Millennials may be sick of being associated with avocados, but it seems the popular stoned fruit is well-worth keeping around.
A new study has found that avocados keep gut microbes happy as they help to break down fibre and reduce unhealthy acids.
So avocado on toast really is worth the hype.
The research – which was published in the Journal of Nutrition – found that people who ate avocados daily have more of the helpful microbes key to digestion, compared to those who didn’t eat them.
Researchers tested the effects of daily avocado intake on 163 overweight or obese adults between the age of 25 and 45. Half were given an avocado with a daily meal, while the others weren’t.
At the end of a twelve-week period, the avocado group had more of the microbes that we need to break down fibre and create metabolites that promote gut health than the control group.
Avocados may be high in calories and rich in fat, but they still contribute to the recommended daily intake of fibre and boast nutrients such as potassium – so are worth considering for a healthy diet.
According to the study, the daily avocado consumption also made participants’ bodies absorb less fat from the food they ate.
Hannah Holscher, senior author of the study, said: ‘Just like we think about heart-healthy meals, we need to also be thinking about gut healthy meals and how to feed the microbiota.
‘Avocados are full of nutrients, including fibre and healthy fats that help support gut health by feeding your microbiota.
‘It’s just a really nicely packaged fruit that contains nutrients that are important for health. Our work shows we can add benefits to gut health to that list.’
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