The Health Benefits of Bananas

Although it looks like a tree, the banana grows on grows on a plant that belongs to the orchid family. There are hundreds of varieties, and they all fall into two distinct groups, the sweet variety and the plantain that is used for cooking.

The health benefits of bananas include cholesterol lowering, blood pressure lowering, and an effective diarrhea treatment.

Health Benefits of Bananas : Nutrients in Bananas
An unripe banana contains more starch than sugar, but as it ripens its starches turn to sugar. A ripe banana consists mainly of sugars – glucose, fructose and sucrose, and fiber, making bananas an ideal source of energy. Bananas are an excellent source of potassium and vitamin B6. They are a good source of vitamin C, riboflavin, magnesium, biotin and carbohydrates. A study has concluded that bananas are a potential food source for alleviating vitamin A deficiency.

Lower Cholesterol
Bananas contain the soluble fiber pectin that assists in the lowering of cholesterol. The importance of increasing the intake of water-soluble dietary fibers to help lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL Cholesterol) is increasingly recognized. Well-controlled intervention studies have now shown that four major water-soluble fiber types-beta-glucan, psyllium, pectin and guar gum effectively lower serum LDL cholesterol concentrations, without affecting HDL cholesterol or triacylglycerol concentrations. It is estimated that for each additional gram of water-soluble fiber in the diet serum total and LDL cholesterol concentrations decrease by -0.028 mmol/L and -0.029 mmol/L, respectively.

Lower Blood Pressure
Bananas are high in potassium which is an important requirement in regulating blood pressure. Various nutrition studies have attested to the power of adequate potassium to keep blood pressure within safe levels. Blood pressure is positively associated with higher sodium, alcohol, and protein intakes; it is inversely associated with potassium, calcium, and magnesium intakes. Studies such as PREMIER have shown that salt restriction (<6>25), exercise, and a DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) (supplying 20-30 mmol/d of potassium) can achieve decreases in systolic blood pressure of approximately 10 to 15 mm Hg when applied together. Decreased intakes of sodium alone, and increased intakes of potassium, calcium, and magnesium each alone decrease high blood pressure. A combination of all these factors, that is, decrease of sodium, and increase of potassium, calcium, and magnesium intakes, which are characteristic of the DASH diet, has an excellent blood pressure lowering effect.

Reduce Risk of Stroke
A diet rich in potassium is associated with a lower risk of stroke. Data from the Harvard School of Public Health/Health Professionals Follow-Up Study of male doctors showed that a diet rich in high-potassium foods such as bananas, oranges, and plantain could reduce the risk of stroke. In the study, the men who ate the higher number of potassium-rich foods (an average of nine servings a day) had a risk of stroke 38 percent lower than that of men who consumed fewer than four servings a day.

An analysis of data from the Health Professionals Study shows 38 percent fewer strokes among men who ate nine servings of potassium rich foods a day against those who ate less than four servings. In men with high blood pressure, taking a daily 1,000 mg potas¬sium supplement reduced the incidence of stroke by 60 percent, and there is approximately 420 mg potassium in a medium sized banana.

Diarrhea Treatment
The banana is an effective treatment for diarrhea, and in a study involving infants with persistent diarrhea, green banana and pectin improved small intestinal permeability and reduced fluid loss. Bananas are well known amongst travelers to third world countries for their anti-diarrhea properties.

Prebiotic
Fructooligosaccharide is a prebiotic found in bananas and other foods. Prebiotics are non-digestible food ingredients that stimulate the growth and activity of beneficial bacteria in the colon. These bacteria improve the body’s ability to absorb important nutrients.

Stomach Ulcer Prevention
Bananas have also been found to help eliminate bacteria in the stomach that cause stomach ulcers.

Glycemic Index of Bananas
In studies to determine the estimated glycemic index of various foods, it was concluded that bananas have a low GI of 52.