Bananas

[Jai Dee]

Wasn't sure whether to post this here or in the jokes section...

Bananas. Containing three natural sugars - sucrose, fructose and glucose combined with fiber, a banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy. Research has proven that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout.

No wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world's leading athletes.

But energy isn't the only way a banana can help us keep fit. It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.

Depression: According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

PMS: Forget the pills -- eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.

Anemia: High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.

Blood Pressure: This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it the perfect way to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit's ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

Brain Power: 200 students at a Twickenham (Middlesex) school were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

Constipation: High in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.

Hangovers: One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.

Heartburn: Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.

Morning Sickness: Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.

Mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.

Nerves: Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.

Overweight and at work? Studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and crisps. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods every two hours to keep levels steady.

Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronicler cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

Temperature control: Many other cultures see bananas as a "cooling"fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand, for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool! temperature.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): Bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer tryptophan.

Smoking: Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking. The B6, B12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.

Stress: Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalize the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body's water balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be rebalanced with the help of a high-potassium banana snack.

Strokes: According to research in "The New England Journal of Medicine," eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%!

So, a banana really is a natural remedy for many ills. When you compare it to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the carbohydrates, three times the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around.

So maybe its time to change that well-known phrase so that we say, "A banana a day keeps the doctor away!"

[natalie8]

It's all true. I knew some of those things before, but now I've learned so much more about bananas. If this was from a newspaper or magazine article, they occasionally do these types of articles to balance off the "benefits of prescription drugs" crap that we alway see.

The trick is to eat a healthy balanced diet including bananas. Now, where can I find bananas in Bangkok?

[Shola]

Love 'nana's but eating them gives me chronic gut ache

But while on Samui I did discover that a banana smoothie with a splash of Bacadi in it goes down just fine!

[Tornado]

Bananas are also very fattening, the smaller guys in the gym use them to add weight / muscle. I tried to use their diet (4 a day) and stacked on lots of weight.

In saying that though, since reading the post (thanks BTW), I will at least eat one a day.

[Ijustwannateach]

^There is a bit of controversy over eating bananas during exercise, however- there have been a few (very few) incidents of mysterious deaths of people undergoing strenuous exercise which seemed to be associated with their eating bananas. Probably not something very high risk for everyone, but something that comes to my mind since I read it in a food/nutrition book a couple of years back.

"Steven"

[Shola]

^There is a bit of controversy over eating bananas during exercise, however- there have been a few (very few) incidents of mysterious deaths of people undergoing strenuous exercise which seemed to be associated with their eating bananas.  Probably not something very high risk for everyone, but something that comes to my mind since I read it in a food/nutrition book a couple of years back.

"Steven"

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It's true! This got my interest and I did a search heres a snippet:

Typical allergen cross-reactivity associations are:

Birch pollen: apple, raw potato, carrot, celery and hazelnut

Mugwort pollen: celery, apple, peanut and kiwifruit

Ragweed pollen: melons (watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, etc) and banana

Latex: banana, avocado, kiwifruit, chestnut and papaya

Food-associated, exercise-induced anaphylaxis may occur when individuals exercise within 2-4 hours after ingesting a specific food. The individual is, however, able to exercise without symptoms, as long as the incriminated food is not consumed before exercise. The patient is likewise able to ingest the incriminated food with impunity as long as no exercise occurs for several hours after eating the food.

and the link

allergic diseases resource center

[Ijustwannateach]

I think I saw that in an "art movie" once, though...

[Ajarn]

It's all true.  I knew some of those things before, but now I've learned so much more about bananas.  If this was from a newspaper or magazine article, they occasionally do these types of articles to balance off the "benefits of prescription drugs" crap that we alway see.

The trick is to eat a healthy balanced diet including bananas.  Now, where can I find bananas in Bangkok?    

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Well, there ain't many animals stronger than a Gorilla...

I knew 'some' of those things about bananas, but did not realise they are so beneficial to health. I will buy a bunch tomorrow!

I did read somewhere a long time ago, that a drug, similar to marijuana can be made from banana skins. Bananas contain a small amount of bufotenine, a hallucinogen, known to naturally uplift your mood as well. I was not interested enough to remember 'how' the substance was made?

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We used to smoke dried banana peels when I was a kid in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood, having heard the same stories.

In our results, it wouldn't get a fly high.

[natalie8]

"art movie"? 5555555555555

[lional6]

When I was oh so young I was a Marathon runner and my coach had us eat a Banana mix during the run, as was the norm with Olympic runners.

[Ijustwannateach]

There *is* a chemical (actually called bananadine) which can be extracted from the inside skins of bananas- you have to scrape about 20 pounds of them, though, and bake them at a pretty high temp, just for a little pile of it. Supposed to be hallucinogenic on the order of mescaline.

"Steven"

[bina]

'they call her mellow yellow' by Donovan was about that no?

thanx to whome ever posted for the allergy thing

the latex one by the way is very well know; i suspect that people with sensitivity to latex cannot live in thailand since many many plants and products have it in them and some people are so sensitive that being in same room can cause anaphlactic reaction (this is also an occupational y caused disease for many doctors dentists etc that used latex glosve for many years....)

think of a 'working girl' that develops this allergy ....and she cant file for workers compensation due to exposure to a hazardous material....

[Ijustwannateach]

There *is* a chemical (actually called bananadine) which can be extracted from the inside skins of bananas- you have to scrape about 20 pounds of them, though, and bake them at a pretty high temp, just for a little pile of it.  Supposed to be hallucinogenic on the order of mescaline.

"Steven"

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Ahhh, that sounds just like what I had read many years ago... I seem to remember it was a LOT of bananas and some kind of process for getting the 'stuff' out...

Thanks Ijustwannateach

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