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9 Benefits of Avocados for Your Skin, Weight Loss and Health

Every year, people consume over fifty million pounds of guacamole during the Super Bowl. While avocados are great for guacamole, there are hundreds of other uses for this fruit alongside a multitude of benefits to incorporating them into your diet as much as possible.

9 Benefits of Eating Avocados Regularly

1. Avocados are readily available.

Walk into any grocery store and you will be able to find avocados in the local produce aisle. It is readily available at leading supermarket chains all over the country, so there is no need to venture out to a specialty health food store. You can also find it in various prepared forms such as guacamole, spreads, and more.

2. Avocados are versatile.

Avocados are incredibly easy to incorporate into your diet. If you love the taste and texture, avocados can be eaten on their own with a little bit of salt and pepper or some chili powder.

Avocados can also be used to add a different twist to your omelette, freshen up your salads, and to add some creaminess to smoothies and shakes. You can find more recipes and ideas here.

3. Avocados can help promote weight loss and weight management.

For those who are trying to lose weight, it may be counterintuitive to add a high fat, high-calorie food into your diet. However, avocados, when combined with a balanced and calorie-controlled diet, can actually aid in your weight loss efforts.

Avocados help keep you feeling full longer, is a healthier fat alternative to junk foods such as sweets and chips but still help to curb your cravings, helps to stabilize your blood sugar levels, and can help shrink your waistline. (1)

Eat avocados as part of a low carbohydrate, low sugar, high protein diet with plenty of water and exercise to get the most of your weight loss efforts.

4. Avocados are a great source of vitamins and minerals.

In order to have a well-balanced diet, it is important to include various vitamins and minerals. Avocados are a nutrient-dense food, with a single serving providing atleast 20 important nutrients, including:

Folate – Also known as folic acid, folate is an important nutrient that helps build healthy tissues. It is also important to increase intake during pregnancy and during breastfeeding in order to promote healthy fetal and infant growth. Avocados contain ten percent of your daily recommended amount of folate.
Vitamin K – This vitamin is vital in keeping your circulatory system healthy, as vitamin K helps to keep your blood clotting regularly. Avocados contain ten percent of your daily recommended intake of Vitamin K.
Riboflavin – Also known as Vitamin B2, riboflavin is important for metabolizing fat. It also helps promote healthy cell growth and function. One serving of avocado contains six percent of your daily recommended amount of riboflavin.
Potassium – Potassium is key to keeping your muscles healthy and negating the effects of sodium on blood pressure. When consumed before exercise, an avocado can help to reduce muscle cramps. This fruit contains six percent of your daily recommended amount of potassium per serving.
Vitamin C – Vitamin C is one of the most well-known vitamins that help boost the immune system. Avocados contain four percent of your daily recommended amount of Vitamin C which help promote healthy cell growth and keep your skin healthy.

5. Avocados are a good source of dietary fiber.

Fiber is highly underrated for overall health and wellness, but it is incredibly important for various reasons. For one, fiber is important to keep your digestive system running smoothly. Without adequate fiber, waste materials that have built up in the digestive tract do not pass through as efficiently. When these waste materials accumulate over time, it can wreak havoc on your system.

Fiber is also important for weight loss. It keeps you feeling fuller longer, which can help reduce your total caloric intake. Eating fewer calories than you burn in a day is key to losing weight. Without adequate fiber intake, your blood sugar levels could swing up or down, resulting in wild hunger pangs and inconsistent energy levels.

Generally, adults should have 20 to 30 grams of fiber per day. (3)

6. Avocados are full of antioxidants.

In the United States alone, more than one million people are diagnosed with cancer each year. This is due to many reasons, but one of the root causes is the proliferation of free radicals. Free radicals are unstable oxygen molecules that reproduce at a rapid rate. Prevention methods can and should be taken, as once cancer forms and begins to spread, the treatment options can be incredibly harsh on the body.

In recent years, certain foods have come out as superfoods due to their high concentration of antioxidants. Antioxidants are chemicals found in plant-based foods, particularly dark colored fruits and vegetables. These phytochemicals help to break down these free radicals to help prevent tumors.

The antioxidants that are found in avocados are fantastic for cancer prevention, but are also good for eye health. Avocados are high in an antioxidant called lutein, which helps prevent age-related macular degeneration, which is the most common cause of vision loss in people over the age of 50. (4)

7. Avocados are full of healthy fats.

In recent decades, food that are high in fats have automatically been labeled unhealthy and laden with junk. However, while fats should never be consumed in excess, a certain amount of fats should be consumed in your diet to keep you healthy and strong. Avocados are particularly high in good fats, which are important for a number of different reasons.

Monounsaturated fats, also known as MUFAs, are what are known as ‘good’ fats. These fats can actually work to help reduce levels of bad cholesterol, and is one of the only fruits that contain these healthy fats. Therefore, avocados can help to reduce the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, heart attack, and stroke when eaten in conjunction with a low sodium diet and managing any underlying conditions. (5)

8. Avocados enhance nutrient absorption.

As a healthy source of fat, avocados help to absorb nutrients from other types of food. If won’t matter how many vitamins and nutrients you are consuming in a day if you do not have healthy fats to help you absorb them. Studies have shown that the high levels of healthy fats in avocados help to increase absorption of vitamins and nutrients. (6)

9. Avocados may help treat arthritis.

In the United States, approximately forty million adults and children suffer from some type of arthritis. Arthritis is a debilitating degenerative disease that affect joints throughout the body, particularly fingers, toes, knees, and shoulders. As this disease affects the cartilage between the joints, there is not much that can be done to cure this ailment, there are things that can be done to manage this condition.

Avocado is a fantastic fruit to help manage arthritis for a couple of different reasons. The healthy fats found in avocados help to manage arthritis. Avocado is also high in Vitamin E, which studies have suggested can help reduce the pain of arthritis better than NSAIDs, or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. (7)

Precautions

Avocados are a great addition to your diet for a number of different reasons, but there are a couple of different things you should keep in mind as you are adding them into your diet. Anyone who has latex allergies should be mindful of consuming avocados as it has been shown to cause a similar allergic reaction .

There may also be negative drug side effects with regular avocado consumption, but those who are on warfarin to delay blood clotting should talk with their doctor to see if avocado is safe to consume regularly, as avocado can cause this drug to be less effective. (8)

Conclusion

Avocados are a fantastic way to keep healthy, providing multiple nutrients, antioxidants, and other essential chemicals needed to keep your body healthy and strong. As with anything, it is important to eat avocados in moderation. Eat these delicious, savory fruits in conjunction with other fruits and vegetables, lean protein, whole grains, plenty of water, and of course, some candy every once in awhile.