Avocado Health Benefits - A Perfect Food?

Due to its rough and leather-textured skin, the tiny avocado is sometimes called the Alligator Pear. Underneath that tough exterior lies a creamy and beautiful fruit that is teeming with health benefits that can improve your well-being. The beauty of the avocado is that it is so easy to add to your menu that, between its health benefits and easy assimilation, you might just find it a perfect food.

Whether you plan to make a tasty guacamole recipe, add a few generous slices to your lunch salad or you plan to roll up some vegetarian sushi, you will love the taste of this food that packs a healthy punch, so working it into your diet is no problem. Since it is rich in monounsaturated fats (MUFAs), you will feel satiety after you eat, bolstering each meal to keep you from snacking soon after your meal.

Consider some of the following health benefits to see if they might inspire you to add more avocado to your family’s menu, making it more of a staple of your diet than an occasional garnish.

1. Avocados May Help Ward Off Cancer.

Combining its unique blend of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, as well as a burst of phytochemicals, the small but mighty avocado might help fight cancers such as prostate cancer. All of these powerful properties work together to battle cancer at the cellular level, bolstering oxidative stress levels to create an unpleasant environment for cancer cells to flourish.

2. Avocados Help Transport Nutrients to Cells. 

Monounsaturated fats, or MUFAs, are an important part of any healthy diet. When you add a serving of avocado to your salad, you help your body absorb all the nutrients of each vegetable and fruit in your salad much more quickly than they could make it to your bloodstream on their own. 

3. Avocados Create Satiety and Help with Weight Control.

Anyone looking to trim down without suffering massive hunger pangs should definitely add avocado into your diet. Along with its status as a major MUFA, the avocado also contains about 4 grams of protein per serving, which helps with feeling satisfied after a meal. Between the healthy fats and the protein content, the avocado is a powerhouse of satisfaction and fulfillment. 

4. Avocados Help Regulate Blood Sugar.

As the avocado continues building its strong case as a perfect food, add a healthy dose of fiber to its list of amazing properties that help keep your body humming right along. With a low sugar content and a high sugar content—in addition to its healthy fat and high protein content—avocados can help regulate healthy blood sugar levels.

5. Avocados Helps Lower Cholesterol.

The MUFAs once again come into play here. As you increase healthy fats, such as those found in avocados, and reduce unhealthy—or saturated—fats, you are working toward decreasing your overall blood cholesterol readings and, just as importantly, increasing your healthy—or HDL—cholesterol readings and lowering your unhealthy—or LDL—cholesterol readings.