Do you add bananas to your smoothies? You might want to rethink that. New research shows that bananas could be interfering with the benefits of other ingredients.
Smoothie recipes that include heart healthy flavanols should be enjoyed banana free. New research from University of California, Davis, shows that bananas reduce your ability to absorb flavanols by 84%!
What are flavanols?
These are natural compounds that improve heart and brain health found in foods like, cocoa power, blueberries, blackberries, apples, pears and grapes. They’re part of a group of plant nutrients called polyphenols. Flavanols are bioactive compounds known for supporting heart and brain health, by improving blood flow, supporting memory function, and reducing inflammation when consumed regularly. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends 400 to 600 milligrams of flavanols daily for cardiometabolic health.
What about those bananas?
Researchers found that adding one banana to a smoothie reduced flavanol levels in the blood by 84% when compared to fruit smoothies that did not contain bananas.
Lead author Javier Ottaviani says,
“We were really surprised to see how quickly adding a single banana decreased the level of flavanols in the smoothie and the levels of flavanol absorbed in the body. This highlights how food preparation and combinations can affect the absorption of dietary compounds in foods.”
Other food combinations to avoid
If you are trying to increase calcium absorption then avoid eating iron-rich foods or caffeine at the same time. Trying to increase your iron? Then avoid tea or coffee with your meal. Getting your flavonols from eating dark chocolate then don’t have it with dairy milk which also interferes with the absorption.
Bananas
Bananas are heart healthy fruit because of the fibre and anti-oxidants. They are a great post-exercise recovery snack and can be added baking to replace eggs.
However, to get the full nutritional value make your smoothies without them.
Change your mind, change your health,
Shayla
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