Avocado, like kale, is known to be a “superfood”: the sheer amount of nutrients it contains is enough to completely change your day, whether you eat the green fruit itself or a smoothie containing it. But something people often overlook is the big hurdle to its immediate consumption — the seeds.
As scientists search for the next big superfood to become a trend, everyone should focus on improving the kind they already know. Research now shows that the pits of an avocado are just as valuable, if not more, than the fruit that encases them.
Not many people know about these secret benefits, probably because avocado seeds are so hard to crack that the majority of avocado lovers don’t care about them. But nothing worthwhile comes easy, and the benefits of avocado seeds are worth it.
Daily Superfood Love reveals something that might convince even the laziest of us: Avocado seeds contain more than 70% of the fruit’s total amount of antioxidants. Thus, the fleshy part that we are used to eating is only a small part of the nutrients that we are supposed to get from an avocado. Here are some examples of what seeds can do for you.
Arthritis and joint pain
Daily Superfood Love reports that the seeds (and skin) of avocados contain catechins and procyanidins, which are antioxidants that reduce inflammation, swelling, and stiffness in the joints—a great weapon against arthritis.
digestion
According to Daily Superfood Love, avocado seeds are high in fiber, which helps you feel more satisfied with your meals overall. Plus, they help keep your blood sugar in check, which will hopefully eliminate that daily urge to gorge on all the chocolate in your house.
skin and hair
The antioxidants in avocado seeds can repair damage to your skin cells and help build collagen, says Daily Superfood Love. What’s more, Step to Health says it’s great for dry hair with dandruff. The combination of the contents of the seeds and castor oil can help make your hair shinier.
How do you take advantage of all these advantages ?
So how exactly do you get inside this hard shell? First, remove the pit from the rest of the avocado half by inserting a knife into it to secure it. Turn the knife over and pull to remove the seeds without damaging the pulp. Daily Superfood Love then recommends going at the seed with a sharp, hard stab and then chopping it into pieces, but this technique can be difficult and dangerous.
LiveStrong recommends putting the seeds in a food processor instead—though again, you’ll need something very powerful and reliable to get the job done. The powder obtained from the chopped seeds can then be used in smoothies, as in the example above. Improve your health also suggests grinding the seeds and using the result in infusions.
A quick final note: Since your body may not be used to consuming avocado seeds, you may experience some “upset stomach” at first, Science Update reports. However, the seed poses absolutely no health risks, quite the opposite. So go ahead and be sure to share its benefits with all your friends by sharing this article !