Avocados - More Emerging Benefits

There are now more reasons to enjoy avocados and make them a part of your health-conscious diet, thanks to some recent studies. 

Research published in the Nutrition Journal claims that adding half of a fresh avocado to your lunch can help you feel more satisfied and reduce the desire to eat after a meal.

The study funded by the Hass Avocado Board compared the effects of adding or replacing a fresh avocado to a lunch to the effects of eating a lunch without avocado. The comparison was to determine how the avocado influences satiety, blood sugar, insulin response and subsequent food intake. The lunches were given to 26 healthy but overweight adults. The study was led by the Department of Nutrition's research team at Loma Linda University.

The Findings

Those that added half of an avocado to their lunch significantly decreased desire to eat by 40 percent over a three-hour period and a 28 percent over a five hour period after the meal compared to eating a lunch without avocado.

They reported increased feelings of satisfaction by 26 percent over the three hours after the meal.

The findings were generally positive but more research is needed to determine whether the conclusions can be applied to the general public. The results did provide promising clues and a basis for more research to determine avocados effect on satiety, glucose and insulin response. 

These results further complement our research efforts in weight management and diabetes as well as our continued work to explore the many benefits that avocados have to offer when consumed in everyday healthy eating plans, said Nikki Ford, PhD, Director of Nutrition at the Hass Avocado Board.

Satiety is an important factor in weight management because people who feel satisfied are less likely to snack between meals, added Joan Sabate, MD, DrPH, Chair of the Department of Nutrition at Loma Linda University. We also noted that though adding avocados increased participants calories and carbohydrate intake at lunch, there was no increase in blood sugar levels beyond what was observed after eating the standard lunch. This leads us to believe that avocados potential role in blood sugar management is worth further investigation.

Last October, findings of the U.S.-based National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey lauded that avocados contribute to a vast improvement in wellbeing and overall health. The survey revealed that eating avocado every day boosts HDL good cholesterol levels and resulted in a 50 percent less chance of metabolic syndrome a group of risk factors that occur together and increase the risk for coronary artery disease, stroke and type-2 diabetes.

Avocados are a perfect food , says nutritionist Nadia Lim. Theyre abundant in valuable vitamins and minerals , as well as healthy fats, protein and carbohydrates. Nutritionists have long recommended consuming the healthy fats from avocados which are known to support improved overall diet quality, nutrient intake and heart health.

Do you enjoy avocados and if so how do you like to eat them?

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