With its soft and sweet texture, bananas are known to help us maintain a good emotional state. Energetic and remineralizing, it is also an excellent ally for digestion. We bring you tangible evidence on the main health benefits of bananas …
The banana comes to us from Indonesia. It is a tropical fruit which is also the most exported fruit in the world. She has a pulp floury covered with a thick yellow skin. Bananas are present all year round on the stalls, but they are found most tasty from October to February, that is to say during the harvest period in the regions tropical.
An energetic fruit
There are two main types of bananas: dessert bananas which are consumed all over the world and cooking bananas, among which are plantains, characteristic of tropical cuisine.
The banana is one of the fresh fruits the most energetic with 94 kcal / 100 g. Its carbohydrates, up to 20%, are made up before maturation by starch which disappears to then give way to simple sugars.
A medium-sized banana represents 150 kcal. It is well supplied with beta-carotene (a precursor of vitamin A), contributes to healthy skin, the growth of bones and teeth and protects against infections.
The benefits of bananas are well known: bananas are ideal for a good digestion thanks to its content fibers that stimulate the intestinal transit. It protects the stomach by stopping hyperacidity and reducing irritation. This is because a natural anti-acid is present in the fruit, which helps to relieve burns intestinal.
This exotic fruit is rich in prebiotics, a fermentable sugar used to nourish probiotics. It is a food recommended in case of diarrhea, especially in babies.
When fully ripe, bananas are also an excellent remedy for constipation. Likewise, it is effective against gastric ulcer thanks to an enzyme that inhibits the growth of bacteria.
Learn more about bananas
On the nutritional level, the banana is remineralizing: potassium (385 mg) and magnesium are well represented.
Bananas contain vitamin C, one of the most powerful antioxidants and some vitamin B6. It mainly brings carbohydrates (19.6 g). On the other hand, its lipid intake is lower than the average amount of lipids in fresh fruits.
Bananas are an interesting source of vitamin B6 (0.5 mg / 100 g), which is involved in the metabolism of carbohydrates, and Vitamin E is present at a relatively high rate for a fruit.
There are many varieties of bananas; some with sweet flesh and others with flesh rich in starch. There are yellow, red, green, golden, spotted, short bananas, round, straight, curved bananas, etc.
Other benefits of bananas
- The banana is an excellent appetite suppressant : it brings a feeling of rapid and lasting satiety and is relatively low in calories.
- Bananas help prevent the appearance of cramps, muscle stiffness or fatigue in the athlete.
- It promotes good mood thanks to magnesium, vitamin B6 and tryptophan which is involved in the production of serotonin and dopamine ; hence the expression “have the banana! ”.
- Bananas promote sleep and is one of the foods to consume without hesitation at dinner since it contains an amino acid that goes into the production of melatonin.
- Due to its richness in carbohydrates, in vitamins and trace elements, the banana has virtues on physical and intellectual fatigue.
- It helps to regulate blood pressure given the amount of potassium it contains.
- The banana is a true ally of the pregnant woman because it prevents the risk of anemia, fights against the drop in blood sugar levels and nausea.
- Bananas contain antioxidants effective against free radicals and therefore prevent cancer and the appearance of several diseases linked to aging.
- The banana skin has virtues and relieves insect bites, so the swelling and itching will decrease.
- This fruit is effective against stress due to its amount of potassium which helps to send oxygen to the brain and keep a normal pulse.
Some practical advice
Brittle, the banana must be transported with care. The more yellow the banana, the more ripe and sweeter it is. We then avoid eating green bananas, as they are indigestible and can cause stomach aches.
How to choose your bananas? Those with light brown spots show a sign of having been frozen during transport: they will no longer ripen. Not to be confused with small dark brown dots which are a normal sign of ripening.
Bananas can be stored at room temperature so that they reach the degree of ripening that we prefer. Bananas can be ripened faster by placing them in a paper bag. In any case, it is better to avoid keeping them in the refrigerator.
However, in order not to have to throw the bananas a little too much blackberries, it is possible to place them as they are (with the peel) in the freezer, in an airtight plastic bag. It is then used for all cooked preparations.
Lemon banana recipe
Ingredients for 4 persons
- 4 bananas
- 4 vanilla pods
- 20 g butter
- 2 limes
- 4 tablespoon of brown sugar
Preperation
- Preheat the oven to 200 ° C.
- Peel the bananas and prick the vanilla pods lengthwise in them.
- Then cut 4 large rectangles of baking paper and place a banana on each.
- Drizzle with the juice of the limes.
- Sprinkle with brown sugar and strips of butter.
- Finally, close the papillotes and bake for about 20 minutes.
Bananas are easy to take anywhere. They are most often eaten raw, as a snack, dessert or breakfast. This fruit can also enhance a large number of recipes.
For example, we will eat them: in fresh fruit salads, sliced in yoghurt and breakfast cereals or even crushed, in muffins, cakes, sweet breads, pancake makers, clafoutis, crumbles, etc.
You are now properly informed about the benefits of bananas. So, to you, how do you prefer it? Tell us in the comments.
