Singing the Praises of the Banana Today we sing the praises of the humble banana. An HSI member named Howard offers a list of banana perks, which includes this nutritional comparison to apples: "Four times the protein, twice the carbohydrates, three times the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron and twice the other vitamins and minerals." Additional banana virtues include: - Provide enough energy for a 90-minute workout
- Contain tryptophan, which your body converts to serotonin to help relieve depression
- High potassium content helps address high blood pressure, has a cooling effect on the body and may help relieve stress
- High in soluble fiber, which aids bowel function and makes for easy digestion (even for ulcer patients)
- Natural antacid effect may help relieve heartburn
- High B vitamin content
- Regular consumption may help reduce stroke risk, according to a study
A member named JonB writes: "Howard, I come from a banana growing area in Australia called Coffs Harbour, and I know about all the healthy attributes of bananas, and you have missed one very important point. They taste GREAT." But what about the sugar content? A member named Marianne posts this comment: "My husband, who is considered 'pre-diabetic' has been told to limit fruits, especially the sweeter ones, like oranges and bananas. This just never made much sense to me, as these are whole foods that are easily digested and just full of good stuff. How bad could they be? Then I ran across an article written by Dr. Tim O'Shea. In his chapter called 'Sugar: the sweet thief of life' he states that people, such as with cancer, are told unnecessarily to avoid fruits, because of the sugar content. An excerpt: 'Natural fruit sugar, or fructose is generally low on the glycemic index. Fructose is quickly and easily used by the cells and thus removed from the blood.'" Other topics being discussed this week in the Healthier Talk community forums include: - General Health Topics: B vitamins
- Food Questions: Raw milk
- Heart: Reduce high cholesterol safely with niacin
- Depression: Compartments of the mind
- Stomach Problems: Heartburn & vitamin C
- Vitamin Questions: Prostate
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