The Advantages of Avocado

Avocados provide benefits to your immune system, cholesterol, heart health and weight.

Avocado is a nutritious fruit with a creamy texture and nutty flavor. Avocados can be sliced and added to your salad or sandwich, used to make guacamole, spread on a bagel or scrambled with eggs. Though avocados are high in fat, the type of fat in avocados is beneficial to your health when consumed in moderation as part of a healthy balanced diet. Incorporating avocado into your diet can strengthen your immune system, lower your cholesterol, reduce your risk of heart disease and help manage your weight.

Cholesterol Immune System

Avocados contain vitamins A, C and E, which are antioxidants that strengthen your immune system. Carotenoids such as beta-carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin also act as antioxidants and are found in avocados. This abundance of antioxidants helps prevent disease and has been shown to reduce the risk or prevent the progression of cancer. A study in the "Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry" reports that avocado extracts inhibit the growth of prostate cancer cells. This study concludes that the combination of antioxidants in avocados, rather than an individual antioxidant, is the key to reducing cancer risk.

Avocados are high in monounsaturated fatty acids, which provide many health benefits such as decreasing LDL and raising HDL in those suffering from hypercholeseterolemia. LDL is the cholesterol that can clog your arteries, while HDL cholesterol acts to prevent this from happening. A study in the "Archives of Medical Research" discovered that after only seven days on an avocado-enriched diet, hypercholeseterolemic patients showed a decrease in total cholesterol of 17 percent, a decrease in LDL cholesterol of 22 percent and an increase in HDL cholesterol of 11 percent.

Weight Management

Avocados contain a large amount of fiber, with one-half of an avocado providing 17 percent of your daily fiber needs. The fiber content in avocados plays an important role in managing your weight by allowing you to eat less without feeling hungry. Fiber creates a long-lasting sense of fullness by slowly digesting the food item and releasing appetite-suppressing hormones. A study published in "Nutrition" reports that those with a healthy weight consumed more fiber long-term than overweight or obese participants.

Heart Health

The monounsaturated fatty acids in avocados decrease the risk of heart disease through many mechanisms, according to the American Heart Association. These mechanisms include decreasing cholesterol, preventing thrombogenesis, decreasing triglyceride levels and preventing the formation of atherosclerotic plaque. Having a healthy weight decreases your risk of heart disease, which is more easily achievable with the fiber in avocados. A study in the "Journal of American College of Cardiology," reports that a high intake of fiber can decrease risk of cardiovascular disease by 20 to 40 percent.

http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/advantages-avocado-2524.html