain about 25 % of daily value of Vitamin C. Vitamin C has numerous health benefits. It is a powerful antioxidant and helps in improving the immunity of the body. It also stimulates the synthesis of collagen, that is essential for tissue regeneration and elasticity.
Folate
Avocados provide 30 % of total folate requirement. It is required for cell regeneration and DNA repair. Folate is also crucial in preventing premature birth and birth defects.
Vitamin E
About 16 % of total recommended Vitamin E comes from a 50g serving of avocado. Vitamin E, like vitamin C is a potent antioxidant and helps in maintaining cell wall structure and cell integrity. It is great for skin health and has anti-aging effects.
Cardiac health
Since avocado contains high amounts of essential fatty acids, it is in fact cardio protective. Out of the total fat content, the maximum proportion of fat is monounsaturated fat – oleic acid which is also found in olive oil. This oleic acid helps in preventing the damage caused by free radicals, thus reduces inflammation and promotes heart health.
There have been studies to show that avocado, because of its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties, helps in reducing cholesterol and triglyceride levels and thus prevent the development of heart disorders. Since they contain adequate quantities of potassium, it also helps in lowering blood pressure. Hence avocado is called as superfood.
Fiber rich
Avocado contains a combination of both soluble and insoluble fiber. An average 150 g provides about 40 % daily value of fiber. This is the icing on the cake as both soluble and insoluble fiber have numerous health benefits. Soluble fiber improves gut health and maintains normal bowel function, while insoluble fiber helps to delay gastric emptying, increase satiety and maintain blood sugar levels in the normal range.
Eye health
Avocados contain carotenoids like lutein and zeaxanthin which are very powerful antioxidants that are also beneficial for good eye health. These substances absorb light waves that can potentially harm the vision. Research has shown that these carotenoids reduce the risk of developing age-related cataracts and macular degeneration.
Weight loss
Because of the high fiber content, avocados increase satiety and keep the person full for longer. The composition of avocado is such that it contains low carbohydrates and high fat, along with other vital nutrients that improve overall health and help in losing or maintaining body weight.
Anti-cancer
Research has shown that avocados contain a substance called as avocation B, which can kill leukemic cells and also help in reducing the odds of developing breast cancer. It can also help in preventing prostate cancer.
Mood enhancer
Avocados contain high amounts of folate, which if deficient, affects mood and makes people more prone to depression. Folate is a very essential component of the cell regeneration process. It plays an important role in preventing birth defects in babies at the time of birth. As it contains high quantities of B-complex vitamins like thiamine, riboflavin and niacin, which are crucial in producing energy by various chemical reactions in the body, avocados help in keeping the energy levels up.
Anti-aging
The anti-oxidant and vitamin C content in avocado helps in reducing signs of aging, stimulate wound healing and increase collagen production, thus promoting a healthy skin.
Brain health
Because of its Vitamin E content, avocados aid in protecting against age related neurological degeneration and development of diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, which affects the memory, thinking and movement. This is due to Vitamin E’s capacity to exert its function as a powerful antioxidant and prevent free radical damage.
Strong bones
Avocados provide about 1/5th requirement of Vitamin K which helps in improving bone density and prevent possibility developing of fractures. Adding sources like egg, tofu, spinach along with avocado in a salad, can further improve bone health. Additionally, owing to its anti-inflammatory properties, avocados are protective against diseases such as arthritis and osteoarthritis and reduce swelling and joint pain.
Skin health
Avocado is a natural home remedy for a glowing, beautiful skin. The natural anti-oxidants in this fruit reduce the UV damage on the skin, and age-related fine lines and wrinkles. Many commercial face masks and scrubs contain avocado as an ingredient in them. It could be a replacement to all the fancy and chemical loaded cosmetic products for skin care and anti-aging treatment.
Hair care
Avocado naturally moisturizes the hair and gives it a natural shine. This is because of the Omega 3 fatty acids and Vitamin E that maintain the cell wall integrity and strength. Home-made hair masks containing avocado oil, almond or coconut oil may improve hair texture.
Improves fertility
Some studies have suggested that avocados help in boosting fertility and improve the chances of conceiving.
Research says people who consume avocados a lot are healthier than people who don’t. They have low rates of metabolic syndrome, slimmer waistlines, less belly fat and good heart health. Whether one is using avocado oil for cooking or for cosmetic purpose, the source is very important.
A superfood contains a lot of rich nutrients and has a lot of health benefits. Avocado is one of them with plenty of nutrients. That is why it is hard to deny avocado is superfood.
Conclusion
Therefore, it is worthwhile to pick one that is natural, unprocessed and assures high quality standard. In general, Avocados are nutritious fruits that have many health benefits. When consumed in the right amounts, they are cardioprotective, reduce signs of aging, have anti-cancer effect and good for skin and hair health. With the consumption of avocados, one can get numerous health benefits by its nutrient powerhouse. That is why avocado is a superfood.
However, consuming excess of this fruit comes with its own price. One must take caution not over consume the fruit as it can have some detrimental effects on health. Hence, moderation is the key.
Sirisha B