Avocado and unexpected benefits for sleep
A six-month study funded by the Avocado Nutrition Center showed that eating one avocado a day improves sleep quality and cholesterol in obese adults. The study involved 969 people, with one group eating one avocado a day, the other eating two or less per month.
Dr. John Saito, spokesperson for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and a lung specialist at the Orange County Children's Hospital (CHOC), said: "This is a cardiovascular health test, making sleep benefits more reliable because they appear as secondary unexpected findings in a well-designed randomized trial."
Saito explains that avocado contains sleep-supporting nutrients like magnesium, potassium, and healthy fats. "Eating regular meals that balance healthy fats, complex carbohydrates and protein helps support natural circadian rhythms," he added.
Regular consumption of avocado helps improve cardiovascular health
Avocado is a source of monounsaturated fat and soluble fiber, which help reduce LDL levels, also known as bad cholesterol in the body. "The soluble fiber from avocado makes a gel that binds to bile acids and bad cholesterol, helping to remove them from the body, thereby reducing the risk of heart disease," says Ms. Judy Simon, MS, RDN, FAND, a clinical nutritionist at UW Medical Center.
In addition, avocado also helps improve the quality of the overall diet. Sustainable improvements in diet and lifestyle are necessary to achieve meaningful benefits for heart health, says Dr Janhavi Damani, a post-doctoral fellow at the Department of Cardiovascular Health and Dietetics, Penn State University.
Other nutritionists, such as Jamie Mok, MS, RD in Los Angeles, recommend combining avocado with foods rich in similar benefits such as walnuts, sour cherry juice, salmon and some herbal teas to optimize sleep and cardiovascular health.
Avocado can be added to salads, eggs, baked potatoes, smoothies or sendvich balls. However, it is not necessary to eat it every day and should be considered with a separate diet. Simon emphasizes: "One food cannot change everything, but a reasonable supplement of butter can help improve overall health".
