TEN THINGS ABOUT AVOCADO

 

The avocado is native to south central Mexico, it is classified as a member of the Lauraceae family of flowering plants. The fruit of the plant, also called avocado, is botanically a large berry that contains a single, very large seed.

Avocados have long been a part of the Mexican diet. Archaeologists have found evidence of avocado consumption dating back nearly 10,000 years in central Mexico.

Avocados are still predominantly grown in Mexico, but can now be found much further south, as well as in the Caribbean, California, and now Israel and southern Europe.

 Avocados are a fruit, not a vegetable.

Another name for the avocado is palta, in Chile and Peru it is known like that.

The first Spanish explorers who arrived in the Americas could not pronounce ahuacatl correctly, so they began to call it avocado. This is the true origin of the word guacamole.

The Hass avocado is the most common avocado and is the only avocado that grows 365 days a year.

One tree can produce between 170 and 400 avocados a year.

Avocado as a rule contains about 325 calories and 25 grams of healthy polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats.

Avocados are the fruit with the highest protein content.

When the avocado is picked, it takes between 5 and 10 days to ripen. Keeping it in the fridge slows down the ripening process a bit, while putting it in a paper bag with a ripe apple will speed up the process.

There are many avocado-based creams that can help reduce skin damage from ultraviolet radiation.

Its regular consumption helps reduce bad cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood.