Healthy Food Database

Banana
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There are many varieties, but in Australia the most common are the Cavendish - the everyday banana, the Lady Finger - which has a sweet lemony flavour and the Plantain or 'green banana' - intended for cooking only. Experts say bananas strengthen the stomach lining and form a barrier against noxious juices, stimulate cell growth and prevent damage from harsh stomach acids, for example in ulcerative conditions.
Category: Fruit
In Season: all year
To Buy:
Bananas mature off the plant, so choosing green fruit is not a problem. Look for bananas free of bruising and make sure the skin is not split. To eat immediately, pick fruit with a few brown spots, or buy with bright yellow skin and green tips to eat in a few days.
To Store:
Store at room temperature until ripe. To extend shelf life, ripe fruit can be wrapped in a few layers of newspaper and refrigerated. The skin may turn dark but the banana flesh should stay fresh and firm.
Tips & Tricks:
To ripen quickly, place unripe bananas in a brown paper bag with a ripe banana or an apple. Try eating a banana as a late night snack before bed, as the magnesium and melatonin levels encourage sleep. Bananas produce the natural gas ethylene, a gas which accelerates the ripening process so store bananas in a separate bowl if the rest of the fruit in your fruit bowl is already ripe.
Cooking Tips:
The banana has many uses- peel and eat, or peel and fry, bake or freeze. Eat whole, sliced or mashed. When cutting banana, use a stainless steel knife to avoid discolouration, and coat with lemon juice to prevent darkening.

Nutrition per 1 Unit:

Energy (kJ):
380
Moderate GI 55 - 70:
Fat (g):
0.1
Vitamin B6:
Potassium:
Amines:
Moderate
Glutamates:
n/a
Carbohydrates, g:
20.1
Protein (g):
1.7
Saturated Fat, g :
0.0
Vitamin C:
Magnesium:
Salicylates:
Moderate

Benefits the Following Health Conditions:*

Constipation
Insomnia
Detoxifying
Depression
Low Energy
Ulcers
High Blood Pressure
Stress
Find recipes with Banana

* This information is sourced by a qualified naturopath. It is non prescriptive and not intended as a cure for the condition. Recommended intake is not provided. It is no substitute for the advice and treatment of a professional practitioner.

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