The benefits and harms of avocado, what does it taste like, how to choose?

Daria Rusakova, nutritionist, candidate of medical sciences

– Avocado is called a superfood for its beneficial properties. The fruit is valued for its rich texture and high nutritional value, and in Mexico, avocado is considered an aphrodisiac.

Avocado is a unique fruit. While other fruits are mostly carbohydrates, avocados contain healthy fats. Recently, it has become popular among people who adhere to a healthy lifestyle.

Here's how avocados can benefit your body.

Rich in vitamins and microelements

Avocados are most often used in cold dishes. It is loved for its unusual texture and pleasant light smell. The fruit contains at least 20 vitamins and minerals.

Prevention of cardiovascular diseases

Avocados are high in monounsaturated fatty acids, which have a positive effect on heart function. 77% of the calories in avocados are healthy fats. The largest amount of them is oleic acid, which helps stabilize blood cholesterol levels. Avocado oil is also one of the safest for cooking, as it has a high combustion temperature.

Helps you lose weight

Despite the fact that this fruit contains a lot of calories and a lot of fat, avocado has benefits for weight loss: it is very filling, so it quickly reduces the feeling of hunger. After eating the fruit, you don’t feel like eating for several hours.

The fiber in avocados helps improve intestinal function and lower blood sugar levels. Fiber can be soluble or insoluble. The first one feeds beneficial bacteria that help the body function normally. The second one removes harmful substances. There are 7 g of fiber per 100 g of fruit. This is 1/4 of the daily value.

Avocados are also used for baking instead of butter or margarine. It is possible to combine avocado pulp with coconut oil and also use it instead of animal fats. This mixture will be even healthier, and the products go well together.

Harm

Although avocado is considered one of the healthiest fruits, it can also cause harm, but only if consumed incorrectly or overeated. This manifests itself in the occurrence of:

• constipation;
• diarrhea;
• cramps in the abdominal area;
• gas formation;
• other problems related to the functioning of the digestive organs.

The above problems only appear if you eat several fruits every day for a long period of time. The digestive system malfunctions and, as a result, troubles arise. To avoid problems, nutritionists recommend not to get carried away with eating green pulp and limit your consumption of fruit to 1-2 pieces per day.

An adult fruit that has reached maturity weighs approximately 180-250 g.

The benefits of avocado for women

Avocados are rich in folic acid, which is required for cell development.
It is useful for pregnant women and those planning pregnancy to consume 400 mcg of folic acid every day - this dose is contained in two avocados. However, it should be remembered that avocado can cause allergies, so if you are prone to allergies and have not eaten this fruit before, then start eating it with a few pieces, and it is best to first ask your doctor if you can have avocado.

Nursing mothers should also eat this fruit with caution. After you eat an avocado, monitor your child's reaction. If a baby experiences colic or vomiting, then it is better not to eat avocados during breastfeeding.

Contraindications for use

Although eating avocado is a deadly threat to many animals, it is considered very safe and beneficial for human health. However, there are some exceptions.

People with genetic mutations that have elevated levels of good (HDL-C) cholesterol should eat fresh avocados with caution. A significant increase in good cholesterol levels leads to the development of heart disease.

As for the side disadvantages of fruits, for some people this will certainly be a high price (it can reach up to one thousand rubles per piece). Not everyone may like the original taste of pleasure either.

Note! For people who would like to grow avocados from seeds at home, let us remind you that the leaves, branches and bark are poisonous to people and animals! Keep the avocado plant indoors away from children and pets.

The benefits of avocado for men and athletes

Avocado can be considered a source of strength for a man - physical, mental, sexual. Regular use provides many benefits:

● testosterone is produced more actively;

● blood flow is activated;

● immunity becomes stronger;

● metabolism accelerates, weight is easier to return to normal;

● useful for nervous tension;

● the risk of developing atherosclerosis is reduced;

● the genitourinary system is better protected from inflammation and infections.

The fruit is also useful for athletes and simply active men. Avocados are high in L-carnitine. It not only helps build muscle, but also makes a man more resilient, focused and strong. For men over 60 years of age, it is important that avocados protect against cardiovascular diseases.

But, despite all the advantages of the fruit, men should observe moderation. Excessive consumption of avocados can disrupt hormonal levels. Therefore, it is better to eat fruit not every day, but only 2-3 times a week.

Beneficial properties of alligator pear seeds

The bone has the following beneficial properties:

• A natural antibiotic, an extract obtained from avocado seeds, kills the pathogens of the tropical disease yellow fever and some fungal infections.
• Antitumor properties – the bone contains compounds that fight the development of tumor cells.
• Source of antioxidants – rich in substances that can fight free radicals.
• Beneficial properties for digestion - Indians used the fruit seed to treat diarrhea and dysentery.
• The last beneficial property is protection against the formation of plaques on arterial walls, lowers cholesterol levels due to the high fiber content in the bone, which prevents the absorption of harmful fats.

Can you eat avocado every day?

Anna Karshieva, gastroenterologist at the medical center

Atlas"

– If there are no contraindications, then avocados in moderation will definitely not harm. The fruit will help your heart function, reduce the risk of diabetes, and stabilize lipid levels. Avocado is also suitable for those who are watching their figure, as its healthy fats quickly saturate the body and make you not want to eat. At the same time, the overseas fruit has a positive effect on the central nervous system and helps to better cope with daily stress.

General information

Avocado grows on evergreen trees 18–20 m high. The taste of avocado is reminiscent of a vegetable, but it is still classified as a fruit.
Avocados are grown in countries with tropical or subtropical climates. The world's main suppliers of avocados are Mexico and the Dominican Republic.

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Avocados are called alligator pears because of their similar shape and rough, thick, dark green skin that resembles crocodile skin.

How to select and store avocados?

It is better not to take an avocado that is soft to the touch with dry skin and dark spots. Most likely, the fruit has been lying on the shelf for a long time, has become overripe and has lost its beneficial properties. A high-quality avocado has a shiny, bright-colored skin, and if you press a little on it with your finger, the flesh will be elastic, but give in to pressure. This avocado can be bought and stored in the refrigerator for a whole week. Haas avocado is dark green, almost black, with a bumpy skin. The petiole area should be smooth and light brown.

You can look at the place where the stalk is attached. If you remove the petiole, the ripe fruit will have a yellow or light brown mark from the petiole. In an unripe fruit this place is light green, in an overripe fruit it is dark in color. If there is mold in this area, the avocado is spoiled.

If the fruit is unripe and hard, then it can be brought to the point of ripeness. Place it next to the apple or wrap it in paper and put it in a warm place. The fruit will ripen in less than 24 hours.

If the avocado is already cut, the flesh quickly turns black, that is, it oxidizes. The cut fruit should be sprinkled with lime or lemon juice, olive oil, wrapped in cling film, and placed in the refrigerator. Avocados can be stored this way for 1-2 days.

Dietary recipes

Because of the delicate taste of the pulp, the fruit is very popular with chefs, so it is added to almost any dish. Avocado is often included in meat and fish salads and is used for baking, stewing and frying vegetables with meat and fish. Then the dish can be served spectacularly: right in the empty boat left from under the fruit. Show your imagination, play with the recipe in your own way, add your favorite spices, and you will see that avocado is not only a healthy storehouse of vitamins, but also a tasty delicacy for those who love to eat.

Dietary avocado and shrimp salad

Avocado pulp goes best with the delicate taste of shrimp meat, so there are many interpretations of the salad. We suggest adding a little sourness to the dish - grapefruit, the benefits of the salad will only increase, and the taste will become slightly unusual and even a sophisticated gourmet will like it. 100 g of light salad produces only 120 kcal.

Compound:

• 1/2 grapefruit;
• ripe avocado - 1 pc.;
• 80-90 g peeled shrimp;
• a bunch of arugula;
• 1/2 part lime;
• a pinch of ground black pepper;
• olive oil for dressing - tbsp.

How to cook:

Wash the avocado, cut into 2 equal slices and remove the pit. Cut out the pulp with a knife, but do not touch the skin. The cup from the fruit will be needed to serve the salad; it must not be damaged. Cut the pulp into small cubes and place in a bowl.

Peel the grapefruit and remove the white film from the segments. Cut the slices into small pieces and place in a bowl.

Take the shrimp already boiled and peeled so that you don’t have to fuss with them. If you use king prawns in cooking, cut them into 3-4 pieces to make it easier to eat. There is no need to cut cocktail shrimp. Place the seafood in a bowl with the remaining ingredients.

Squeeze the lime juice into a cup, making sure that the seeds do not get into the salad with the juice. Tear the arugula into a bowl. Lightly drizzle the ingredients with olive oil, pepper and mix well again.

The salad can be served immediately after preparation, but it will taste better if you put it in the refrigerator for half an hour. To serve, take the remaining skin from the fruit. Place the salad in the boat; you need to fill it tightly, without fear that the boat will tear. The skin of the fruit is strong, so don’t be afraid to add more filling. Serve the boats and help yourself, bon appetit!

Instead of arugula, you can take any other greens of your choice. Lettuce, basil, parsley, cilantro will do.

Chicken salad with avocado

Chicken lovers will love this simple recipe for a light but very nutritious salad with the addition of cherry tomatoes and sweet pear pieces. This is a great option for a hearty snack for lunch or even dinner. One serving of salad contains no more than 140 kcal, so you don’t have to worry about your figure.

Compound:

• 1 PC. avocado;
• 120 g chicken breast;
• 6-7 Cherry tomatoes;
• sweet and sour pear – 1 pc.;
• lime wedges with lemon for garnish;
• according to tbsp. olive oil and soy sauce.

How to cook:

Place the chicken breast in a saucepan, cover with water and boil the meat until tender. Remove the cooled meat from the bones, remove the skin, and then cut the fillet into small pieces.

Wash the Cherry tomatoes and dry on a towel. Cut each tomato in half and add it to the chopped chicken fillet.

Divide the avocado into 2 parts, remove the pit. Remove the pulp from the fruit and cut into approximately the same pieces as the chicken meat, and then transfer to a bowl with the rest of the ingredients.

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Wash the pear, remove the skin and cut out the core. Chop the fruit into cubes and place in a cup.

The salad is almost ready, all that remains is to season it with olive oil and soy sauce. Add your favorite spices to taste; Italian herbs, rosemary and basil work well. Before serving, garnish the dish with fresh lime and lemon wedges.

Do not pour the broth left over from cooking chicken into the sink. Put it in the refrigerator and then cook a light soup.

Baked Avocado with Egg Sauce

If you are watching your figure and sticking to a healthy diet, there is one very tasty recipe that you will surely enjoy. Vegetable casserole is perfect for lunch, but you can make it for breakfast. It takes about half an hour to prepare.

Compound:

• 3 ripe avocados;
• 2 tomatoes;
• 50 g cheese;
• a pair of chicken eggs;
• tsp lemon juice;
• tbsp olive oil;
• spices and salt to taste.

How to cook:

Place the cut avocado slices on a greased baking sheet and bake in the oven at 180 degrees for 20 minutes. Then remove the fruit from the oven and wait until it cools completely.

Cut the tomatoes into pieces; if the skin was too hard, it needs to be removed. Separate the yolks from the whites into a bowl; the whites will not be needed. Place the cup with the yolks in a water bath and beat them until they begin to thicken. Add spices and salt to the yolks, add lemon juice and stir again.

Scoop out the pulp from the cooled avocado slices with a spoon. In a baking dish, place pieces of fruit on a greased bottom. Place a layer of tomatoes on top and then pour in the egg mixture.

Grate the cheese on a fine grater, sprinkle it on the dish and place the baking dish in an oven preheated to 180 degrees. Cooking time is 10-15 minutes. As soon as a golden brown crust has formed on top of the casserole, turn off the heat - the dish is ready.

You should try the casserole while it is hot; if desired, sprinkle with fresh chopped herbs before serving for beauty.

How to cook avocado?

Avocados can be eaten raw or cooked. Avocados are used to make guacamole, sandwich spreads and salads. The fruit can be baked in the oven without removing the peel. Avocado goes well with seafood and goes well with chicken and lemon.

Avocado is a very valuable product with a lot of useful substances. It is better to eat it fresh to enjoy the taste, aroma, consistency and get maximum benefits.

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Avocado diet

The avocado diet is usually calculated for 3-5 days. If you follow a certain diet, you can lose 1 kg per day. Involves 3 main meals during the day and 2 intermediate ones. Any snacks are prohibited. It is recommended to adhere to intervals of 2.5-3 hours and eat in small portions (200-250 g).

Drink up to 2 liters of clean water per day. They also drink green tea, freshly squeezed fruit juices, still mineral water, and kefir (1% fat).

Permitted and prohibited products:

Sample menu for the day:

Is it not ripe?!

A ripe avocado should be moderately soft to the touch. When shaken, the bone inside should shake slightly. The peel should be smooth, without damage or scratches. And in a mature fruit, when you press on the area of ​​the cutting, a few drops of oil are released.

But in our stores they most often sell unripe fruits (this is understandable, they are not easy to transport). To speed up their ripening process, placing unripe avocados in a paper bag with a banana or apple will help them ripen faster. This happens because the fruit produces ethylene gas, which speeds up the ripening of the avocado, and the bag traps this gas inside. Or wrap the fruit in foil and place in the oven preheated to 200°C for 10 minutes. And the last option is to place the fruit in the microwave for 30 seconds, after covering it with a napkin (the effect of magnetic waves leads to softening of the tissues, the fruit becomes soft, it can be cut and cooked).

Botanical description

The fruit ripens on an evergreen tree from the Laurel family and belongs to the relatives of Laurel nobilis. The cradle of the fruit is the Caribbean islands and Mexico, where the Aztecs were among the first to try the exotic fruit. The homeland of avocado is a supplier on the world market. Latin America, the USA, Spain, Rwanda and Kenya are also exporters of avocados, producing up to 100 thousand tons per year of this fruit.

The fruit has a bubbly green skin that is rough to the touch. After full ripening it darkens. Inside the fruit there is a seed surrounded by oily pulp, which changes color as it ripens from green to yellow. Due to its unusual appearance, the avocado received a second name - alligator pear. And indeed it is a pear covered with crocodile skin!

The shape and size of the fruit may vary significantly. The fruit can be oval or pear-shaped, with a glossy or bumpy surface. The weight of an avocado also differs: from 100-150 g to 1 kg. It depends on the variety and climate zone.

The debate about whether avocados are a fruit or a vegetable has raged for a long time. Indeed, there are some contradictions on this issue. On the one hand, it is a fruit, since the fruits ripen on trees. The fruit contains a stone in the center of the pulp, which also indicates its fruit origin.

On the other hand, the pulp of the fruit contains substances that are more characteristic of vegetables. It tastes like an unripe pumpkin or pear. During ripening, the taste and consistency of the pulp becomes different. Ripe fruits taste like butter with an aftertaste similar to nuts or herbs. Such taste qualities cannot be called fruity.

Avocado has been identified as a fruit, but neither jam nor desserts are made from it. It is more used for salads, appetizers, pates, minced meat. Basically, the fruit “pear” is included in second courses.

In cooking, the main companions of avocado are lime and lemon. They preserve the flavor and color of the alligator pear and prevent it from oxidizing before the fruit can be eaten.