As written on verywellhealth.com, avocados help reduce cholesterol levels and strengthen heart health
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They are a good source of “healthy” monounsaturated fats. Studies have shown that eating avocados, especially instead of saturated fats like butter and cheese, reduces the risk of heart disease.
One avocado contains 10 grams of fiber, which can help lower cholesterol levels and the risk of heart disease. According to clinical dietitian Judy Simon, the soluble fiber in avocados can form a gel that binds with bile acids and “bad” cholesterol in the small intestine, helping to remove them from the body.
Too much LDL, or “bad cholesterol,” can build up in the arteries and cause chest pain or heart attacks.
Can avocados help you sleep better?
Participants in the study who ate an avocado daily experienced improved sleep health and duration. “This was a cardiovascular health study, so the sleep benefit became more reliable as it appeared as an unexpected secondary outcome in a well-designed randomized controlled trial,” John Saito, a representative of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and pulmonologist at Orange County Children’s Hospital (CHOC), told Verywell in an email.
Avocados are not sleeping pills, but they contain sleep-supporting nutrients such as magnesium, potassium, and healthy fats, explained J. Saito. “Regular, balanced meals with a mix of healthy fats, complex carbohydrates, and proteins will help maintain your circadian rhythm,” said J. Saito.
The effects of daily avocado consumption
A six-month study funded by the Avocado Nutrition Center involved 969 U.S. adults with abdominal obesity who typically ate no more than two avocados per month:
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- One group ate an avocado daily, while the other ate two or fewer per month. Researchers did not ask either group to change anything in their diet.
- To assess heart health, researchers used a modified American Heart Association “Life’s Essential 8” score. A higher score indicates better cardiovascular health and reflects factors such as diet, physical activity, and quality sleep.
- Daily avocado consumption did not improve the overall heart health score but improved diet quality, sleep, and blood lipid levels.
“These data suggest that to see a noticeable improvement in the ‘Life’s Essential 8’ score, quite significant improvements in most cardiovascular health components are needed,” Janhavi Damani, the study’s lead author, told Verywell in an email. She added that achieving “meaningful cardiovascular health improvements” requires gradual and long-term dietary and lifestyle changes.
How to include avocados in a healthy diet
Avocados can be part of a healthy, fiber-rich diet that helps support good sleep. However, they are not suitable for everyone, especially people with certain dietary restrictions.
“Eating an avocado daily would not be beneficial for someone who is allergic to avocados or follows a low-potassium diet, a low-FODMAP diet, or a very low-fat diet under healthcare supervision,” Los Angeles-based registered dietitian and Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics representative Jamie Mok told Verywell in an email.
She added that other foods, such as walnuts, cherry juice, fatty fish like salmon, and some herbal teas, may provide similar health benefits, especially for sleep. However, more scientific research is needed in this area.
If you want to eat more avocados, try adding them to salad dressings, eating them with eggs, baked potatoes, blending them into smoothies, or pairing them with sandwiches. However, as J. Simon states, it is not necessary to eat them daily or spend more money than you can afford.
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“I don’t think one product can change everything,” said J. Simon.
