An Avocado A Day Keeps The Doctor Away

By: Marlene Affeld

If the avocado were newly discovered today, it would be considered a miracle food. David Fairchild, one of America's most distinguished and published plant experts, comments, "The avocado is without rival among the fruits, the veritable fruit of paradise." Fairchild states that avocados should be part of everyone's daily diet due to their irresistible flavor, nutritional content, and smooth, creamy texture.

Nutritional Value

An avocado contains up to 10 grams of fiber and 20 essential nutrients for optimal health. Copper and iron, found in avocados, aid in the regeneration of red blood cells. Ounce for ounce, avocados provide 35 percent more potassium than bananas.

Unfortunately, many people think of avocados as high in fat and don't include it in their diets as often as they should for optimum health. It's true; an average avocado contains 731 calories and 30 grams of fat, and while 90 percent of calories in an avocado come from fat, it's heart-healthy fat.

Nutrient-rich avocados are high in monounsaturated fats (3g per serving). Monounsaturated fats reduce blood cholesterol and lower the risk of heart disease when used to replace saturated fats in the diet. Healthy, monounsaturated fats also help reduce the risk of diabetes.

With 20 to 30 times more heart-healthy fats than other fruits, avocados provide a tasty energy source for growing children and athletics. Because avocados are low in trans fats, saturated fats, and cholesterol, avocados can be enjoyed as a delicious part of your daily diet.

A typical serving contains only 150 calories. Avocados are sodium-free. An average avocado provides 3 g of fruit protein, 1.5 mg potassium, 1.4 mg iron, 95 mg phosphorus, 23 mg calcium, 8.6 mg niacin, and 660 I.U. of vitamin A. The fruit protein found in avocados is a healthy addition to vegetarian diets. Avocados are an excellent source of protein in countries where protein consumption is inadequate.

A typical avocado contains two-thirds of the minimum daily requirement of folate. The wealth of folate acid in avocados helps promote prenatal health, protect the body against strokes, prevent life-threatening anemia, support metabolism, and help lower cholesterol in the blood. Folate acid in avocados also helps prevent breast cancer.

Vitamin C is a potent antioxidant that supports the immune system and aids in developing connective tissue formation, helping wounds heal and wrinkles diminish. One serving of a fourth of an avocado provides 82 mg of vitamin C. High in fiber (75 percent insoluble and 25 percent soluble), nutrient-dense avocados are a good source of B vitamins and vitamins E, A, D, and K.

Avocados are an ideal source of glutathione, an essential antioxidant scientists warn is crucial to preventing heart disease, cancer, and aging.

An average avocado contains 76 milligrams of beta-sitosterol, a natural plant sterol that helps the human body maintain healthy cholesterol levels. The 1999 American Journal of Medicine issue reports beta-sitosterol reduced cholesterol in 16 human studies.

People think carotenoids are concentrated in yellow, orange, and red vegetables such as tomatoes, carrots, squash, and peppers. Although nutrient-dense vegetables are storehouses of carotenoids, the avocado contains an impressive array of carotenoids despite its lush green-tinted skin and pulp.

Avocados work as a nutrient booster, encouraging the body to absorb more fat-soluble nutrients such as lutein, alpha, and beta-carotene from the foods we eat in combination with avocados.

Lutein is a carotenoid, a natural phytonutrient and antioxidant. Lutein protects against cataracts, macular degeneration, and other age-related eye diseases. An ounce of avocado supplies 81 mg of lutein.

One cup of fresh avocado, added to a salad of greens and carrots, increases the absorption of carotenoids from the salad by up to 400 percent. Carotenoids are fat soluble in the oil from the avocado. Add fresh avocados or avocado oil to salads, sauces, and salsa to increase the health benefits derived from other fruits and vegetables.

Avocados have unusually high amounts of a fatty acid known as oleic acid. Over half of the total fat in avocado is in the form of oleic acid, similar to the fat composition of olives and olive oil. Oleic acid assists our digestive tract in forming transport molecules for fat that can increase the absorption of fat-soluble nutrients like carotenoids.

Avocados also enable the body to absorb more fat-soluble vitamins from our foods, including A, D, K, and E.

Health Benefits Of Avocados

Avocados prevent constipation, relieve the symptoms of Crohn's disease, and stave off malnutrition. Antioxidant-rich avocados help protect the body from diseases associated with heart disease, elevated cholesterol, and high blood pressure.

A recent 1996 study by researchers at the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social in Mexico (Archives of Medical Research, Winter 1996) showed that volunteers consuming an avocado daily lowered their cholesterol levels by 17 percent in just one week.

Avocados are used in the prevention and treatment of breast and prostate cancer. Ohio State University reports nutrients taken from avocados to prevent the development of precancerous cells that lead to lip, mouth, and throat cancers.

Babies First Food

Avocados are one of the ideal first foods for babies; the most nutrient-dense food of all fruits suitable for feeding infants and small children. Easily digested, with a palatable texture and mild flavor, ripe mashed avocados can be sweetened with a few drops of organic honey to supplement an infant or young child's nutritional requirements daily when little ones are ready for "finger foods," slice avocados in small chunks. Children love the bright color and smooth, creamy texture of avocados.

Avocado's Role In Weight Management

Despite being high in calories, avocados are a valuable tool in attaining and maintaining a healthy weight. Consuming avocados speeds up the metabolism and quickly provides a sense of fullness, reducing the temptation to indulge in snacks high in carbohydrates or sugar. Dieters and diabetics, watching their carbohydrate intake, can indulge in avocados often. A one-ounce serving contains only 3 grams of carbohydrates and less than one gram of sugar.

Medical research validates the age-old belief that diets that contain 20- to 30 percent calories from "heart-healthy" monounsaturated fats, such as those found in avocados, aid weight loss and support overall good health. Instead of slathering on mayonnaise, cream cheese, or butter on your bagel, biscuit, or bread, substitute a few slices of avocado to cut calories, reduce unhealthy fats, and increase your monounsaturated fat intake.

The Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research suggests changing unhealthy eating behavior to healthy eating habits as a method of reducing belly fat. To fight belly fat, replace unsaturated fats with monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Increase your intake of fresh fruits and vegetables and reduce your consumption of refined carbohydrates. When dieting, always remember to stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water.

Skin and Hair Care

Applying oil of the avocado seed directly to the skin keeps the skin supple, smooth, and moist and helps raw, irritated, red skin, eczema, and psoriasis patches to heal faster. Prized for its ease of absorption and superior healing nature, avocado oil is a natural sunscreen and wind burn protection. Avocado oil also quickly heals chapped lips.

Avocado oil, massaged into the scalp daily, 30 minutes before shampooing, increases hair growth. Throughout the Caribbean, a powder made by grinding the dried seed of the avocado is used to treat dandruff.

To create a natural, healing facial mask, mash the flesh of one ripe avocado and two tablespoons of honey with two teaspoons of oatmeal and apply to the face. Allow the mixture to remain for 20 to 30 minutes. Rinse with lukewarm water. The mashed flesh of the avocado is also used as a soothing shaving cream. Some cultures chew avocado seeds to reduce toothache pain. Others chew the fruit's skin to relieve dysentery and prevent internal parasites.

Soak the avocado seed for 15 minutes in a small pot of boiling water. Cool the liquid as a poultice for sprains, muscle aches, and bruises.

Eating Avocados

Avocados are packed with flavor and ready for eating when fully ripe. Avocados do not ripen on the tree; they only ripen after they are picked.

If you have an avocado tree, pick the fruit as needed and let it ripen at room temperature on a sunny windowsill. Place the avocados in a brown paper bag or near ripening apples or bananas to encourage the ripening process. The organic gasses the fruit produces when ripening quickly softens your avocados

Peeling An Avocado

Peel an avocado carefully to preserve its nutrient-rich properties. Research indicates that the highest concentration of carotenoids, vitamins, and minerals lies just beneath the dark green or blackish skin.

You do not want to remove the dark green flesh next to the peel. The recommended method of peeling is similar to peeling a banana. Cut the avocado in half lengthwise. Twist the two halves in opposite directions until they separate. Remove the pit and cut each half lengthwise to produce quarter sections. Grip the point of the peel with your thumb and index finger and peel, just as you would a banana.

Allow the remaining avocados to hang on the tree until you can use them. Select fruits that are free of marks or dents that can indicate bruising. Avocados should be firm yet yield to gentle pressure. Soft yet strong, avocados are used for slicing and to add to salads and sandwiches. Soft, overly-ripened avocados are selected for sauces, dips, desserts and drinks.

Lactose-intolerant persons can use avocados to add a creamy texture and taste to soups, spreads, sauces, smoothies, and salsas.

History of Avocados

Archaeological research indicates that the avocado originated in what is now Mexico between 7,000 and 5,000 years B.C. Since before the days of the Spanish Conquistadores, avocados were a staple in the native diets of people living in Mexico, Central and South America. Grown from northern Mexico to the Andes Mountains of Peru, calorie-dense avocados were incorporated into a diverse array of culinary dishes, desserts, and liquors.

The conquistadors discovered a unique use for the milky juice inside the avocado pit. The sap-like liquid turns a deep red or black when exposed to air. The conquistadores applied the liquid as an indelible ink used to scribe documents and maps, some of which still exist today.

Also known as avocado pear, alligator pear, butter pear, or butter fruit, the avocado is in the flowering plant family Lauraceae. Avocados derive their name from the Aztec word "ahuacata" (testicle), which refers to the fruit's shape. The Aztec culture honored the tree. The Aztec people knew avocados as "the fertility fruit."

Ancient Mayan, Incan, and Aztec Indian cultures believed the avocado to be an aphrodisiac with inherent sexual powers and a physical resemblance to genitalia. Young maidens consumed avocados to enhance their beauty and promote fertility. The sensual nature of the avocado is embodied in its soft, tantalizing flesh and hard pit. The intriguing fruit represented the ultimate sexual coming together of man and woman.

In ancient times, procreation was a sacred duty. Aphrodisiacs, such as avocados, were employed to ensure potency in men and fertility in women. The fantastic avocado has a colorful and controversial history as a nutritious, healing food and a sexual stimulant.

For 10,000 years, natural healers have suggested avocados for encouraging sexual prowess and enhancing fertility. For centuries, it was considered scandalous to be seen buying, picking, or eating avocados. Prevailing morality dictated such decadent behavior to remain in private.

In most of South America, avocados are known as "palta" or "abacate." In Tobago and Trinidad, the fruit is called "zaboca." In France, avocados are “avocatier”. The Dutch call the fruit "avocados." In Spain, it is called "abogado." There are more than 500 different varieties of avocados grown worldwide. In the United States, the two most popular brands of avocados are the thin-skinned, smooth, bright green Fuertes variety and the rough and leathery black-skinned Hass variety.

Cultivation

Native to Mexico and Central America, avocados are now cultivated in sub-tropical and tropical climates worldwide. Avocados exhibit a deep green-skinned, meaty body that ripens to a deep, purplish-green after harvesting. Grown from seed, avocado trees require a warm climate, plenty of sunshine, and nutrient-rich, well-drained soil.

When planting, space avocado trees 50 to 75 feet apart. Mature avocado trees have a comprehensive, spreading canopy, typically as wide as the tree is tall. When planting avocado trees, give them adequate room to grow. Avoid planting near buildings, dams, utility lines, ponds, cesspools, septic tanks, underground utilities, fences, roads, and property easements.

Depending on the variety, evergreen avocado trees can grow from 50 to 75 feet tall and produce an abundance of individual fruits, each weighing from 8 ounces to 4 pounds. The tree's fruit is a large berry containing a single seed. The fruit may be egg-shaped, pear-shaped, or spherical with a rough, leathery skin.

Avocados are fun and easy to grow. Plant a seed 4 to 6 inches deep in the soil to start an avocado tree. Provide plenty of water, and you will soon have a tree that will feed generations in the future. Avocado trees will produce an abundance of fruit within five years.

Within 5 to 7 years, your avocado tree will produce 200 to 300 fruits a season. Avocado trees do best in alternate years. The harvest will be sparse, with less flavor one year and abundant and flavorful the following year. Wild avocado trees in Mexico have lived for over 400 years and produce fruit.

Plant an avocado tree as a living celebration of life or to honor an ancestor or loved one. Your avocado tree will share your love for centuries. Living in a northern climate, you can still grow an avocado pit indoors in a sunny window or greenhouse.

• Poke three wooden toothpicks into the side of an avocado pit in a triangular pattern, halfway between the top and bottom of the pit. Balance the toothpicks on a small water glass or teacup.

• Fill the container with water until the bottom of the seed pit is submerged. Place in a sunny location. Maintain the water level until the seed has sprouted and exhibits many fine, white roots.

• Once roots are evident, plant in soil in a 5-gallon flower pot with good drainage. Avocado trees grown indoors will not produce fruit. However, avocado trees make an attractive, conversation-provoking houseplant.

References

California Avocado Commission

http://www.avocado.org/Regenerative

Nutrition

http://www.regenerativenutrition.com/content.asp?id=443

Ohio State University: Avocados May Help Prevent Oral Cancer

http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/avocados.htm

University of California: Agricultural and Natural Resources

http://ucavo.ucr.edu/General/Answers.html