The world loves avocados! Referred to as “green gold” across various countries, and is known for its deliciously creamy texture and being packed many essential minerals and vitamins. A recent study found that avos have many health benefits, including keeping cholesterol levels down.
According to a random research trial, participants who have the habit of eating avocado once a day are more likely to have lower bad cholesterol levels.
“While the avocados did not affect belly fat or weight gain, the study still provides evidence that avocados can be a beneficial addition to a well-balanced diet,” says Penny Kris-Etherton, Evan Pugh University Professor of nutritional sciences at Penn State in the United States.
“Incorporating an avocado per day in this study did not cause weight gain and also caused a slight decrease in LDL cholesterol, which are all important findings for better health.”
Positive results
The study, which was undertaken in collaboration with Loma Linda University, Tufts University, and UCLA with coordination help from Wake Forest University, was just published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
More than 1000 volunteers who were overweight or obese participated in the study’s six-month experiment, half of whom were encouraged to eat one avocado every day, while the other half were told to limit their avocado consumption to no more than two per month.
Professor Joan Sabaté from the Loma Linda University School of Public Health explains that fat in the abdomen and around other organs was precisely assessed using MRI before and after the study.
“While one avocado a day did not lead to clinically significant improvements in abdominal fat and other cardiometabolic risk factors, consuming one avo an day did not result in body weight gain,” she says. “This is positive because eating extra calories from avocados doesn’t impact body weight or abdominal fat, and it slightly decreases total and LDL-cholesterol.”
The researchers said that in the future, they will continue to analyse data from the study. For example, participants were not instructed on how to eat their avocados each day, and future research could investigate how participants incorporated the avocados into their diet and whether any differences in the results are observed based on how participants ate the avo.
To read the full story on Health For Mzansi, click here.
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