Negative impact of avocado consumption
Negative impact of avocado consumption
(@The Puffingtonpost) - The tasty nutrient all-star on our table has many beneficial effects on our health and is popular due to its high nutrient value. The stone fruit contains disease-fighting antioxidants. Avocados are packed with nearly 20 vitamins and minerals, such as:
- Folate which is a B vitamin that helps our cells to repair and is very important during pregnancy
- Potassium which supports us to maintain healthy blood pressure levels
- Lutein and Zeaxanthin which strengthen our eyes
The superfood is not only a good source of B vitamins, which help to fight off diseases and infections, avocados also contain valuable C and E vitamins. Other of its plant chemicals are supposed to support the prevention of cancer.
The list of healthy benefits is long. The amount of heart-healthy monounsaturated fatty acids is one is biggest advantages. Eating avocados lowers heart disease risk factors. The fruit is low in sugar. Its fiber makes you fell full for a longer time. This brings triggers benefits for weight loss and metabolic health.
So what for a negative impact could the consumption of avocados carry?
Our demand of the superfood carries a huge disadvantage at least in Mexico. To gain acreage for the growing demand illegal logging of forests takes places on a large scale. The strong demand and the rising prices of the stone fruit are the reasons farmers are increasingly picking up growing avocados.
Each year 1,500 to 4,000 hectares of forest are cleared to make room for avocado fields.
What is your opinion? Has your consumption of avocados risen significantly in the last years? Will such a development cause a change in your habits and might reduce your intake? Please leave your comments below and follow me on Steemit.
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Your Puffin
Every one says about the positive sides of avocado but you have pointed out about a negative impact of it. Thanks for your knowledge.
Spreading some love with that avocado! Thanks for this @doitvoluntarily!
So wait, they are clearing trees to grow trees? (Sorry I couldn't resist) :-)
Photo Credit
I know you are just kidding @arnoldz61 but an avocado farm cannot be considered as a (rain) forest or anything close to it. Also with the farm a high use of agricultural chemicals begins - so the whole ecosystem is turned up-side down on these grounds.
Photo Credit
Aren't a large number of avocados grown in California? or Arizona?
Good question. I live in Germany and we certainly depend on imports. I just looked up the stats in the US.
Source: USDA Economic Research Service
So roughly 7/8 of the US consumption is satisfied by exports. The only noteworthy state regarding the production size is supposed to be California. The consumption in the USA nowaday is around four times higher than around twenty years ago.
This is bad news. I love avocados.
Thanks for your reply kendewitt! And they are so nutrient rich but I can say for myself I will try to go more with local fruits rather than all kind of superfood imports.
Great post. I had some of the worse ever stomach pains I have experienced with eating too many avocados.
I was eating 1 per day and we would normally also have Chipotle with avocado on the weekends. After around 3 months one day I had the most incredibly painful pains that actually dropped me to the floor and I couldn't stop the pain for about 30 minutes. The pain was so severe I googled to try and find out what it was. I had no luck so I had to slowly eliminate everything I was eating until I found the culprit.
After I finally found it was the avocado doing the damage I was very surprised and searched for an answer to see if anyone else was experiencing the same symptoms. Turns out it can be related to being allergic to Latex. I stopped eating it for over a year but now if I have it once a week I am ok with it. But that pain oh that pain, something I will never forget,lol.
Thank you sharing the negative impact you experienced with the stone fruit @cryptoiskey!
Allergies can be very complex to diagnose. Were you basically allergic "from one day to another" after eating avocados without any issues for years?
I just grow my own avocados. They do pretty well in pots
Say it ain't so! I started eating avocado only five or six years ago and I LOVE them. My girlfriend turned me on to them. Though I don't consume a lot of avocado, i'll now think about this post when eating them.
i love advocado's and use them regularly - i am fortunate that they grow here locally in Egypt- back in the UK i was probably guilty of helping towards this, but certainly wasnt aware of this and would have looked for them grown in another country. Problem is endemic for a lot of 'fruits/veg' due to globalisation and demand. Causes huge carbon footprinting and like here deforestation, - again farmers markets and local buying in season where possible.
Hello @ladypenelope1,
Many thanks for your answer! It is lovely to receive a response from Egypt on this topic! Yes, certainly the demand of our globalised world is causing this and agriculture is supposed to be one of the main causes of deforestation. (Before researching for/writing this) I personally never linked it to avocados. Typically you would think of soy, oil palm, rice, coffee, rice and crops. You are fortunate in Egypt indeed to be able to grow avocados there and not to depend on long exports.
Best Regards,
Puffin
Hmmmm. Tough one. Avocados are so good. My mother recently broke her hip, but they wouldn't operate on her as her potassium levels were low (she'd been taking andapamide for her blood pressure, which apparently is a potassium depleter). I found out that Avocados have more potassium than bananas, which are well-known for having a lot of potassium in them. Avocados are definitely a superfood. what a shame though that they are having to deplete forests to do that. I have a green page on Facebook that has a post in it from a couple of months back, that shows that India planted 1 million trees in a day as part of green effort. Maybe Mexico should do this too in other areas?
Hi paulpuk2000,
I am glad you found a good potassium source for your mother! Yes, Mexico needs to implement green efforts in order fight these headwinds or in order to prevent illegal actions by farmers. At the moment the country is certainly not doing enough.
Many thanks for your reply and your personal story!
I eat 1/4 of 1 avocando in my salad and I dont eat it every day either.It isnt supposed to be consumed in quantity
Thanks for response @elenirossidou! Same as me I do not eat huge quantities as the fruit is very filling.