Why I am in LOVE with avocados!
I LOVE avocado.
We all have our fav foods…and avocado is it for me…it would be fair to say I am a tad obsessed with it…. it is no surprise of course that this is my logo!
Here are 10 reasons why I love love love avos…p.s there’s some great nutrition info in this blog!
1. Avocado is incredibly nutritious – this requires mini points of its own:
*Healthy Essential Fats - Avocados are rich in healthy fats. 77% of calories in it are from fat, and the majority of the fat in avocado is oleic acid. This is a monounsaturated fatty acid provides long lasting fuel and is essential for our central nervous system, brain and skin. Oleci acid is linked to reduced inflammation and been shown to have beneficial effects on genes linked to cancer. Oleic acid, actually activates the part of your brain that makes you feel full so extremely helpful in offsetting those intense pre and postnatal hormones. Lastly the fats in avocado are also pretty resistant to heat-induced oxidation, making avocado oil a healthy and safe choice for cooking.
* Nutrients for Eye Health - Avocados are a great source of lutein, a carotenoid that works as an antioxidant and helps protect against eye disease. They also contain the related carotenoids zeaxanthin, alpha-carotene and beta-carotene, as well as tocopherol (vitamin E).
*High in Folate - One cup of avocado provides almost a quarter of your recommended daily intake of folate, an important vitamin which reduces the risk of birth defects. If you’re pregnant—or planning to be—be sure to add some avocado into your daily diet (some ideas a bit further down).
*Packed with Potassium - Bananas are known for their potassium content, but did you know avocados contains 485mg of potassium per 100g, that's 127mg more than bananas!
* Blood Sugar Control - Due to their high fat content, avocado slows digestion and helps keep blood sugar from spiking after a meal. This is crucial especially during pregnancy and the postnatal period when our hormones work against us here.
2. They are a nutrient booster: their high content of oleci acid aids the absorption of other nutrients from foods consumed at the same time, especially fat soluble vitamins.
3. Sugar-free: Technically avocados are a fruit, however they have less than 1g of sugar per serving! As you know reducing your sugar is one of my key messages so your well and truly winning here!
4. They are green: I have a thing for green foods, they are fresh, we should eats lots of them and they make food look cool too.
5. You can have avocado for any meal: literally breakfast, snacks, lunch, snack, dinner, in desserts….just brilliant!!
6. Avocados are incredibly versatile: their rich, creamy buttery flavour makes them easy to add to almost every meal! Here are some of my favourite uses and links to some of my recipes)
- Salads (see my Super Egg and Avo Salad)
- Omelette
- Smoothies (see my Kids Green Smoothie)
- On whole-grain toast or whole-grain crackers
- Guacamole (the main ingredient)
- Baking...like my Chocolate Avocado Brownies
- Straight up – with a spoon
- Dressings
- As a spread replacement
We are only limited by our imagination!
7. The fit all diets: gluten free/dairy free/grain free/vegetarian/raw food….
8. They make great baby food!! See my little man having avocado for the first time on you-tube!
9. No preparation required: Not even peeling! Just cut and your away – and avocados can be eaten both raw and cooked!
10. Value for money: Often super foods are really expensive (relative to other counterparts). When in season avocados are a cost effective way to add heaps of essential nutrients!!
So there you have it!! My top 10 reasons for my obsessions with avocados!
Would love to know your favourite uses for them and feel free to share this blog with another potential avo-lover!!
**Gorgeous photographs from Nykie Grove-Eades who specialises in capturing your precious and timeless moments with her photo journalistic and natural style. She's also the amazing mum to three beautiful children, check her out on Facebook and mistralphotography.co.nz
xxx The New Mum's Nutritionist
We all have our fav foods…and avocado is it for me…it would be fair to say I am a tad obsessed with it…. it is no surprise of course that this is my logo!
Here are 10 reasons why I love love love avos…p.s there’s some great nutrition info in this blog!
1. Avocado is incredibly nutritious – this requires mini points of its own:
*Healthy Essential Fats - Avocados are rich in healthy fats. 77% of calories in it are from fat, and the majority of the fat in avocado is oleic acid. This is a monounsaturated fatty acid provides long lasting fuel and is essential for our central nervous system, brain and skin. Oleci acid is linked to reduced inflammation and been shown to have beneficial effects on genes linked to cancer. Oleic acid, actually activates the part of your brain that makes you feel full so extremely helpful in offsetting those intense pre and postnatal hormones. Lastly the fats in avocado are also pretty resistant to heat-induced oxidation, making avocado oil a healthy and safe choice for cooking.
* Nutrients for Eye Health - Avocados are a great source of lutein, a carotenoid that works as an antioxidant and helps protect against eye disease. They also contain the related carotenoids zeaxanthin, alpha-carotene and beta-carotene, as well as tocopherol (vitamin E).
*High in Folate - One cup of avocado provides almost a quarter of your recommended daily intake of folate, an important vitamin which reduces the risk of birth defects. If you’re pregnant—or planning to be—be sure to add some avocado into your daily diet (some ideas a bit further down).
*Packed with Potassium - Bananas are known for their potassium content, but did you know avocados contains 485mg of potassium per 100g, that's 127mg more than bananas!
* Blood Sugar Control - Due to their high fat content, avocado slows digestion and helps keep blood sugar from spiking after a meal. This is crucial especially during pregnancy and the postnatal period when our hormones work against us here.
2. They are a nutrient booster: their high content of oleci acid aids the absorption of other nutrients from foods consumed at the same time, especially fat soluble vitamins.
3. Sugar-free: Technically avocados are a fruit, however they have less than 1g of sugar per serving! As you know reducing your sugar is one of my key messages so your well and truly winning here!
4. They are green: I have a thing for green foods, they are fresh, we should eats lots of them and they make food look cool too.
5. You can have avocado for any meal: literally breakfast, snacks, lunch, snack, dinner, in desserts….just brilliant!!
6. Avocados are incredibly versatile: their rich, creamy buttery flavour makes them easy to add to almost every meal! Here are some of my favourite uses and links to some of my recipes)
- Salads (see my Super Egg and Avo Salad)
- Omelette
- Smoothies (see my Kids Green Smoothie)
- On whole-grain toast or whole-grain crackers
- Guacamole (the main ingredient)
- Baking...like my Chocolate Avocado Brownies
- Straight up – with a spoon
- Dressings
- As a spread replacement
We are only limited by our imagination!
7. The fit all diets: gluten free/dairy free/grain free/vegetarian/raw food….
8. They make great baby food!! See my little man having avocado for the first time on you-tube!
9. No preparation required: Not even peeling! Just cut and your away – and avocados can be eaten both raw and cooked!
10. Value for money: Often super foods are really expensive (relative to other counterparts). When in season avocados are a cost effective way to add heaps of essential nutrients!!
So there you have it!! My top 10 reasons for my obsessions with avocados!
Would love to know your favourite uses for them and feel free to share this blog with another potential avo-lover!!
**Gorgeous photographs from Nykie Grove-Eades who specialises in capturing your precious and timeless moments with her photo journalistic and natural style. She's also the amazing mum to three beautiful children, check her out on Facebook and mistralphotography.co.nz
xxx The New Mum's Nutritionist