We all know that avocado is a healthy fruit and its delicious pulp should be a part of our diet. But, what about avocado seeds? It is known that in some parts of the world avocado seeds are used medicinally for thousands of years. But, is it safe to eat these seeds?
In this article we will deal with avocado seeds and their impact on our health. You will find out whether you can eat these seeds or they can be harmful, but first we will tell you some things about avocado.
More about Avocado
Avocado is a fruit of avocado tree (Persea Americana) that is native to Mexico. Today avocados are cultivated in Mediterranean and tropical climates all around the world. Avocado is actually a large berry that contains a single seed. Avocado has a green-skinned body that can be spherical or egg-shaped. The flesh of avocado is usually served raw, but you can also cook it.
Avocado is very popular in vegetarian cuisine because it can be a great substitution for meat due to its high fat content. Avocado is rich in vitamins and minerals and it has many health benefits for people. It is proved that regular consumption of avocado can lower blood cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases. But, this fruit is high in calories, so you should be careful if you want to lose weight.
We all eat the flesh of avocado, but can we also eat avocado seeds? Read on and you will find out.
Are Avocado Seeds Safe to Eat?
Some experts consider that avocado seeds are the healthiest part of this fruit, while others don’t recommend eating avocado seeds. It is true that avocado seeds contain phenolic compounds which can reduce the risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease, but some additional researches have to be done to determine whether avocado seeds are safe to eat or not.
Although avocado seeds may have many health benefits for people, they also contain some compounds that are not good for humans. Small amount of avocado seeds is not toxic, but these seeds should not be a regular part of a human diet. It is best to combine avocado seeds with some other ingredients and to prepare healthy juice or smoothie. These seeds are sometimes considered the most nutrient part of avocado, but you need to dry them, chop them into pieces and blend them. This way you will get a powder-like substance that you can use for baking or you can mix it into smoothies. Adding powdered avocado seeds to your diet you will get an extra nutritional and energy boost.
There is a way to make avocado seeds edible. You should only dry them out and pulverize them in a food processor. You can put the dried avocado seeds in a blender and let them turn into a powder. I
t is best to store the pulverized avocado seeds in an airtight plastic container in the fridge. If you don’t have time to dry avocado seeds and to dice them, you can simply put them in a heavy-duty plastic bag. You can use a towel and place it over the bag and then you can smash avocado seeds with a hammer. Your avocado seeds will turn into small pieces that you can put in a food processor. If you want to make smoothie it is best to add sweet fruits in it, because the powder of avocado seeds may have a bitter taste.
Also, it is recommended to use ingredients that have strong flavors, such as bananas or pineapples.
Summary
As you have seen, more researches have to be done to determine if avocado seeds are completely safe to eat. It is known that avocado seeds contain some compounds that can be harmful.
If you want to try avocado seeds, you should turn them into powder and add them to your smoothies. This way avocado seeds may be beneficial for your diet. But, you should use only a small amount of these seeds until more research is done. Until then you should stick to eating the avocado flesh that is creamy, delicious and also full of nutrients.
