Avocados are Our Food of the Week

This week we celebrate the creamy texture and delicious taste of avocados when they are in the peak of their season. While it is true that avocados are high in fat, almost two-thirds of the fats they contain are the heart-healthy monounsaturated fats, like those found in olive oil—one of the primary reasons for the many health benefits derived from the Mediterranean diet.

For more on avocados see Avocados.

For more on the Food of the Week

• How to Cube Avocados
• Why is the food of the week among the WHFoods?"
• Healthy Eating with the Seasons

What's New and Beneficial About Avocados

• Many of our WHFoods provide you with carotenoids. These orange-yellow pigments offer you outstanding health benefits—but only if they are absorbed up into your cells. Intake of fat along with carotenoids greatly helps to improve their absorption. However, many of our best foods for obtaining carotenoids—for example, sweet potatoes, carrots, and leafy greens—contain very little fat (less than 1 gram per serving). As a special step for improving carotenoid absorption from carotenoid-rich foods, researchers have experimented with the addition of avocado to meal choices including salads, side servings of leafy greens, side servings of carrots, or tomato sauce. The amount of avocado added has varied from study to study but averages approximately 1 cup or 1 small/medium avocado providing 20-25 grams of total fat. As expected, this added avocado has been shown to increase carotenoid absorption from all of the foods listed above. Anywhere from two to six times as much absorption was found to occur with the added avocado! But in addition to this increased absorption was a much less anticipated result in a recent study: not only did avocado improve carotenoid absorption, but it also improved conversion of specific carotenoids (most importantly, beta-carotene) into active vitamin A. (This unexpected health benefit of increased conversion was determined by the measurement of retinyl esters in the bloodstream of participants, which were found to increase after consumption of carrots or tomato sauce in combination with avocado.)

  Avocados do contain carotenoids, in and of themselves. And thanks to their fat content, you can get good absorption of the carotenoids that they contain. However, if you happen to be consuming an avocado-free meal or snack that contains very little fat yet rich amounts of carotenoids, some added avocado might go a long way in improving your carotenoid absorption and vitamin A nourishment. Salad greens—including romaine lettuce—and mixed greens like kale, chard, and spinach are great examples of very low fat, carotenoid-rich foods that might be eaten alone but would have more of their carotenoid-richness transferred over into your body with the help of some added avocado.

• The method you use to peel an avocado might make a difference to your health. Research on avocado shows that the greatest phytonutrient concentrations occur in portions of the food that we do not typically eat, namely, the peel and the seed (or "pit.") The pulp of the avocado is actually much lower in phytonutrients than these other portions of the food. However, while lower in their overall phytonutrient richness, all portions of the pulp are not identical in their phytonutrient concentrations and the areas of the pulp that are closest to the peel are higher in certain phytonutrients than more interior portions of the pulp. For this reason, you don't want to slice into that outermost, dark green portion of the pulp any more than necessary when you are peeling an avocado. Accordingly, the best method is what the California Avocado Commission has called the "nick and peel" method. In this method, you actually end up peeling the avocado with your hands in the same way that you would peel a banana. The first step in the nick-and-peel method is to cut into the avocado lengthwise, producing two long avocado halves that are still connected in the middle by the seed. Next you take hold of both halves and twist them in opposite directions until they naturally separate. At this point, remove the seed and cut each of the halves lengthwise to produce long quartered sections of the avocado. You can use your thumb and index finger to grip the edge of the skin on each quarter and peel it off, just as you would do with a banana skin. The final result is a peeled avocado that contains most of that dark green outermost flesh, which provides you with the best possible phytonutrient richness from the pulp portion of the avocado.
• Recent research on avocado and heart disease risk has revealed some important health benefits that may be unique to this food. Avocado's reputation as a high-fat food is entirely accurate. Our 1-cup website serving provides 22 grams of fat, and those 22 grams account for 82% of avocado's total calories. And they do not necessarily provide a favorable ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fat; you get less than 1/4 gram of omega-3s from one serving of avocado and 2.5 grams of omega-6s, for a ratio of 10:1 in favor of omega-6s. However, despite these characteristics, the addition of avocado to already well-balanced diets has been shown to lower risk of heart disease, improve blood levels of LDL, and lower levels of oxidative stress in the bloodstream following consumption of food. In one particular research study, participants in two groups all consumed a diet with the same overall balance, including 34% fat in both groups. But one avocado per day was included in the meal plan of only one group, and that was the group with the best heart-related results in terms of blood fat levels.

  Most researchers are agreed that the high levels of monounsaturated fat in avocado—especially oleic acid—play a role in these heart-related benefits. Nearly 15 out of the 22 grams of fat (68%) found in one cup of avocado come from monounsaturated fat. (And by contrast, less than 3 grams come from the category of polyunsaturated fat, which includes both omega-6s and omega-3s.) This high level of monounsaturates puts avocado in a similar category with olives, which provide about 14 grams of fat per cup and approximately 73% of those grams as monounsaturates. In addition to its high percentage of monounsaturated fat, however, avocado offers some other unique fat qualities. It provides us with phytosterols including beta-sitosterol, campesterol, and stigmasterol. This special group of fats has been shown to provide important anti-inflammatory benefits to our body systems, including our cardiovascular system. Not as clear from a dietary standpoint are the polyhydroxylated fatty alcohols, or PFAs, found in avocado. PFAs are a group of fat-related compounds more commonly found in sea plants than in land plants, making the avocado tree unusual in this regard. However, the studies that we have seen on PFAs and avocado have extracted these PFAs from the seed (or pit) of the fruit, rather than the pulp. Since we typically do not consume this part of the avocado, the practical role of these PFAs from a dietary standpoint is less clear than the role of monounsaturates and phytosterols described above.

• Recent studies have analyzed the overall impact of avocado on the average U.S. diet, with some fascinating results. In one broad-based, national study, all participants who reported eating any avocado during the last 24 hours were compared to all participants who reporting eating no avocado during that same time period. The avocado-eating U.S. adults were found to have greater fiber intake (over 6 grams more for the day); greater potassium intake (439 milligrams more); greater vitamin K intake (57 micrograms more); and greater vitamin E intake (2.2 milligrams alpha-tocopherol equivalents more) than U.S. adults who ate no avocado. Interestingly, all of the nutrients listed above are nutrients for which avocado receives a rating of "good" on our WHFoods nutrient rating system! It's worth adding here that U.S. adults consuming avocado also averaged 43 milligrams more magnesium, 5.6 grams more monounsaturated fat, and 3.2 grams more polyunsaturated fat. The study authors also noted that avocado eating was associated with better overall diet quality, as well as better intake of vegetables and fruits as a whole.

This chart graphically details the %DV that a serving of Avocados provides for each of the nutrients of which it is a good, very good, or excellent source according to our Food Rating System. Additional information about the amount of these nutrients provided by Avocados can be found in the Food Rating System Chart. A link that takes you to the In-Depth Nutritional Profile for Avocados, featuring information over 80 nutrients, can be found under the Food Rating System Chart.

• Health Benefits
• Description
• History
• How to Select and Store
• Tips for Preparing and Cooking
• How to Enjoy
• Individual Concerns
• Nutritional Profile
• References

Health Benefits

Broad-Based Nutritional Support

As described earlier in our "What's New and Beneficial" section, U.S. adults who consume avocado average some important nutrient benefits, including intake of more potassium, vitamin K, vitamin E, fiber, magnesium, and monounsaturated fat. In addition, they average greater overall intake of fruits and vegetables and have better overall diet quality. Due to their higher calorie content, avocados do not rank as high in our rating system as do other nutrient-rich foods with fewer calories. However, there are very few DRI vitamins or minerals not found in avocado! In this food you will find all B vitamins except vitamin B12; vitamin C (at 20% of our WHFoods recommended daily level in one cup); phosphorus, manganese, and copper at more than 10% of our WHFoods recommendation); and 8% of our recommended daily omega-3s.

In addition to these conventional nutrients, avocados offer a wide range of phytonutrients that are related to their unusual fat quality. Included in this category are the phytosterols (beta-sitosterol, campesterol, and stigmasterol) as well as their polyhydroxylated alcohols. The major carotenoid found in the pulp of avocado is chrysanthemaxanthin. Other carotenoids in the pulp include neoxanthin, transneoxanthin, neochrome, and several forms of lutein. As mentioned earlier, avocado is also an especially rich source of monounsaturated fatty acids, and in particular, oleic acid, which accounts for over 60% of the total fat found in this food.

It would be wrong to conclude this nutritional support section without mentioning the improved absorption of carotenoids that can take place when very low-fat, carotenoid-rich food might otherwise be consumed in the absence of fat. As described earlier in our What's New and Beneficial section, many of our best foods for obtaining carotenoids—for example, sweet potatoes, carrots, and leafy greens—contain very little fat (less than 1 gram per serving). This absence of fat works against their absorption into the body, and the addition of a fat-containing food like avocado can change this situation pretty dramatically. Anywhere from two to six times as much absorption of carotenoids has been found to occur in these very low-fat, high carotenoid dietary situations. In addition, the combination of carotenoid-rich, very low-fat foods like carrots with a high-fat food like avocado has been shown to improve conversion of specific carotenoids (most importantly, beta-carotene) into active vitamin A. We think about this avocado health benefit as another component of its broad-based nutritional support.

Cardiovascular Support

Numerous studies have looked at the relationship between avocado consumption and blood fat levels, types of fat in the bloodstream, inflammatory risk in the cardiovascular system, and degree of cardiovascular protection against oxygen-based damage. The study results are consistent in showing benefits from avocado in all of these areas. Most of the benefits are associated with avocado consumption at least multiple times per week in amounts of approximately one cup. (Depending on the variety, one cup of avocado is approximately the same as the amount of pulp found in one small-to-medium sized avocado. Some studies also show benefits with smaller amounts of avocado in the 1/2-cup range.

A wide range of nutrients in avocado has been associated with these cardiovascular benefits. Included in this list would be: (1) avocado fats, which include very large amounts of the monounsaturated fatty acid, oleic acid, as well as the unusual phytosterols, including beta-sitosterol, campesterol, and stigmasterol; (2) the antioxidant nutrients in avocado, including carotenoids like chrysanthemaxanthin, neoxanthin, and lutein as well as vitamin E and vitamin C; (3) anti-inflammatory components of avocado, including the carotenoids and phytosterols listed above as well as catechins and procyanidins (two families of flavonoids).

Risk of metabolic syndrome—which includes symptoms involving problematic blood fat levels and elevated blood pressure—has been shown to be reduced by intake of avocado. Many of the nutrients provided by avocado are likely to play a role in this important health benefit. Research in this area encourages us to think about avocado as being truly preventive in its cardiovascular health benefits, and worthy of consideration in many types of meal plans.

One important note about the cardiovascular benefits of avocado: most of the encouraging studies that we have seen do not simply "dump" avocado into a meal plan as some type of "add-on" food. Instead, avocado is integrated into a balanced diet with a controlled amount of fat, calories, and intake across food groups. There does not appear to be any requirement for the diet to be low fat, since avocado-containing meal plans that provide up to 34% of their total calories from fat have been shown to provide cardiovascular support. But treatment of avocado as an "add-on" food is not an approach that we have seen supported by large-scale research in this cardiovascular area.

Other Health Benefits

We believe that avocado is likely to provide you with health benefits in the areas of blood sugar control, insulin regulation, satiety and weight management, and decreased overall risk of unwanted inflammation. However, we would still like to see further expansion of research findings in these areas. With respect to blood sugar and insulin regulation, we have seen smaller scale studies showing reduced insulin secretion after a meal and improved regulation of blood sugar levels, but most of these studies have focused on the short-term situation following a meal rather than extended blood sugar regulation over weeks or months. Some of these studies have focused on the fiber content of avocado, which is more substantial than many people might think. (There are 10 grams of fiber in our one cup website serving.) Also investigated in this area has been the 7-carbon sugar called mannoheptulose (and its polyol form called perseitol). This sugar—unlike most sugars—may help suppress insulin secretion.

In the area of satiety and weight management, we've seen studies showing improved feelings of fullness and satisfaction after eating a meal that contained avocado, as well as decreased body mass index (BMI) and total body fat after six weeks of consuming a meal plan that contained 1.3 cups of avocado per day. However, we would also immediately note that participants in this study were required to follow a balanced meal plan with a restricted number of calories (about 1,700 calories per day). So we suspect that avocado can indeed be helpful to include in a weight management plan, but only if the overall plan is well thought out and takes the overall amount of food intake into consideration.

Avocado has clearly been shown to provide a wide variety of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory nutrients. Included here are both conventional nutrients like manganese, vitamin C, and vitamin E, as well as phytonutrients like unique carotenoids, flavonoids, and phytosterols. Most of the larger scale, human research studies that we have seen focus on the cardiovascular system and risk of oxidative stress and inflammation in this system. In terms of the whole body, however, and its many key physiological systems, the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits of avocado have been tested primarily in the lab or in animal studies. For example, numerous animal studies have looked at the impact of avocado intake on risk of inflammation in connective tissue and have speculated about the potential benefits of avocado for reducing human arthritis risk. Because of the promising nature of these preliminary studies, we look forward to new research involving large numbers of human participants and intake of avocado in a weekly meal plan.

Description

Optimally ripe avocados are typically known for their silky, creamy texture and rich flavors (which some people describe as "nutty" or "nut-like"). Avocados owe their creamy texture to their high fat content. (The Hass avocado that we analyzed for nutrient content on our website contained 22 grams of fat per cup and provided 82% of its total calories in the form of fat.) Not all avocados are identical in terms of fat content, however. As a general rule, smaller sized avocados tend to be more oily and higher in fat, and large sized avocados tend to be somewhat less oily and lower in fat percentage.

All avocado belong to the science genus/species group called Persea americana. Over 50 different commercial varieties of avocado exist within this basic group. Avocados are also often categorized as belonging to three basic types (sometimes called "races") according to their place of origin. West Indian avocados originated in tropical lowlands and subtropics, including countries like Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and others. The science name Persea americana Mill. var. Americana is often used to refer to West Indian avocado. A second category of avocado is Guatemalan avocado, originating as the name suggests in the country of Guatemala. The science names used for Guatemalan avocado are usually Persea americana var guatemalensis or Persea americana var. nubigena. A third category of avocado is Mexican avocado, originating in Mexico. Here the science name is often Persea americana var drymifolin. In practice, you will hear many different varieties of avocado being referred to as "Mexican avocados" or "Guatemalan avocados" or "West Indian avocado" even though they were not actually grown in those countries and only have ancestral origins there.

Because Mexico is the world's largest producer and exporter of avocados, and because demand for avocados within the United States has increased steadily since the 1980's, many avocados grown in Mexico find their way into U.S. supermarkets. Within the U.S., California and Florida are the primary avocado-producing states, with about six times the total number of avocados being produced in California compared to Florida. Seven commercial varieties of avocado are produced on a large-scale basis in California, but the Hass variety accounts for about 95% of all California production. It is also worth noting that a sizeable number of avocados are imported by the U.S. from South American countries including Chile, Columbia, Peru, and Brazil.

Due to hybridization, cross seedlings, and several thousand years of avocado cultivation, it has become very difficult to take the common name for a common avocado variety—for example, Fuerte—and link it up with a specific place of origin. Fuerte is a good example because this variety is a Mexican-Guatemalan cross. But it may have been commercially grown either inside or outside of the U.S. And while we think about Hass avocados coming from California versus Florida, there are "Florida Hass" varieties as well. Lulu, Taylor, Booth, Choquette, Lamb, Ettinger, Brogden, Zutano, Reed, Pinkerton, Gwen, Bacon, Donnie, Simmonds, Dupuis, Gainesville, and Mexicola are some of the other common variety names for avocados that you may come across in the marketplace. However, rather than relying on the common name of an avocado to determine its actual growing location, you will need to check the country of origin sticker or ask the produce manager.

History

As mentioned above in our Description section, avocados are often categorized according to the ancestral origins in the West Indies, Guatemala, or Mexico. In fact, avocados were also native to other parts of Central and South America, where they have been cultivated for food use for several thousand years.

In today's marketplace, the largest producers of avocados are Mexico, Chile, the United States, Indonesia, the Dominican Republic, Columbia, Peru, Brazil, China, and Guatemala. Mexico is an especially large exporter of avocado into the U.S., with about 500,000 metric tons of avocado being sent from Mexico to the U.S. each year. About 200,000 tons of avocado are produced in the state of California each year, and another 35,000 tons in the state of Florida.

As a result of the above global production, you are most likely to find avocados in the supermarket that were grown either in Mexico, California, Florida, or a Central American or South American country. Because of the greater total volume and slightly longer marketing season, you are also more likely to find California versus Florida avocados in the supermarket among domestic varieties.

How to Select and Store

A ripe, ready-to-eat avocado is slightly soft but should have no dark sunken spots or cracks. If the avocado has a slight neck, rather than being rounded on top, it may have ripened a bit more on the tree and have a richer flavor. A firmer, less mature fruit can be ripened at home and may be less likely to have bruises, depending on how it was handled during harvest and transport. The average California Hass avocado weighs between 165-170 grams (about 6 ounces) and has a pebbled dark green or black skin. Other varieties can have different textures (for example, smoother and less pebbly), different colors (for example, lighter or brighter greens), and varying degrees of glossiness.

A firm avocado will ripen in a paper bag or in a fruit basket at room temperature within a few days. As the fruit ripens, the skin will turn darker. However, we do not recommend relying exclusively on color to determine the ripeness of an avocado. Hold the avocado very gently in your palm and begin to press very gently against its surface. A ripe avocado will yield to very gentle pressure, without feeling squishy. Avocados should not be refrigerated until they are ripe. Once ripe, they can be kept refrigerated for up to a week. If you are refrigerating a whole avocado, it is best to keep it whole and not slice it in order to avoid browning that occurs when the flesh is exposed to air.

If you have used a portion of a ripe avocado, it is best to store the remainder in the refrigerator. Store in a sealed and reusable glass container or sealed and reusable plastic container. Sprinkling the exposed surface(s) with lemon juice will help to prevent the browning that can occur when the flesh comes in contact with oxygen in the air.

Tips for Preparing and Cooking

Tips for Preparing Avocados

Use a stainless steel knife to cut the avocado in half lengthwise. Gently twist the two halves in opposite direction if you find the flesh clinging to the pit. Remove the pit, either with a spoon or by spearing with the tip of a knife. Next, take each of the avocado halves and slice lengthwise to produce four avocado quarters. The use the California Avocado Commission's "nick and peel" method to peel the avocado. Just take your thumb and index finger to grip an edge of the avocado skin and peel it away from the flesh, in exactly the same way that you would peel a banana. The final result will be a peeled avocado that contains most of that dark green outermost flesh that is richest in carotenoid antioxidants.

You can prevent the natural darkening of the avocado flesh that occurs with exposure to air by sprinkling with a little lemon juice or vinegar.

The Healthiest Way of Cooking Avocados

Many avocado recipes that you'll find in cookbooks and on the Internet include avocado as an ingredient in its raw, unheated form. In the World's Healthiest Foods recipes, we also favor this approach. We simply cannot think of a better way to preserve the health benefits made possible by avocado's unique fats. If you do plan to use avocado in a recipe that calls for heat, we recommend that you use the lowest possible temperature and least amount of cooking time that will still work with your particular recipe. Our purpose in making this recommendation is to help you minimize damage to avocado's unique fats. We've seen one research study showing that approximately 40 seconds of microwave heating on medium heat is a heating method that doesn't significantly change the fatty acid profile of avocados. Sometimes we like to add avocado to a dish that has been cooked. This is a similar approach to some traditional Mexican recipes. For example, in Mexico they add sliced avocado to chicken soup after it is cooked. The avocado warms and mingles well with the soup but retains its nutritional concentration since it is not cooked.

How to Enjoy

A Few Quick Serving Ideas

• Use chopped avocados as a garnish for black bean soup.
• Add avocado to your favorite creamy tofu-based dressing recipe to give it extra richness and a beautiful green color.
• Mix chopped avocados, onions, tomatoes, cilantro, lime juice and seasonings for a rich-tasting twist on traditional guacamole.
• Spread ripe avocados on bread as a healthy replacement for mayonnaise when making a sandwich.
• For an exceptional salad, combine sliced avocado with fennel, oranges and fresh mint.
• For a beautiful accompaniment to your favorite Mexican dish, top quartered avocado slices with corn relish and serve with a wedge of lime.

WHFoods Recipes That Feature Avocados

• 10-Minute Huevos Rancheros
• Breakfast Bagel
• Poached Huevos Rancheros
• 15 Minute Shrimp and Avocado Salad
• 15 Minute Turkey Chef's Salad
• Healthy Veggie Salad
• Mexican Cheese Salad
• Salmon, Cucumber, Dill Salad
• 15-Minute Halibut with Avocado Salsa
• Southwestern Salmon & Black Beans
• Romaine and Avocado Salad

Individual Concerns

Avocados and Latex Allergy

Latex allergy (also called Latex Food Syndrome) is a health problem related to the possible reaction of our immune system to certain proteins found in natural rubber (from the tree Hevea brasiliensis) and highly similar proteins found in certain foods. (Latex is a further refined material that begins with natural rubber, and is commonly found in products like latex gloves or latex paints.)

Because our immune system can engage in an allergic reaction to these proteins, they are commonly referred to as allergens. Fourteen different allergens have been identified as potential triggers of latex allergy, and between 20-60% of persons who react to these allergens in latex also react to similar allergens found in food. Avocado is one of the foods most frequently involved in these reactions. Other foods commonly involved are chestnut, banana, and kiwifruit. Some studies have shown the involved of other foods in latex allergy, including papaya, tomato, and potato.

Nutritional Profile

Avocados contain an amazing array of phytonutrients. Included are phytosterols (especially beta-sitosterol, stigmasterol, and campesterol); carotenoids (beta-carotene, alpha-carotene, lutein, neochrome, neoxanthin, chrysanthemaxanthin, beta-cryptoxanthin, zeaxanthin, and violaxanthin); flavonoids (epicatechin and epigallocatechin 3-0-gallate); and polyhydroxylated fatty alcohols. Alpha-linolenic acid (an omega-3 fatty acid) and oleic acid are key fats provided by avocado. Avocados are a good source of pantothenic acid, dietary fiber, vitamin K, copper, folate, vitamin B6, potassium, vitamin E, and vitamin C.

Although they are fruits, avocados have a high fat content of between 71 to 88% of their total calories—about 20 times the average for other fruits. A typical avocado contains 30 grams of fat, but 20 of these fat grams are health-promoting monounsaturated fats, especially oleic acid.

For an in-depth nutritional profile click here: Avocado.

In-Depth Nutritional Profile

In addition to the nutrients highlighted in our ratings chart, an in-depth nutritional profile for Avocados is also available. This profile includes information on a full array of nutrients, including carbohydrates, sugar, soluble and insoluble fiber, sodium, vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, amino acids and more.

Introduction to Food Rating System Chart

In order to better help you identify foods that feature a high concentration of nutrients for the calories they contain, we created a Food Rating System. This system allows us to highlight the foods that are especially rich in particular nutrients. The following chart shows the nutrients for which this food is either an excellent, very good, or good source (below the chart you will find a table that explains these qualifications). If a nutrient is not listed in the chart, it does not necessarily mean that the food doesn't contain it. It simply means that the nutrient is not provided in a sufficient amount or concentration to meet our rating criteria. (To view this food's in-depth nutritional profile that includes values for dozens of nutrients - not just the ones rated as excellent, very good, or good - please use the link below the chart.) To read this chart accurately, you'll need to glance up in the top left corner where you will find the name of the food and the serving size we used to calculate the food's nutrient composition. This serving size will tell you how much of the food you need to eat to obtain the amount of nutrients found in the chart. Now, returning to the chart itself, you can look next to the nutrient name in order to find the nutrient amount it offers, the percent Daily Value (DV%) that this amount represents, the nutrient density that we calculated for this food and nutrient, and the rating we established in our rating system. For most of our nutrient ratings, we adopted the government standards for food labeling that are found in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's "Reference Values for Nutrition Labeling." Read more background information and details of our rating system.

In-Depth Nutritional Profile for Avocados

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