The Health Benefits of Bananas

There are several different health benefits of bananas that the average person is not aware of. Bananas are actually extremely good for your heart and your nerves. A single banana contains an astounding 400mg of potassium. Potassium is one of the most important nutrients when it comes to keeping your heart and nervous system healthy. Potassium plays an extremely large role in muscle contraction which is required for the pumping of the heart, food digestion, and athletic activities. Scientific studies from the American Heart Association, the University of Maryland Medical Center, and Colorado State University have shown that diets that are low in potassium often result in high blood pressure and an increased risk for strokes. The majority of Americans currently don't have enough potassium in their diet. The daily recommended amount of potassium is 4g which can easily be reached by eating one or two bananas in a day.

Another one of the health benefits of Bananas is having healthy bones and kidneys. If you're taking in the proper amount of calcium then your body will surpass calcium loss through urine. In turn, this reduces the risk of kidney stones developing in the body. The University of Kansas was responsible for figuring that one out!

Other health benefits of bananas include the fruit acting as a mood enhancer or mild sedative. Tryptophan is one of the twenty building blocks in amino acids and helps to produce serotonin. Serotonin is a chemical that has a calming effect on the brain thus acting as a mild sedative!

Bananas are also good for your blood which is another one of the health benefits of bananas. This tropical fruit is an outstanding source of Vitamin B6 which converts tryptophan to serotonin and also aids in the creation of hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is one of the most common substances found in our blood stream. Vitamin B6 is also extremely important when it comes to the development of antibodies to fight off infections and maintain a healthy immune system.

Another health benefits of bananas is the fact that it has high amounts of dietary fiber. One banana can contain as much as 16% of the dietary fiber that you need in one day. Diets that are high in fiber have even been linked to having a decreased risk for coronary heart disease.

Perhaps the best part about having a banana in your diet is that they are extremely cheap and available at almost any super market. If you want to spice things up a little bit why not try making a banana smoothie every morning! Either way, there are certainly a lot of health benefits of bananas that might entice you to include them in your diet! The source for the information found in this article was the University of Maryland Medical Website.