What happens if you eat 1 avocado a day?

Expert opinion

Popova Irina Evgenievna, head of the consultative and diagnostic department; nutritionist, general practitioner, mayer therapist, reflexologist at the Austrian health center Verba Mayr “Due to its beneficial properties, avocados can be considered a superfood. Its pulp is a real green pharmacy, as it contains healthy vegetable fats, glutathione, carnitine, unique antioxidants, magnesium, copper, vitamins K, E, C and group B. Simply put, avocado takes care of our skin, hair and nails."

Daily norm

The tropical fruit has a balanced composition that satisfies the feeling of hunger for a long time and saturates the body. The low glycemic index and the absence of sugar in the composition make it possible to include it in the diet of people suffering from diabetes, obesity, and those who want to lose weight.

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However, the high content of fatty acids in the pulp of the fruit (almost 20-25% per 100 g) can do a disservice to those who are losing weight and stimulate weight gain. To avoid this, it is recommended to adhere to a safe norm and eat half an avocado per day.

100 g of ripe fruit contains 250-270 kcal (calorie content is higher in some varieties). The same amount of calories is contained in 100 g of veal and other dietary meat, chicken eggs.

An adult of normal weight can eat a whole avocado per day. The portion depends on the diet: if it is balanced, then the amount can be reduced to half the fruit.

Is it possible to eat the fruit with the peel on?

Avocado is not in vain included in the Guinness Book of Records as the most nutritious fruit. Its pulp contains up to 30% easily digestible fats, and the calorie content of avocados is very high - up to 200 kcal per 100 grams. This composition is quite comparable to the composition of lean meat (for example, veal or turkey), which is why avocados have become a popular meat substitute among vegans and their sympathizers.

Recipes with avocado, despite their simplicity in execution, turn out tasty and satisfying. When on a diet, food is salted to a minimum. Due to the high calorie content of the fruit, it is recommended to combine it with dietary products.

In order for fruit consumption to be beneficial, when choosing an avocado in a store, you need to pay attention to the absence of cracks and spots on the peel. Such defects indicate deterioration of the product. When pressed with your finger, the surface should be slightly dented.

The question of how to properly peel fruit deserves special attention. The preservation of the beneficial properties of the pulp depends on this. The highest concentrations of phytonutrients are found in the thin layer that comes into contact with the peel, so it is important not to remove it with the peel:

The fruit must be washed with running water.
Make a longitudinal cut around the bone.
Taking the halves of the fruit with your hands, you need to twist them in opposite directions, trying to disconnect them from the seed. The core of a ripe fruit comes off easily.
After removing the seed, each half must be cut into slices and carefully peeled, like from a banana. Another method you can use is to remove the pulp from the peel with a spoon.
The avocado pit is not eaten. In folk medicine, there are recipes using the seed of the fruit, but use for medicinal purposes requires caution and consultation with a doctor (the seed can cause severe poisoning).

The fruit should be peeled immediately before consumption. A plastic or ceramic knife is used for cleaning; contact with metal accelerates oxidation processes. If you wish, you can eat only part of the fruit; you should not peel the whole fruit. The untouched half should be left in the peel in the refrigerator.

The pulp is crushed in a blender, lemon juice is added. The mass is whipped and placed in an airtight plastic container. You cannot completely fill the container; free space is necessary, because... When frozen, the mass expands. The product shelf life is 6 months. When frozen, the pulp retains a complex of useful substances.

The fruit can be consumed just like that, choosing the most convenient way:

there are peeled slices;
spread on bread;
scoop out the pulp with a spoon, like ice cream.

Another way to eat avocados is to dice the fruit into halves before peeling them. In this version, pieces of pulp should be removed with a spoon.

To make the product tastier, you can pour olive oil or soy sauce over the pulp, add salt and pepper.

You can eat avocado raw or use it in hot dishes. However, the first option is preferable, because During heat treatment, the pulp acquires a bitter taste due to the tannin content, and beneficial substances lose their qualities.

In cold dishes, the chopped flesh quickly darkens. To avoid this, avocados are sprinkled with citrus juice. The dishes use pulp cut into cubes or slices. To prepare pates and sauces, the fruit is mashed with a fork or crushed in a blender.

Restaurant menus often offer delicious avocado dishes that can be prepared at home. The pulp of the fruit can be added to cold appetizers and fruit salads. For example, mix with grapefruit, raspberries, orange and nuts. Avocado is used as a filling for vegetarian sushi, a meat or egg substitute in salads, a base for milkshakes and sweet creams.

Mexican guacamole sauce is prepared from the pulp of the fruit:

2 ripe avocados, peeled and mashed in a bowl;
puree poured over 2 tbsp. lemon juice;
the chili pepper is seeded and finely chopped;
half the onion is peeled and chopped;
pepper, onion and cilantro are added to avocado puree;
all ingredients are mixed;
add crushed tomato (with skin);
All components are salted and mixed.

The sauce can be stored for 3-4 days in the refrigerator.

You can also make puree soup from avocado:

Peel, chop, and place large ripe fruit in a blender bowl. Then pour in lemon juice.
Peel and chop the onion and 2 heads of garlic. Finely chop mint and cilantro.
Add all ingredients to a blender, pour in 350 ml of cooled vegetable broth and mix.
Add 1 tbsp to the resulting puree. wine vinegar and soy sauce. Add 350 ml vegetable broth.
Mix all ingredients again in a blender. The thickness can be adjusted by adding cold milk.
Add salt and pepper to taste and refrigerate.
Squeeze juice from lime and mix with sour cream or yogurt. Place the mixture on the bottom of the plate, pour in the chilled puree soup.
Decorate the top of the dish with a sprig of mint and cilantro.

In addition to the classic paste with pepper and salt, you can make a pate from avocado. It is spread on bread, rolls, cookies, toast. Recipe:

Make a puree from ripe avocado (mash with a fork).
In a separate container, knead 100 g of tofu or soft cottage cheese.
The ingredients are mixed and sprinkled with lemon juice.
Add 2 chopped heads of garlic, salt and 2 tbsp. unsweetened yogurt.
The ingredients are mixed to a homogeneous paste, which is transferred to a glass container and placed in the refrigerator under the lid.

The shelf life of the paste is 3-4 days.

Avocado is often used in salads with crab meat or shrimp. One of the recipes:

The pulp of 4 avocados is cut into cubes.
Peeled shrimp (125 g) are boiled in salted water.
Low-fat sour cream or yogurt (6 tablespoons) is mixed with the zest of 1 lemon. Pepper and coriander are added.
Place avocado in a salad bowl and sprinkle with lemon juice. Shrimp are placed on top. The components are mixed. Add sauce to taste.

There are various salad options with the addition of cucumbers, chicken, fish or cheese.

When you first eat the fruit, you may wonder if you can eat the avocado peel. The shell, like the stone, contains persin. This is a toxin that in large quantities causes allergic reactions, impairing the functioning of the digestive tract.

Only avocado pulp is used for dishes.

Nutritionists have different opinions regarding eating avocados at night. The pulp of the fruit has a high energy value and a large amount of plant fibers, which ensure the absence of hunger for a long time. From this point of view, fruit can replace a hearty dinner.

If there are negative effects, it is recommended to eat avocados in the morning or during the day. If you feel well, it is better to eat fruit 2-3 hours before bedtime so that dinner has time to digest.

In the evening, you can use light meal options, such as smoothies or sandwiches with fruit pulp. The main condition is the absence of fatty, salty and smoked ingredients in the recipe. Evening meal options:

Wash and tear arugula (100 g) into pieces, place in a salad bowl. Peel, slice and sprinkle a whole avocado with citrus juice. Cherry tomatoes (10 pcs.), cut in half. Mix all ingredients. Add 1 tbsp. vegetable oil, balsamic and soy sauce. Season the salad with salt and pepper.
Chicken fillet (low-fat, 200 g) cut, boil. Place onion and bell pepper (cut into cubes) into the prepared broth. Bring the soup to a boil, cool. Add the pulp of 5 avocados, lemon juice, coriander, and grind in a blender to obtain a puree soup. Then add salt to taste.

Buddha bowl is another evening dish option. The preparation is as follows:

Boil buckwheat.
Season the chicken breast with salt and pepper and fry on both sides. After cooling, cut the fillet into slices.
In a separate container, chop Chinese cabbage, add thin onion half rings and grated carrots. Salt the salad and add olive oil.
To prepare the sauce, cut half of the avocado into pieces, pepper, add olive oil, garlic, lemon juice. Grind all ingredients in a blender until pureed. Season the mixture with pepper and salt.
Cut feta cheese, olives and tomatoes into pieces. Cut the unused half of the avocado into slices and sprinkle with citrus juice.
You can start assembling the dish. Buckwheat is laid out on a plate, vegetable salad, chicken breast, cheese, tomatoes and avocado are laid out on top. The sauce is placed on top.

Another dinner option is a fat-burning cocktail. To prepare it, chop the flesh of 1 avocado and add 50 ml of frozen low-fat yogurt. Add the juice of half a lime to the ingredients, 1 tsp. cane sugar or sweetener. All components are crushed with a blender; if desired, you can add pieces of ice. The finished cocktail is poured into a tall glass, which is decorated with a slice of avocado.

The suitability of a fruit for consumption is assessed by the appearance of the pulp. The presence of black dots and darkened areas inside the fruit indicates that the fruit is overripe due to violation of storage rules or improper transportation. Fruits spoil due to excess moisture, prolonged exposure to low temperatures, or sudden changes in climatic conditions.

Calculation formula

For those who adhere to dietary nutrition, counting calories and dietary fat, the portion should be calculated taking into account these indicators.

The formula is simple: a tropical fruit should replenish 10% of the daily caloric intake - provided that the diet is balanced.

If a person’s daily intake is 1800 kcal, then you need to eat half or 2/3 of an avocado per day (90-180 kcal). If the need is 2500 kcal, the portion, accordingly, increases to 125-250 kcal.

Vegetarians, raw foodists, and fasting people have a monotonous diet. The likelihood of overloading the body with an excess amount of vegetable fat is minimal, so the consumption rate for them increases to 15-20% of the daily requirement. Therefore, they can eat 1-2 fruits per day.

Storage method

How to store avocados? Ripe fruit should be kept in the refrigerator in the vegetable compartment. It is not advisable to store longer than two weeks. When you have half of the fruit left unused, do not rush to throw away the seed. It contains a natural disinfectant - persin, which prevents rotting. Therefore, leave the pit in half of the avocado so that it does not spoil quickly.

Another way to store avocados? The fruit halves can be wrapped in cling film and stored for a couple of days at a temperature not exceeding +10 °C. Before placing the fruit in film, sprinkle it with lemon juice to prevent it from turning black.

Ripe avocado fruit can also be successfully frozen, and it does not lose any valuable qualities. You need to pull out the seed, cut the fruit into slices and put it in the freezer. You can puree the pulp, because after freezing the avocado will lose its elasticity. The fruit must be cut, remove the large seed and peel it, and then grind it in a blender. Sprinkle the puree with lemon juice and place in the freezer.

Restrictions

Consumption of an exotic fruit must be safe for the body, therefore, when calculating the norm, the following are taken into account:

person's weight;
health problems;
dietary restrictions recommended by doctors.

People who are overweight need to reduce the amount of avocado to 75-100 g per day. Nutrition consultants do not recommend consuming it at the same time as other foods containing large amounts of fat. The best option is to eat the tropical fruit separately - for a snack or second breakfast.

For patients suffering from high cholesterol, superfood is allowed in small quantities. The norms for the day and week are determined by the doctor - individually for each person, taking into account the general state of health, blood cholesterol levels, and the presence or absence of concomitant diseases.

For those losing weight, nutritionists develop a nutrition plan - it may include 100-150 g of avocado pulp (and sometimes more) per day or every other day. The quantity and frequency of administration depend on the desired result and the timing of its achievement.

In all of these situations, avocado can be taken in combination with low-calorie vegetables.

Is it possible to eat unripe fruit?

The pulp of unripe fruit has a bitter taste and is tough. It contains a toxic compound that can cause symptoms of poisoning or digestive upset. The peel of unripe fruits has a green tint (when ripe it becomes yellowish and brown).

Unripe fruits are not suitable for cooking; eating them will not bring pleasure. To ripen, the fruits should be marked in a paper bag for 3-5 days and left at room temperature. To speed up the process, you can add an apple or banana along with the avocado, which actively release ethylene. The gas is retained in the bag and stimulates the rapid ripening of the avocado.

8 reasons to eat avocado every day

People who have no contraindications or restrictions can eat avocados often - every other day or every day. This will bring tangible benefits to the body:

The superfood contains carotenoids necessary to maintain visual acuity and prevent cataracts and other eye diseases.
The beneficial substances contained in avocados gradually reduce the level of bad cholesterol, reduce the risk of heart attacks, strokes and other pathologies of the heart and blood vessels.
The exotic fruit is rich in potassium and magnesium - elements necessary for normalizing blood pressure. Their content is higher than in bananas. Half a fruit a day will help normalize and control blood pressure.
Vitamins C and E neutralize the harmful effects on the liver and protect it from the development of hepatitis.
If you eat a small amount of avocado every day, you can significantly reduce the risk of developing malignant tumors in the liver, stomach, mammary glands and other organs.
The exotic fruit improves blood supply to the brain, performance and memory, strengthens blood vessels and allows you to maintain sanity until old age.
High fiber content is good for immunity. People whose diet regularly includes superfoods are less likely to get colds.
Fruit pulp contains glutathione - this powerful antioxidant promotes timely cleansing of the body and accelerates the removal of toxins.

The first results will be noticeable within a month after including the superfood in your diet.

Harm to health

Despite all the beneficial properties, this fruit also has disadvantages:

Avocado is a fairly high-calorie product. If you get carried away with its use, you will not be able to lose weight; on the contrary, you will begin to gain extra pounds sharply. Therefore, it is important to control the amount you eat.
This is a dangerous fruit for people who are allergic to latex. Oddly enough, this product contains latex in a minimal amount, which can be a problem for allergy sufferers. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to the body’s reaction after consuming the fruits: if nasal congestion, coughing, itching occurs, consult a doctor immediately.
Another consequence of eating avocados is diarrhea. The product can both treat constipation and cause diarrhea if you eat too much of the fruit. Control the quantity.
Don't forget that avocado pits and peels are harmful. The kernel contains a toxic substance that can lead to stomach problems and even blood clotting disorders. By the way, tannin is present in many unripe fruits, which is why they have such a sharp and bitter taste.

Avocado oil can also be harmful to health if you are hypersensitive.

The above contraindications apply to both men and women. However, if you correctly introduce the product into your diet, problems will not arise, and your health will only improve.

Solving problems with vision and skin condition

Avocados contain large amounts of lutein, which is essential for the health and productivity of our eyes. Therefore, daily consumption of this fruit will reduce the risks of age-related changes in vision, and will also have a preventive effect against possible eye diseases.

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Carotenoids and vitamin E, which avocados are rich in, have a miraculous effect on skin condition. Additionally, the beneficial nutrients found in avocados help protect your skin from harmful UV rays and help keep your skin looking youthful and healthy.

Anti-inflammatory effect

Avocados are 77% fat, healthy fats that are not produced by the body and can only be obtained from food. Thanks to its unique composition, this fruit promotes the production of beneficial Omega 9 acids and helps fight various inflammations. First of all, it helps in the prevention of atherosclerosis, and also improves the functioning of the intestines and metabolic system.

Weight loss

It is recommended to include avocado in the diet of those who are struggling with excess weight. This fruit gives a quick and long-lasting feeling of fullness and helps fight appetite. Despite the fact that avocado contains a lot of fatty acids, it promotes the rapid and effective breakdown of harmful fats in the body. It helps fight deposits in the abdominal area especially well, which is so important for women. In addition, avocados stimulate the production of insulin, which also speeds up the weight loss process. This fruit also helps remove toxins from the body, cleanses the liver well, accelerating and improving metabolism. Avocado contains a lot of potassium, which is good for removing excess fluid from the body and, as a result, also promotes weight loss. Despite the fact that avocado is a fruit, it contains minimal sugar, which is another plus for those who count calories.

What to cook from exotic fruit

What to cook with avocado? Guacamole is a Mexican dish that is most often made with alligator pear. This nutritious snack can be served not only as a meal on its own, but also as a topping for corn chips.

To make traditional guacamole, you need to prepare: 4 ripe avocados, 2 small hot peppers, half a white sweet onion, a large spoon of lemon juice, salt, pepper and a little parsley.

Peel the exotic fruits and puree them using a fork. Next add finely chopped onions and peppers, salt, pepper, parsley and lemon juice. Mix ingredients and serve on corn chips.