An avocado a day could keep the belly bulge away, according to a new study that says the trendy fruit redistributes body fat in a healthier way for women - via healthing_ca healthing healthyfood
To explore this issue, researchers divided 105 overweight and obese adults into two groups. Both were provided one daily meal containing nearly the same ingredients and calories, save for the addition of an avocado to the intervention group. Before and after the start of the 12-week period of observation, researchers measured the abdominal fat and glucose tolerance of participants.
They found that female subjects who ate an avocado a day experienced a decrease in the hard-to-target visceral abdominal fat surrounding their organs and a healthy reduction in the ratio of visceral to subcutaneous fat. Fat distribution remained unchanged in male participants, however, and neither gender experienced a greater ability to process glucose.
“While daily consumption of avocados did not change glucose tolerance, what we learned is that a dietary pattern that includes an avocado every day impacted the way individuals store body fat in a beneficial manner for their health but the benefits were primarily in females,” Khan said. “It’s important to demonstrate that dietary interventions can modulate fat distribution.
The team said it hopes to dig deeper into avocados by conducting a more in-depth study that provides all meals to participants, searches for additional indicators of gut and physical health and isolates the effects of the fruit on the metabolism of men and women.
“By taking our research further, we will be able to gain a clearer picture into which types of people would benefit most from incorporating avocados into their diets and deliver valuable data for health care advisers to provide patients with guidance on how to reduce fat storage and the potential dangers of diabetes.”