Genus Musa and the family Musaceae gave us an extraordinary gift of nature, a banana. Not only an edible, seedless fruit, but you can also eat it as a cooked vegetable. Despite being native to Australia and Southeast Asia, Banana’s ability to grow in a warm climate makes them available worldwide. If you want to eat healthy, low-cost as well as delicious bananas are the best option. Banana is rich in many essential nutrients, including; dietary fibers, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and various health-promoting bioactive phytochemicals.
This article will enlighten the science-based facts that how the banana is good for health, weight loss, heart functioning, and digestion.
Nutrient Richness of Banana:
Banana gets you no fat, little proteins, exclusively carbs and water, in the compact of whole 112 calories. Here is everything, a standard-sized banana (130 grams) consists of:
- Protein: 1.5 gram
- Carbs: 30 grams
- Fiber: 3.2 grams
- Vitamin C: 13% of the Daily Value (DV)
- Potassium: 11% of the DV
- Water: 75%
- Sugar: 13 grams
Unripe Banana:
In an unripe, green banana, carbs are present as starch and resistant starch, an indigestible fiber.
Ripen Banana: In yellow ripen fruit, fiber content is low, which makes them taste sweet.
Major Constituents of Banana:
Let’s discuss the quantity, importance, and role of several constituents of banana, including carbs, fibers, vitamins, minerals, and other bioactive compounds. And how these constituents add to the health benefits of banana.
Carbs
It occurs as starch in unripe, green bananas and becomes sweeter in a ripe banana. Green banana contains up to 80% starch content. During the ripening process, carbs composition drastically changes into sugars and becomes less than 1% in a fully ripe banana.
Sugar is present in bananas in the form of glucose, sucrose, and fructose. So, the whole sugar content in a fresh, ripe banana can reach more than 16%. Bananas have a low glycemic index GI (a measure of speed in which carbs from the food enter your blood to raise blood sugar level) of 42-57.
Fibers
Besides the high proportion of starch present in unripe bananas, it also contains other types of fibers (pectin). Some proportion of pectin in a banana is water-soluble, increasing with the ripening process. This is the main reason why ripened banana is soft.
Pectin and resistant starch present in bananas help moderate the rise of blood sugar levels after a meal.
Vitamins and Minerals
Bananas are a rich source of some vitamins and minerals, including vitamin B6, vitamin C, and potassium.
Vitamin B6: Bananas contain a high proportion of vitamin B6. According to research, vitamin B6 helps prevent nausea and the feeling of vomiting among pregnant women. It also strengthens the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle to make a woman more receptive to pregnancy. There are many other banana benefits for women.
Vitamin C: Like most citrus fruit, bananas are also a fine source of vitamin C, which drives the growth of body cells and casts great impacts on human health.
Potassium: Bananas also contain potassium. In hypertension patients, a diet rich in potassium helps lower blood pressure.
In this way, these vitamins and minerals present in bananas help make us healthy.
Bananas also contain potassium. In hypertension patients, a diet rich in potassium helps lower blood pressure.
In this way, these vitamins and minerals present in bananas help make us healthy.
Other Bioactive Compounds:
Bananas, like other fruits, contain different bioactive plant compounds, including dopamine and catechin. They help to improve the mood and act as antioxidants. These antioxidants reduce the risk of heart disease and have many other health benefits.
Are Bananas Good For You? Health Benefits Of Banana
Finally, let’s read the health benefits of banana. Banana is a nutritionally rich fruit. It contains many components that play a vital role in the growth and maintenance of human health. Banana is beneficial in many ways; it is a delicious fruit with a lot of benefits. Seven of them are listed below:
Bananas Improve Blood Sugar Levels
Bananas are a great source of water-soluble fiber that dissolves to form a gel during digestion. It is also responsible for the sponge-like sticky texture of bananas. Resistant starch present in unripe bananas is indigestible. It helps to maintain your blood sugar level to normal, even after meals. There are also many benefits of eating a banana on an empty stomach. Despite their higher carb content, bananas:
- Regulate the appetite
- Moderate blood sugar level
Still, I don’t recommend eating a large portion of this nutrient-rich fruit in one sitting.
Bananas Support Digestive System
Due to the rich nutritional value of bananas, you can link them to many health benefits. One optimum-sized banana provides enough fiber to improve the health of the digestive system. So, now let’s uncover what the role of indigestible fiber in an unripe banana is:
- It is prebiotic that is being indigestible ends up in the large intestine, where it serves as food for beneficial bacteria.
- Another fiber (pectin) present in bananas helps soften the stools and prevent constipation.
Pectin also plays an important role in protecting against colon cancer.
Bananas Help Weight Loss
Banana is one of those popular fruits that possess the attributes of being weight loss friendly. Banana is filling and nutritious still; an average banana contains only 100 calories. So, you get a great chance to eat for fiber to lower body weight.
Moreover, resistant starch present in unripe bananas tends to reduce your appetite by giving a sense of fullness. So, like a ripe banana, raw banana benefits are also remarkable.
Bananas Improve Kidney Health
Banana contains potassium, which is important for the proper functioning of the human kidney. It also regulates blood pressure. Being a rich source of potassium, banana helps to keep your kidneys healthy.
Note: If you suffer from any last-stage kidney disorder requiring dialysis, I will not recommend increasing your potassium content.
Bananas Support Exercise Recovery
Why is banana a perfect fruit for athletes? This is largely due to the portion of easily digested carbs present in bananas. It also contains some electrolytes like potassium and magnesium. Vigorous exercise causes the loss of electrolytes. Resupplying your body with these electrolytes (by eating a banana) after heavy sweating reduces the soreness and muscle cramps.
No doubt, bananas are the nutrition-rich choice for eating before or after a workout.
Bananas Support Heart Health
Banana contains a mineral that plays a vital role in keeping your heart healthy. This mineral is potassium; it also helps to manage your blood pressure. Fortunately, bananas are rich in potassium content contain 10% of the daily value.
It lowers not only the pressure of blood but also the people who used to intake a great amount of potassium are 28% safer from the risk of heart problems. Magnesium present in bananas also helps in the maintenance of a healthy heart.
Bananas Are Full of Antioxidants
Bananas are also a great source of dietary antioxidants, including amines and flavonoids. These antioxidants have many benefits.
- Antioxidants reduce the person’s exposure to heart diseases.
- They help to prevent degenerative illnesses.
- They save your cells from oxidative damage (caused by free radicals).
The Bottom Line:
Banana is a delicious, edible, seedless fruit with great nutritional value. It comes with potential health benefits due to its useful components. Thanks to carbs, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fibers, they boost your heart health and make your digestive system healthy.
There are several health benefits of banana. Eating a banana may also cause weight loss due to its higher nutrient content and low calories. Banana is a fruit of warm region, but it casts many cool impacts on your health.
