Health Benefits of Bananas

Inexpensive, convenient and delicious, bananas are one of the top fruits you can add to your daily diet to improve the nutrition level in your body. This fruit contains antioxidants, fibre, vitamin C and other useful compounds that your body needs to fight diseases and maintain good health.

Apart from this, there are several health benefits of bananas, too. For instance, it helps control your blood pressure level, improve stamina and induce weight loss. To learn about these advantages in detail, keep reading this piece.

What Are the Top Health Benefits of Banana?

Banana is a fruit that almost every individual enjoys in their salad, dessert and other recipes. Not only this, but people also enjoy having it raw. As a result, their body keeps getting essential nutrients, and they enjoy the following benefits of eating bananas:

1. Boosts Energy

By consuming bananas, you are providing your body with fructose, glucose and sucrose, which are the common energy sources for the body. In other words, when glucose and fructose are absorbed in the bloodstream, it releases energy and gives a boost to your stamina. However, sucrose takes time to absorb, thus ensuring there is no sudden spike in sugar level in the body or abrupt drop.

2. Improves Digestion

One of the biggest benefits of eating bananas every day is that it helps you maintain your digestive health by replenishing the body with both soluble and insoluble fibre. Moreover, the large quantities of dietary fibre in bananas improve digestion function. Additionally, the resistant starch that bananas provide to your body replenishes gut health in your body by providing it with good bacteria and even softening your stool. Also, it helps prevent hyperacidity problems by protecting the inner linings of your stomach from developing an ulcer. Lastly, it regulates intestinal movements for better digestion.

3. Improves Memory

Banana also boosts your intellectual capacity by providing your body with enough potassium and magnesium. While potassium helps stay more alert and receptive, magnesium improves focus. As a result, you are able to remember more and with clarity.

4. Maintains Heart Health

Among all the other advantages of eating bananas, this one is very uncommon, but this fruit also helps in maintaining better heart health. It is because of the presence of minerals, potassium and electrolytes essential for a happy heart. Moreover, since banana is high in potassium and low in sodium, it also controls your blood pressure level. Thus, it protects you from cardiovascular diseases. In fact, by having one medium size banana, you can meet 10% of the daily potassium requirement of your body.

5. Keeps You Happy

The concept behind being happy is when the amount of serotonin in your body is high, you feel light, and your mood gets enhanced. While it is not found in many foods, bananas are a rich source of serotonin. Thus, eating lots of bananas releases enough happy hormones, which keep you happy. Apart from this, bananas also provide your body with tryptophan which is directly related to improving your sleep cycle. So, if you are someone who has insomnia or an irregular sleep cycle, eating this fruit can help. The presence of vitamin B gives you a calming effect which in turn helps you sleep.

6. Promotes Weight Loss

There are also weight loss advantages of bananas as they are low in calories and high in fibre. So, while low calories help maintain a lower weight, high fibre induces a weight loss situation. In addition, by consuming unripe bananas, you are also providing your body with resistant starch. Thus, your stomach feels full for a long time, and there is no urge to overeat.

7. Promotes Healthy Skin

Another benefit of bananas is that it meets 13% of your daily manganese needs to keep your skin young and healthy. It is a compound your body requires to produce collagen, which in turn protects your skin from damage and prevents the action of free radicals.

8. Maintain Bone Health

Bananas are not so high in calcium. So, how does it help maintain your bone health? It is because of the presence of a prebiotic 'Fructooligosaccharides'. This compound helps your body quickly absorb calcium, hence improving the bone health of your body.

What Is the Nutritional Value of Consuming Banana?

The following table depicts the nutritional value of banana that you can extract by consuming 126 grams of it:

Nutrients	Nutritional Value
Energy	112 calories
Fat	0 grams
Carbohydrate	29 grams
Protein	1 gram
Fibre	3 grams
Vitamin C	12% of the daily value

How to Include Banana in Your Daily Diet?

Banana is the most convenient fruit that you can have daily to provide your body with the required nutrients as it is easily available, and its taste complements almost every food. Not only this but combining it with other recipes are also not required. You can have it raw as well. However, some recommended recipes that you can try are as follows:

1. Smoothie

peanut butter banana — (source: simplyrecipes)

If you are trying to lose weight, have a banana smoothie regularly in the morning. It will keep your stomach satiated till lunchtime. For this purpose, blend banana, silken tofu, soymilk, unsweetened cocoa and honey together. Also, you can top it with a handful of dark chocolate chips for attractiveness.

2. Sandwich

Another great way to add bananas to your daily diet is topping your peanut butter sandwich with slices of banana. For more punch, you can even add other fruits that complement the flavour, like blackberries, strawberries, etc.

3. Dairy Free Banana Rice Pudding

banana coconut pudding — (source: nxedge)

If looking for wholesome food with bananas, you can try dairy-free banana rice pudding. However, making it can be complex, so make sure to check out its recipe in detail online.

4. Banana Flour

Now, as more and more people are becoming health-conscious, the food industry is coming up with healthy flour options. One such option is banana flour. It has high starch content and less flour. So, next, when you make a brownie, bread or other dishes, replace regular flour with banana flour.

What Are the Side Effects of Overeating Banana?

Though bananas are safe to consume and provide your body with several health benefits, it will not be a great idea to over-consume them. However, if done opposite, you may notice a few side effects as shared below:

Gas or Bloating: Due to the high soluble fibre and natural sugar in bananas, you may experience gas or bloating problems by overconsuming bananas.
Tooth Decay: Another reason to avoid over-consumption of bananas is the increased possibility of tooth decay. The starch in bananas dissolves slowly in the mouth, leaving behind its particles which attract bacteria.
Allergy: Banana is associated with ragweed allergy, during which you may experience swollen throat, rashes on the skin, etc. If such symptoms are visible, quit eating it and consult a doctor.
Stomach Pain: Overconsuming bananas may give you severe stomach pain. The presence of high dietary fibre influences your digestion process and may result in diarrhoea.

Who Should Avoid Consuming Bananas?

Banana is a highly nutritious food and safe to have daily. In fact, it is one of the first foods doctors allow to give to your baby as solid foods. However, in some conditions, it can negatively affect your body. Some of these instances are as follows:

Kidney Patient: If you are suffering from a kidney problem or the potassium level in your body is high, you must avoid eating a banana. This is because bananas are high in potassium, and you add more to the amount by eating them. Also, when your kidney is not functioning properly, it becomes even more difficult to digest potassium.
Individuals on Medications: You should avoid eating bananas if you are on certain medications. You can ask for your doctor's recommendation in this case as well. It is because there is a high chance that bananas will interact with the effects of your medication and may cause an imbalance.
People Suffering From Migraine: If you have a migraine problem, you would want to avoid banana consumption as it may fill your body with excessive tyramine, which may worsen your situation.

The above information shows that there are many health benefits of bananas in providing the body with enough energy, boosting digestion function, and avoiding chronic conditions. However, you must avoid overeating it to save yourself from its side effects.

Frequently Asked Questions

✓ Which is the best time to have a banana?

The best time to eat bananas is in the morning. However, ensure you are not empty stomach and have something before it. Also, avoid eating it at night to avoid attracting cold, cough and breathing problems.

✓ What is the effect of bananas on diarrhoea and loose motion?

While ripe bananas are associated with causing the situation, many use unripe bananas or plantains to control loose motion and restore the function of your digestive system. The reason behind this is its absorbent properties.