We love to find foods that are inherently healthy, especially when they are also a delicious addition to your meals. Also, we are always on the lookout for liver-healthy foods, because as we know so much of our health, and our ability to keep our weight in check depends on a well-functioning liver. Foods such as turmeric and other herbs and spices, as we have pointed out on our website, provide liver health, and in this article we would like to point out the benefits of another: avocado.
So for those who have yet started to use the avocado in their diet plan, let's introduce this wonderful food. Most people think of it as a vegetable, but it grows on trees and reproduces by its seeds, which makes it technically a fruit. It has been grown and cultivated for centuries in Mexico, Central and South America, but in the last two hundred years fifty years it has been introduced to other parts of the world. The product is now grown in the Mediterranean area, Africa and the Far East, as well as Southern California.
Here's how the avocado can help the liver:
• Vitamins C. Avocados are abundant in this vitamin, which function as antioxidants that neutralize free radicals. These are required for the growth and repair of cells, and are vital repairing liver cells so this necessary organ can continue doing its job.
• Production of glutathione. People who have chronic liver disease usually are found to have low levels of glutathione. Named the mother of all antioxidants, the good news is that our body can produce this necessary master detoxifier, the bad news it can be depleted by bad diet, among other things. Avocados help the body produce glutathione.
• Healthy fats. There are good fats and bad fats, and avocados are definitely in the "good fat" category. People who are afflicted with fatty liver disease have a cholesterol profile of LDLs, or bad cholesterol. Raising your HDLs or good cholesterol can improve this cholesterol profile, and your liver health.
The delicious avocado provides more health benefits than just what it does for our liver. It helps our immune system, helps the cardiovascular system (due to its healthy cholesterol), and is great for eye health. Avocado has both lutein and zeaxanthin, which are carotenoids that protect the eyes from age-related issues.
An average-sized avocado has about 250-300 calories, so as healthy as they are you don't want to overdo them. Many people eat them in guacamole, which is great, but I top off every salad with avocado slices. Another idea is to cut them in half, scoop out the center and fill them with some shrimp or crabmeat, topped off with a little cocktail sauce. There are many ideas on the internet to use avocado. They can be cubed, sliced, whipped or smashed, are great alone or offer a perfect complement to many foods.
Avocado is a food that is being used in many regional diets, including the Mediterranean. We now know it to be a real liver-friendly food. Rich Carroll is a writer and health enthusiast living in Chicago.
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