By Dominick H.
Superfood Sunday is a weekly series where project: CLEAN FOOD features the absolute best foods to nourish – and naturally heal – your body. To help you start each week right, we reveal the one must-have food to add to your diet. Enjoy, and share your inspiration with us by tagging #projectCLEANFOOD on Instagram.
Oh, avocados. This amazingly healthy–and very unique–fruit is filled with all sorts of vitamins, minerals and nutrients. It's different from other types of fruit in that it's not high in carbs (major plus), but it is high in heart-healthy fats that are very purifying, therapeutic and revitalizing for the entire body. It's also one of the most versatile foods, best eaten raw, and super-effective in oil form. So we're dedicating our Sunday to this amazing little plant. And here's why.
The avocado was originally cultivated thousands of years ago in Central Mexico and eventually spread throughout much of Central and South America: it is very much a staple in many dishes in that part of the world. And of course through trade and much import-export of goods, avocados can be found in many parts of the world where the climate has a Mediterranean or Tropical feel to it. This beautiful plant takes about 7-15 years to produce its first set of fruits. But as soon as it starts, the avocado tree will yield very abundantly. So it is easy to see how the avocado tree has been around for quite some time.
On the nutrition side, the avocado is packed with lots of vitamin C, vitamin K, fiber, folate, protein, beta-carotene, vitamin E, and a very special plant pigment (carotenoid) called lutein. Lutein is amazing for strengthening all of the functions of the eye; it also great for returning the eye to health after experiencing a variety of ailments or dysfunctions.
On the healing side, avocado is great for returning elasticity to the skin and improving the quality of the tissues and cells in the body. Yes, it will reduce the signs of aging over years of routine consumption and application on the skin. We've even written about that here and here. Avocado has also been associated with improving heart health. It's also amazing for digestion. It can relieve all sorts of complications associated with digestion like constipation, colitis, acid reflux and a slew of other ailments. Cancer sufferers tend to gravitate towards avocado as it is high in a variety of amino acids and other nutrients that help manage and potentially even reduce the power of cancer in the body. According to a 2013 study in the Food Science and Nutrition Journal, avocados have a significant amount of biological plant compounds and amino acids that are known to have a wide variety of anti-cancer properties.
While avocados are a very filling food, they are also an essential weight loss management tool. They can be easily incorporated into the diet to help promote weight loss, mainly because they temper the body's cravings by nourishing us adequately and in a balanced way.
Simple. Easy. Clean.
