Eating avocados can maintain blood sugar levels and promote balanced nutrition

How healthy is the avocado really?

"Avocados are just as healthy as other vegetables, but they can't compete with cabbage, for example. Their high fat content gives them a special role, because we can replace traditional bread toppings such as sausage or cheese with an avocado spread. This saves our body from not only saturated fats, but also from too much salt. Avocados are also eaten raw, which preserves sensitive vitamins such as folic acid," explains Dagmar von Cramm.

Avocados are said to have many health-promoting properties; they keep you full for a long time, keep blood sugar levels constant, ensure that cholesterol and triglyceride levels remain low, thus reducing the risk of a stroke or heart attack. Below are some key nutritional pointers about butter fruit that you should know.

Unsaturated fatty acids contained in avocados (for example the enzyme lipase) can help the body break down fat.

B vitamins, vitamin K, vitamin E and vitamin C, which are contained in avocados, can improve the absorption of nutrients in the body.

Potassium in avocados helps support healthy nerve and muscle cells, lowers blood pressure and thus promotes positive heart health.

Avocados are rich in folic acid, which can have a positive effect on mother and child during pregnancy.

The fibre contained in avocados promotes digestion and positive intestinal health.

Antioxidants found in avocados have a cell-protecting effect.

Lutein from avocados is particularly good for the eyes and can prevent diseases such as cataracts.

What you should look for when buying avocados

The production of avocados not only requires a lot of water, but cultivation is also a highly political issue (just google the ‘avocado war’). It is why you should make sure to buy avocados that grow in a local region. Organic quality is also essential when it comes to avoiding pesticides and ensuring that avocados are grown in the most "environmentally friendly" way possible. Avocados are often sold pre-ripe in supermarkets and a lot of energy is required to store (and ripen) the fruit in this way. It is therefore better to buy avocados as unripe as possible and leave them at home for a few days instead. It is important to note, avocados not only require an extremely large amount of water to grow, but also a lot of energy. They are therefore not "sustainable". So make sure that when you do buy it, you try to use it without waste.

How often can I eat them?

According to Dagmar von Cramm, they should be a regular part of your diet. "This is particularly beneficial for vegans. The combination of avocado and tomato is particularly good. And the bread on which the avocado is spread doesn't need any extra butter," she adds. "Avocados are very well tolerated and suitable at any time of day." The buttery fruits can be eaten as an avocado sandwich for breakfast, in a salad for lunch or as a dip with tortilla chips as a snack in the evening.

Can you eat avocado pits?

The pit of an avocado cannot be eaten. However, you can use it to grow your own plant. To do this, stick two or three skewers into the side of the pit and place a bowl of water underneath. Thanks to the supports, the core can lie in the water and germinate. Important: The bowl should always be kept in a warm place, for example on a windowsill above a radiator.

How to store avocados correctly

You are probably familiar with this problem: the avocado is either too hard or too soft and they quickly become overripe. To get it to the perfect consistency, it is important that you store it correctly. Fruit such as bananas or apples should always be stored separately, as they ripen other foods more quickly. Also store avocados in a cool, dark place. As soon as it feels soft on the outside, it should be eaten.

3 quick and delicious recipes with avocado

Hardly any other food is as versatile as an avocado. Whether as a spread, dip, in pizza dough, salad or from the oven: the fruit is extremely versatile and is perfect for vegetarian and vegan cuisine. Here are three simple recipes to try out.