Bananas

[SassyLassie]

I just received this in my e-mail and wanted to share.

BANANAS TO YOU FRIEND,  
A professor at CCNY for a physiological psych class told his class about bananas.. He said the expression 'going bananas' is from the effects of bananas on the brain. Read on:

After reading this, you'll never look at a banana in the same way again.

Bananas contain three natural sugars - sucrose, fructose and glucose combined with fiber. A banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy.

Research has proven that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout. No wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world's leading athletes.

But energy isn't the only way a banana can help us keep fit. It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.

Depression:According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

PMS:Forget the pills - eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.

Anemia:High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.

Blood Pressure:This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it perfect to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit's ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

Brain Power:200 students at a Twickenham (Middlesex) school were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

Constipation:High in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.

Hangovers:One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.

Heartburn:Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.

Morning Sickness:Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.

Mosquito bites:Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.

Nerves:Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.

Overweightand at work? Studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and crisps. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods every two hours to keep levels steady.

Ulcers:The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronicler cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

Temperature control:Many other cultures see bananas as a 'cooling' fruit that can lower both the physical and em otional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand , for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool temperature.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): Bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer tryptophan.

Smoking &Tobacco Use:Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking. The B6, B12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.

Stress:Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalize the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body's water balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be rebalanced with the help of a high-potassium banana snack.

Strokes:According to research in The New England Journal of Medicine, eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%!

Warts:Those keen on natural alternatives swear that if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. Carefully hold the skin in place with a plaster or surgical tape!

So, a banana really is a natural remedy for many ills. When you compare it to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the carbohydrate, three times the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best val ue foods around So maybe its time to change that well-known phrase so that we say, 'A banana a day keeps the doctor away!'

PASS IT ON TO YOUR FRIENDS
PS: Bananas must be the reason monkeys are so happy all the time! I will add one here; want a quick shine on our shoes?? Take the INSIDE of the banana skin, and rub directly on the shoe...polish with dry cloth. Amazing fruit !

[Paxiled]

The reasons athletes eat bananas is because they contain less acid than most fruits -- hard to exercise with a lot of gas bubbling up!  The tryptophan in bananas is miniscule, otherwise you'd get tired after eating one.  Compare the tiredness that follows drinking milk or eating cheese or turkey, which are very high in tryptophan, to eating a banana.  It is also quite low in protein, so while it has a little, it has very little.  And don't knock apples -- they contain quercitin, more useful fiber than bananas, more other bioflavanoids, in fact all kinds of useful stuff.  Both, in other words, are important foods, but both, like all fruit, should be eaten in moderation due to the high sugar content.  But all in all, a great contribution here -- and you forgot you can smoke it, too (boy, that dates me, doesn't it?).

[margypops]

Oh boy you are a fund of knowledge ...I am going out and buy a 'bunch 'of bananas can you overdo it by eating too many...I like em fried with honey and cream...okay okay   well knock off the cream...... I make a few chicken curries and we slice up bananas on top..oh boy got to tell the husband to use it for his shoes,if he gets a wart dont forget the Banana.....seriously they are truly a super food , we used to eat a lot but recently have only had a couple a week. got to up the anti.....

[SassyLassie]

Except for the extra calories, Margy, I don't think you can over dose on eating them.

LOL, no need to knock off the cream, I use it, and actually, if eaten in moderation, no problem with it, I hate skim milk, it tastes awful and to me, is devoid of nutrients. I drink whole and proud of it, LOL.

He He, have fun with the bananas.

Paxil, I received this article in an e-mail, so I don't know who wrote it, but, I felt it was interesting to pass along, a person can always find some good out of things like this. :-) LOL, I did not know you could smoke a banana!!

[Paxiled]

Well, you can't really smoke it.  It was a joke song by Donovan, remember?  Mellow Yellow?  Just making fun of the Sixties drug culture.  And the best milk is not only whole milk, but unhomogenized whole milk with the cream on top.  It separates the fat from the milk so not so much cholesterol is absorbed.  Of course, I don't recommend dairy for adult humans, but if you're going to drink it, I say go for the whole thing.  Personally, I'm a big banana person -- eat one every other day, an apple in the days between.  I'm an equal opportunity apple banana guy.

[margypops]

well after this article you kindly put up for us good habits are going on in my house we are now munching on 2 bananas a day ...even the name sounds like fun..and isnt it wonderful food for invalids and children who are picky eaters ....

[SassyLassie]

Well, after all this banana talk and apple talk, I am going to go to the store today and get both. It is high time I start eating more fruit, and I love them both.

I wish I could find milk that way, you are talking about "raw milk" right? I had it one time only, and it was wonderful.

LOL, oh yes, Paxil I remember that song now, I had forgotten. He He.

[Paxiled]

No, not raw, that's illegal in the US unless you buy it direct from certain certified dairy farms.  Homogenization is mixing the milk and cream together; unhomogenized is not mixing them together, so the cream stays on top.  Usually if you buy goat milk, which is closer to human milk anyway, you'll find it unhomogenized.  It's hard to find; here, there's a  company in Pennsylvania that sells it in glass bottles like the old days and you return them for deposit, but with Whole Foods having driven out the small health food stores it's hard to find now.  

[Myown]

Eating a banana before you go to bed helps you to sleep well too. The only thing I find, though its fiber, anymore than one will keep me from going to the bathroom. And so for that reason I have to limit myself to not eating them as often as I would like.

[Paxiled]

Own opinion is, too much sugar for just before bed.  But each to their own.

[lilypotter]

Hey SassyLassie thank you for the information about banana. I never used to eat banana. But now it became part of my diet and i could see the change. Thanks. Nice information.

[Cherie762]

not much to add just this a peanut butter and sliced banana sandwich is very good and it gives you the missing protein!