Health Benefits of Avocados
Written by Ketogenic.com
Eating avocados seems to be the latest healthy trend, but is that just a fad or is there something more to it? What are the health benefits of avocados?
Avocados are a fruit packed full of micronutrients, healthy fats, and fiber. Best of all, they are low-carb and perfectly suitable for frequent consumption on the ketogenic diet. Here are 7 of the top health benefits of avocados (and why you should be eating them):
- More Potassium Than a Banana: Bananas hold a solid reputation for being a great source of potassium, but avocados are often completely overlooked. Not only do avocados have far fewer carbs, more fiber, and more fat than a banana, but 1 cup of avocado contains approximately 700ng of potassium, as compared to around 420mg in 1 medium banana.
- High in Vitamin C: Move away oranges, because one avocado contains approximately 17% of your daily vitamin C needs. Avocados are a great source of micronutrients because, in addition to vitamin C, they are also rich in vitamin E, vitamin K, vitamin B3, omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium, beta-carotene and more!
- High Fat: Avocados are a great source of healthy fats. 1 medium avocado contains approximately 21g of fat, the majority of which is monounsaturated
- Moderate protein: The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, moderate protein, and low-carb diet. Avocados mimick this macronutrient division extremely well by containing approximately 2.9g of protein for every one medium avocado
- Low Net Carbs/High Fiber: A lot of people following the ketogenic diet struggle to get in enough fiber since they are cutting out their normal fiber sources like starchy vegetables, bread, and pasta. Avocados are the perfect fiber replacement because 1 avocado contains approximately 10g of fiber.
- Improves Heart Health: Avocados are rich in monounsaturated fat, healthy omega-3 fatty acids, and low in carbs, which help contribute to improved cardiovascular health.
- Antioxidants: Avocados are packed full of lycopene and beta-carotene, both are important carotenoid antioxidants. These antioxidants can help keep cells healthy and functioning properly.
Those 7 health benefits should give you more than enough reason to start incorporating avocados into your diet. Avocados are also quite versatile and can be added into plenty of recipes so you’ll never get bored of them! What’s your favorite way to eat an avocado? Do you have an amazing avocado recipe? Let us know!
