MY PEACE of nutrition - Bananas

I want to be more aware of what I am eating and why I should eat certain foods.

I eat too much processed food, i.e., frozen dinners, take out, potato chips. .

 

The easiest way to permanently change your diet; is change it moderately over time.

Anything done drastically, will not last.

So instead of forcing myself to eat ONLY fruit, I will add a piece of fruit per week.

Last week it was an apple a day.

 

This week it's bananas.

 

A banana a day is a must have, according to "The Healthy Food Directory" by Michael Van Straten.

 

Why?

One banana contains just over a quarter of the daily requirement of vitamin B6

A banana a day is highly recommended to replenish vitamin B6 because the vitamin is water soluble, meaning it dissolve in water and cannot be stored by the body. Excess amounts of vitamin B6 are flushed out of the body through urine. Since the body cannot store these vitamins, they need to be replenished daily.
B6 benefits

Top Five Benefits of Vitamin B6:

 1. Vitamin B6 helps maintain healthy brain function.

 2. The vitamin plays a key role in synthesizing antibodies that are needed to fight various diseases.

 3.Vitamin B6 helps in maintaining normal nerve function. It plays a crucial role in the synthesis of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin. It also assists normal nerve cell communication.

 4. The vitamin helps in forming red blood cells.

 5. It helps in breaking down and digesting proteins. So, the higher the protein intake, the greater is the requirement of vitamin B6.

 Bananas have high potassium content, which helps prevent menstural cramps. They are good for the treatment of both constipation and diarrhea, as well as helping to eliminate cholesterol from the body.

 

I got to admit I don't like to eat bananas by themselves.

I don't like the taste. So, what I've done is mix one in my smoothie.

I've been eating smoothies for years. It's my breakfast of choice during the week.

I stopped making them for a while because
I became "addicted" to having coffee and sausage egg sandwich from Starbucks.

But I am back on track

 

My STRAWBERRY-BANANA smoothie recipe

1 banana *The riper the banana, the more flavor

1 cup of strawberries* I buy fresh strawberries, cut off the stem, place in plastic bag and place in freezer. It's best to use frozen strawberries (or any choice berry)

1 scoop of protein powder

ice to your liking

Equal sugar - optional *I use 5 packets! Yikes! I will gradually wean myself from the sugar :0)

1/2 cup of milk *I feel like my smoothie has a little more substance

 

 

 Benefits of a smoothie

Quick to make

Provides a range of nutrional benefits

Strawberries promote good eyesightand decrease symptoms of arthritis

 

I have not ventured into making other types of smoothies because I am a creature of habit.

But if you are interested, there are a ton of different smoothies you can make. Just the search the internet, for instance here Smoothie Web has tons of recipes.

 

Until next time, have a great week.

 

 

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