Eating ONE avocado a week

 

Eating ONE avocado a week reduces the risk of heart disease by up to FIVE, research has found that

• Surveys of more than 100,000 people who get a whole avocado every week reduce their risk by 21%
• Harvard researchers now recommend having it on toast instead of butter
• Avocados have been around for thousands of years, preserving their high value.

Light green fruit is rich in healthy fats that lower bad cholesterol and prevent plaque formation, say Harvard University researchers.

Now they recommend that people get their avocado and toast in the morning instead of butter, margarine or cheese.

Avocados have been around for thousands of years, accustomed to enjoying crumbs and fries and defending their value.

But older generations have been reluctant to enter with 'Avo on toast', which could cost more than £ 15 at restaurants.

It has even been cited as an example of why millennials have struggled to enter the real estate market.

Participants who ate a lot - men who ate more than 4,200 calories and women who ate 3,500 - or very small - 800 and 500, respectively - were excluded because being overweight or obese could cause increased heart rate.

Overall, the results showed that those who ate avocados once a week were 16 percent more likely to suffer from any type of heart disease than those who had never eaten fruit or had rarely eaten it.

Avocados regularly ate 21% less risk of heart disease, when the arteries became blocked. It is one of the most dangerous risk factors for stroke and heart attack.

The use of avocados doubled on average during the 30 years of research.

The researchers found that, at the same time, those who switched to healthy low-fat diets to buy avocados also saw greater health benefits.

Changing the daily diet of margarine, butter, egg, yogurt, cheese or bacon was associated with a lower risk of 16 to 22 percent of heart disease.

Pacheco, a Harvard researcher who led the study, asked doctors to begin telling patients to 'substitute for certain spreads and high fat diets' on fruit.

The American Heart Association said the findings were "promising".

Cheryl Anderson, chair of the AHA's Council on Epidemiology and Prevention, said: 'Although there is no single diet that is the solution to healthy eating regularly, this study is proof that avocados have potential health benefits.

'This is promising because it is a popular, affordable, desirable and easy-to-include food that most Americans eat at home and in restaurants.'

Avocados contain many omega fatty acids that reduce bad cholesterol and prevent plaque buildup on the walls of blood vessels.

Harvard researchers have identified a particular one - omega 9 - which can improve blood pressure and inflammation.

In total the study included 14,000 cases of cardiovascular disease including 9,100 cases of coronary heart disease and 5,200 strokes.

There were 722 heart attacks - such as heart attacks and strokes - for an average of 100,000 years of life among people who have never eaten or rarely ate avocados.

By comparison, there were 665 out of every 100,000 people in the group who ate at least one avocado each week.

In terms of heart disease, the rate was 550 for those who did not eat avocados, compared with 480 for those who ate at least once a week.

But there was no significant difference in stroke rates between teams (171 vs 182 per 100,000).