We’ve always known our avocado toast breakfasts have been a healthy (and tasty) option, but now a new study has revealed that eating just one or two servings of avocado a week could reduce the risk of heart disease by a fifth.
Experts found that just one avocado a week cut the risk of coronary heart disease by 21% compared to people who did not eat avocados.
If you replace half a serving per day of margarine, butter, egg, yoghurt, cheese or processed meats with the equivalent amount of avocado, a 16-22% lower chance of heart disease was seen.
Technically a fruit, avocados are an incredible source of nutrition. Filled with dietary fibre, healthy monounsaturated fats and key vitamins and minerals such as vitamins C, E, K and magnesium, this study has proved why they should remain a staple food in our diets.
The new study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association (JAMA), included 68,786 women from the NHS Nurses’ Health Study and 41,701 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study.
For the research, people were asked about their diets and filled in food frequency questionnaires at the start of the study, then every four years.
During a 30-year follow-up, 9,185 cases of heart attack and 5,290 strokes were recorded.
Dr Lorena Pacheco, lead author from the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health in Boston, US, said: “Our study provides further evidence that the intake of plant-sourced unsaturated fats can improve diet quality and is an important component in cardiovascular disease prevention.”
It also found that substituting half a serving a day of avocado for the equivalent amount of olive oil, nuts and other plant oils did not offer additional benefit.
No links were found between eating avocado and the risk of stroke.
Dr Cheryl Anderson, chair of the American Heart Association’s Council on Epidemiology and Prevention, said: “We desperately need strategies to improve intake of American Heart Association-recommended healthy diets — such as the Mediterranean diet — that are rich in vegetables and fruits.
“Although no one food is the solution to routinely eating a healthy diet, this study is evidence that avocados have possible health benefits.
“This is promising because it is a food item that is popular, accessible, desirable and easy to include in meals eaten … at home and in restaurants.”
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