Avocado (Persea americana) may help to protect the liver from damage, according to new research from Japan.
"Besides offering taste and nutrition, avocados seem to improve liver health," said Hirokazu Kawagishi, professor of applied biological chemistry, at Shizuoka University. "I have begun eating avocados more myself, because of this study." He advocated that people should try to eat an avocado a day.
Besides avocados, 8 other fruits showed a liver-protective effect:
Researchers are now analyzing those fruits to determine if there are chemicals within the fruit that can explain its protective effect and whether those compounds can be exploited to develop drugs to treat disease. They also plan to recruit human volunteers to determine if adding avocado to the diet can effect the outcomes of patients with liver disease.
A spokesperson for the California Avocado Info Bureau, Jeanette LeBlanc, said that in the US the average person eats about one avocado every two weeks, although the numbers of people who are eating avocados continues to rise.
The 2000 International Chemical Congress of Pacific Basin Societies in Honolulu, Hawaii, December, 2000
Also, the researchers in this case are looking to identify the active compounds in the fruit so that they can be produced as a drug or a supplement. However, this is NOT the best way to get these nutrients. It is nearly always better to get them by using the WHOLE food, since there are likely many beneficial substances working synergistically.
Also, I would not advise eating avocados or ANY food every day, as that will increase the likelihood of becoming sensitive to it.
Watermelon, which was also found to be protective of the liver, is also a good source of the carotenoid lycopene, as discussed in another article this week.
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