Healthy Food of the Week: Avocado

Most people don’t know this but an avocado is actually a fruit – and a very healthy one at that. Avocados have a bit of a bad rap because they are high in fat. What some don’t realize is that our bodies need fat to function properly. Avocados are a rich source of monounsaturated fatty acids (healthy fat that that actually helps lower cholesterol). Avocados also contain oleic acid which has been shown to help prevent breast cancer.

Avocados also have many other health benefits. They are a good source of potassium, a mineral that helps regulate blood pressure. Potassium can help protect against circulatory diseases, like high blood pressure, heart disease or stroke. The U.S. Food and Drug Association announced, “Diets containing foods that are good sources of potassium and low in sodium may reduce the risk of high blood pressure and stroke.”

One cup of avocado also has 23% of your daily needs for folate, a nutrient important for heart health. A study involving 80,000 women over a 14 year period found that women who had higher intakes of dietary folate had a 55% lower risk of having heart attacks or fatal heart disease. Another study showed that individuals who consume folate-rich diets have a much lower risk of cardiovascular disease.

Another benefit – even just a few slices of avocado tossed into your salad, or salsa will increase your body’s ability to absorb the health-promoting carotenoids that the vegetables provide.

Oral cancer is even more deadly than breast, skin, or cervical cancer, with a mortality rate of about 50% due to late detection, according to Great Britain’s Mouth Cancer Foundation. Avocados may offer prevention of oral cancer because of their phytonutrients.

 Need more reasons to go out and buy some avocados – in addition they are a good source of vitamin K, dietary fiber, vitamin B6, vitamin C, and copper.

In a laboratory study published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, an extract of avocado containing carotenoids and tocopherols inhibited the growth of prostate cancer cells. Researchers tried to use parts of the avocado makeup to determine exactly what was working against the prostate cancer cells. They determined that single components of the avocado didn’t work they needed to use the whole matrix of the avocado to kill prostate cancer cells.

Here’s what I find so interesting – when researchers determine that a certain food has health benefits they try and break apart the food to determine exactly what part of the food item is causing the benefit. Often they can’t find the answer. The food in its whole, natural state is making the difference. The food, in the state it was created, is making the whole health-promoting package. God created the food we eat to do so much more than just make our stomachs happy.  I believe so many of our health problems could be solved if we ate the way God intended us to!

How to eat an avocado: Use a knife to cut the avocado in half lengthwise. Gently twist the two halves in opposite direction, the avocado will open. Remove the pit. I love to pour olive oil and balsamic vinegar into the hole left from the pit. Get a spoon and eat it right out of the shell. You can also peel it and dice it. An avocado will quickly turn brown unless you squeeze a little lemon juice or pour some vinegar on it.

Recipe for salad dressing:

1/2 cup ripened diced avocado, 1/2 cup diced tofu, 1/2 cup skim milk, salt and pepper to taste – blend together until smooth and pour over your favorite salad!

One note of caution: Although the fat in avocado is a healthy fat you still need to watch how many you eat if you are trying to watch your weight. The good thing is you don’t need a lot of avocado; one cup is enough, to receive the health benefits talked about.