‘Banana lowers blood pressure’
Banana, that yellowish skinned fruits, has a lot of benefits as it contains more vitamins than other fruits. Whether sliced over cereal, eaten as it were or blended in a smoothie, the fruit will give you the optimum health that your body requires to function adequately.
According to a Lagos-based nutritionist, Ada Orji, one banana contains good amount of dietary bar which does not only keep digestion regular, but also helps maintain low blood sugar and curbs overeating.
Orji further explained that the high amounts of potassium in bananas can lower one’s blood pressure, which in turn lessens the possibility of atherosclerosis, heart attack and stroke.
Along with lowering blood pressure, other nutrition experts affirmed that potassium prevents the weakening of the body’s bones, adding that a high sodium intake, which is typical of many diets, can cause excessive amount of calcium to be lost through the urine, which threatens not only the strength and general health of the bones, but also negatively affects blood clotting, proper muscle contraction, and normal nervous system function.
“The potassium found in banana neutralises the high amounts of sodium in one’s diet, thus allowing for healthy amounts of calcium to remain within the body.
“The potassium in bananas is not the only means to ensure healthy levels of calcium in the body. Bananas also contain high levels of fructooligo saccharide (FOS) that–along with insulin–promotes calcium absorption. FOS further nourishes healthy bacteria in the colon that manufacture vitamins and digestive enzymes that boost the body’s overall ability to absorb nutrients.
“Healthy digestive tract bananas can diminish the uncomfortable effects of diarrhea and constipation. The high amounts of potassium in bananas can restock electrolytes that are easily depleted when suffering from diarrhea — potassium being an important electrolyte itself. Furthermore, bananas can relieve the body from constipation and help restore regular digestion with pectin, a soluble polysaccharide that helps normalise the digestive tract”, the experts noted.
According to other reports on banana, the fruit protects the healthy constitution of the stomach as it in triggers the production of mucus in the stomach, which provides a protective barrier against stomach acids.
The reports also stated that bananas possess protease inhibitors, a substance that breaks down bacteria in the stomach that cause ulcers.
Other benefits include the following Cancer prevention.
A large study by the Internal Journal of Cancer illustrates that the probability of developing kidney cancer is greatly lessened by frequent consumption of fruits and vegetables, though especially bananas. For instance, the probability of developing kidney cancer in female subjects decreased by 50 percent when eating bananas four to six times a week.
Vitamin B6
One banana has an impressive 34 percent of the RDA of vitamin B6, which serves many important roles in the body’s health. For example, the B6 in bananas acts as an anti-inflammatory agent that helps ward off cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, as well as obesity. B6 also contributes to the maintenance of the lymphoid glands that ensure the production of healthy white blood cells that protect the body from infection. The vitamin B6 in bananas plays a pivotal part in cell formation and proper nervous system function, making one banana a day a healthy and delicious choice.