Bananas – A Healthy Choice

Do you like bananas?  If you do, it’s the perfect fruit to choose under any conditions.

Bananas are one of the most versatile fruits that you can eat as it is, add it to a fruit salad or use it in baked goods.

The United States has their bananas imported.  The main countries are Guatemala, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Mexico.

They are full of nutrients like fiber, potassium, vitamin B6 and vitamin C.  They help with controlling blood sugar and weight loss.

Most of us know the various stages of the ripeness of a banana from very green to super soft with a lot of brown.  Do the different stages have different health benefits?  Let’s look.

There are five stages of ripeness for the mighty banana and different stages do have different benefits.

Underripe (dark to medium green) – the most fiber and improves blood sugar control.

Barely ripe (firm with light green at the top) – less sugar so helps with blood sugar and lower in carbs.

Ripe (medium yellow, few or no brown spots) – best balance of starch and sweetness

Very Ripe (soft, not mushy, mix of yellow and brown spots) – this is the “sweetened up stage”, takes less time to digest, great for smoothies and shakes.

Overripe (mushy, highly spotted or completely brown) – highest in sugar, vegan, fat-free alternative to butter and oils in baking.

The less ripe bananas are better to help control blood sugar and for help with weight loss but overall the banana is a great snack to add nutrients and sweetness to your diet.

Private Home Health Care buys bananas when they are still green and that way we can eat and use them in smoothies and baked goods at any of their stages of ripeness!