How healthy are avocados?

NEW YORK – Ripe, creamy avocados are great on toast, salads and burgers, or just sprinkled with salt. Plus, they are healthy. But how healthy?

“Avocados are no regular fruit,” said Dr Frank Hu, a professor of nutrition and epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. “They’re nutrient-dense with very little carbohydrates and high amounts of healthy fats and fibre.”

And they make plant-based meals more filling.

Here are some of their healthiest attributes.

Avocados can help keep your cholesterol in check

Avocados’ better-known benefits stem from their heart-healthy fats, said Dr Elizabeth Klingbeil, a registered dietitian and assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austin. Most of the fats in avocados are monounsaturated, which differ from the saturated fats abundant in meats and dairy.

“Saturated fats can gunk up your blood vessels and increase your heart disease risk,” Dr Klingbeil said. If left unchecked, this gunk, called LDL or bad cholesterol, can lead to heart attacks or strokes.

While saturated fats increase LDL cholesterol, unsaturated fats can lower it. For this reason, avocados can help manage blood cholesterol levels, especially when you eat them in place of foods such as meat, cheese and butter.

They may lower your heart disease risk

In a study that followed more than 110,000 adults over 30 years, Dr Hu and his colleagues showed that people who ate at least two servings of avocado a week had a 21 per cent lower risk of coronary heart disease.

The researchers used statistics to account for other factors that could have affected people’s heart health. Still, Dr Hu said, it is impossible to say if avocados directly reduced the risk.

Zeroing in on one food as the cause of health outcomes is challenging, said Dr Martin Kohlmeier, a professor at the University of North Carolina Nutrition Research Institute.

Because avocados make great substitutions for less healthy foods, studies showing their benefits might in part reflect the benefits of cutting back on other stuff – like using avocado instead of mayonnaise on a sandwich or adding more avocado, and less beef, to a burrito.

“Many reported effects are replacement effects, not necessarily avocado effects,” Dr Kohlmeier said.

Dr Hu added that people who eat avocados might be more likely to have a healthy diet in general.

They can support your gut microbiome

Avocados are high in fibre, Dr Klingbeil said, which can help you maintain a healthy weight and promote a healthy gut.

When gut bacteria digest fibre, they release small molecules called postbiotics that affect your overall health, said Dr Zhaoping Li, a professor of medicine and chief of the division of clinical nutrition at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Healthy bacteria can also signal to the brain when you are full, Dr Klingbeil said.

Dr Hu said avocados can help you meet your daily fibre goals, which is important since studies show most people do not eat enough fibre.

People should aim for at least 21 to 38g of fibre daily, depending on their age and gender. A whole avocado clocks in at around 10g.

They are rich in micronutrients

The vitamin E in avocados may support healthy skin, Dr Klingbeil said. According to Dr Kohlmeier, the lutein in avocados may help keep your vision sharp.

And while bananas tend to get all the credit for potassium, avocados contain even more of the important mineral. Potassium helps your body reduce high blood pressure, Dr Hu said. NYTIMES