When it comes to health benefits, bananas are difficult to beat. They are delicious, cheap, and available throughout the year. You can enjoy the fruit on its own or in a fruit salad or a milkshake. The banana stem and flowers are used as a staple ingredient in many South Indian dishes.
Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. It is one of the oldest cultivated plants. All parts of the banana plant have medicinal applications. Bananas are rich in carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins B6, and minerals like potassium and manganese which make them very nutritious. Here is a list of the amazing health benefits that the humble fruit offers.
1)Gives you instant energy: With an average of 105 calories, banana is an excellent source of instant energy. It is especially great as an after workout food because it instantly replenishes the low levels of glucose in the blood – commonly seen after a workout. Eat a banana immediately after your workout to give you that instant kick of energy.
2)Works as antacid: Bananas are also very effective antacids. They coat the inner lining of the stomach and suppress acid secretion, thereby protecting you from stomach ulcers and acidity. Acidity can also be a cause for heartburn. 3)Nutritional Value of Banana: Bananas are an excellent source of potassium. Potassium can be found in a variety of fruits, vegetables, and even meats, however, a single banana provides you with 23% of the potassium that you need on a daily basis. Potassium benefits the muscles as it helps maintain their proper working and prevents muscle spasms. In addition, recent studies are showing that potassium can help to decrease blood pressure in individuals who are potassium deficient. Potassium also reduces the risk of stroke. Bananas are also an excellent source of vitamins, including:
i. A - aids in healthy teeth, bones, soft tissue, and more
ii. B6 - aids the body's immune system, promotes brain health, heart health, and more
iii. C - aids in healing, growth of tissue, ligaments, and more
iv. D - helps the body to absorb calcium 4) Fights muscle cramps: Ever worked out so hard that your muscles cramped up? Or woken up in the night because of a painful cramp in your legs? Bananas might just be the right solution for you — it actually protects you from muscle cramps. Because of its high magnesium and potassium content, bananas are the best way to replenish the minerals in your body. It helps relax the muscles and protects you from any further episodes of leg cramps.
5)A natural pro-biotic: The pro-biotic effect of fructooligosaccharides(FOS) present in bananas helps stimulate the growth of friendly bacteria in the intestine and protect you against gastric disturbances. It is also good for your bone health too. Fermentation of FOS reduces the pH in the gut thereby promoting calcium absorption which in turn builds strong bones. Banana stem helps to eliminate fluids from the body. This diuretic effect is thought to be useful in eliminating kidney stones and also help detoxify the body. The stem is also believed to dissolve stones.
6) Gives you a good night’s sleep: Having a banana before bed can help promote sleep. The soothing effect is due to high levels of tryptophan which gets converted to serotonin in the brain. This not only improves your mood but also makes you more alert and improves your concentration levels.
7) BANANA LEAF BODY WRAP & BURN WOUNDS: Many natural treatments include banana leaf body wrap treatments in their program. After a body massage with warm oil and applying body packs the whole body is covered with banana leaf to keep the body warm, this is said to remove the toxins from the body and is said to be very relaxing. We apply banana leaf as a bandage for treating burns, as it helps to heal it faster. This treatment is still carried out today in many villages. A small burn that is caused due to fire, hot vapor & hot water can all be cured very fast, if we tie banana leaf around it.
8) Improves your sex life: The phallic shape of banana makes it the most suggestive food. But the aphrodisiac effect of banana is not just confined to its shape. It is rich in nutrients that help produce sexual hormones and also enhance male libido. It also regulates the secretion of serotonin which is known to be responsible for the euphoric feeling after intercourse.
9) Medicinal Qualities: Bananas are a highly nutritious fruit, but do they have any medicinal properties beyond their nutritive value. While it may come as a surprise to those of us accustomed to using bananas for baking and banana splits and little else, Perdue University boldly states that every part of the banana plant has medicinal properties. Among the properties cited: i) Flowers: Used to treat dysentery, ulcers, and bronchitis. Cooked, flowers are considered a good food for diabetics. Ii)Sap: Chemically, banana sap has astringent qualities. In traditional medicine, the sap is used to treat a wide variety of ailments, including leprosy, hysteria, fever, digestive disorders, hemorrhage, epilepsy, hemorrhoids, and insect bites. Iii)Roots and Seeds: Treat digestive disorders. Iv)Peel and Pulp: Scientifically shown to have both antifungal and antibiotic components. These structures have also been identified as containing the neurotransmitters nor epinephrine, serotonin and dopamine. 10) Protection against neurodegenerative diseases(Alzheimer’s disease): Researchers at Cornell University investigated the effects of apple, banana, and orange extracts on neuron cells and found that the phenol photochemical of the fruits prevented neurotoxicity on the cells. Among the three fruits, apples contained the highest content of protective antioxidants, followed by bananas then oranges. These results suggest that fresh apples, banana, and orange in our daily diet along with other fruits may protect neuron cells against oxidative stress-induced neurotoxicity and may play an important role in reducing the risk of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.
11) Hair Care: There are a number of benefits of bananas. The benefits are not just limited to health but also extend up to beauty treatments as well. It is an effective beauty treatment for skin as well as hair. Bananas are great for your hair and scalp. They improve manageability and shine while moisturizing your skin and helping to prevent and control dandruff. Banana is rich in: Potassium, Natural oils, Carbohydrates and Vitamins. This helps in softening the hair and protects the hair's natural elasticity preventing split ends and breakage. Bananas when used for hair has a number of benefits such as it creates manageability, shine, growth and controls dandruff. These are simply the best for hair and the scalp. Bananas enhance the strength, endurance and shine of the hair and can be referred to as the banana food. Most of the banana hair products are available only at expensive spas and salons. However, you can make your own banana hair conditioner or mask. Just like a facial mask enhances the glow of your face immediately, a hair mask also improves your hair dramatically. Bananas are full of vitamins and is a number one ingredient for strengthening and volumizing the hair. It helps in repairing dry and sun-damaged hair. The damages of hair that are caused to the hair by exposure to the dirt, pollution and other environmental toxins can be treated with the banana mask. Banana helps in protecting the hair from further damage. The vitamin B helps in the prevention of split ends. The type of hair that is suitable for these treatment are dry hair, dyed hair and for hair after perm. It also serves as an excellent treatment for addressing the problem of dandruff and is helpful in retaining moisture on your scalp. However, if you are allergic to any of the ingredients used in the pack then it is best to avoid using it. Bananas contain minerals and other nutrients that promote hair recovery and rehabilitation. Banana mask is perfectly suited for dry, dyed hair and for hair after the perm.
As you can see by the vitamins present, bananas aid in keeping the body healthy in a number of ways, but there is a major benefit to the bones and muscles in the human body.Because bananas contain 41% of what you need each day in vitamin B6, you will find that eating bananas helps to increase your focus and mental acuity. In addition, bananas aid in vitality, which means that you will have more energy both mentally and physically. Bananas are also an excellent food for people who want to lose weight. Although they are rather high in calories(200 per banana) and carbohydrates(51 gm), they are a great source of energy. A banana eaten before a workout can provide you with the necessary energy to complete a longer workout. Bananas provide you with many health benefits. The banana can be eaten alone or combined with a fruit salad, added to jelly, or made into a smoothie or a milkshake. They are one of the most affordable fruits in the marketplace and can be found year round nearly everywhere in the world!
