Banana is one of the most present fruits in the daily lives of people in Brazil, and it is very easy to find it in markets, fairs, etc.
But, do you know details about this food? That is our objective in this content: to present some curiosities about the banana.
Before that, we invite readers to follow another article related to this fruit: how to plant bananas – learn in 6 steps. Good reading!
Banana fights tiredness during the day
Banana is a great ally for those who have a busy routine and end up feeling tired at the end of each day.
Due to its composition, this food helps to keep the amount of sugar at the ideal level over the hours, without the risk of lowering and taking energy from the body.
For those who practice physical activities, eating bananas helps to avoid cramps and gives a lot of energy.
For this, the ideal is to always have a banana available, eating between meals and not going too long without ingesting some type of food. It is a source of fiber, vitamin C, vitamin B6, as well as helping to control blood pressure.
Not to mention that, because of potassium, this fruit is also important to prevent muscle contractions and cramps. That’s why athletes like to eat pieces of banana during their activities.
The physical educator and doctor in the science of human movement, Orlando Laitano Lionello Neto, did a study on free radicals and antioxidants in physical activity. Banana was one of the fruits used in the research.
He claims that this fruit does replenish energy and gives extra strength. “Banana is very rich in carbohydrates and especially fructose, which is an excellent source of energy for skeletal muscle during physical exercise.” he observed.
Check out some more curiosities:
- Banana can help you with your school test. The potassium in the fruit helps keep focus;
- Eating two bananas gives you more than enough energy for a 90-minute workout at the gym;
- The fruit has vitamin B6, which regulates blood glucose levels. This vitamin will also make you feel more energetic at work, at study or at home!
- Banana helps fight depression because it contains a protein called tryptophan, which converts into serotonin that helps you relax and make you feel much better eating this food;
- Banana relieves heartburn because of the natural antacid effect it has on the body;
- Bananas are rich in fiber. This helps regulate bowel movements, without resorting to laxatives;
- Banana can help cure a hangover.
Therefore, as we said above, the banana is a fruit rich in vitamins, calcium, fiber, potassium and antioxidants. Therefore, the benefits of this food are numerous, see the video with each one explained:
Source: 10 Benefits.
Bananas are not all the same
When we think of bananas, the traditional types that we find on the market immediately come to mind: silver, dwarf, pear, gold… But this is another curiosity: did you know that not all types of fruit are edible?
In fact, there is a long list of banana types around the world, some of which are unsuitable for human consumption.
For example: the jungle banana, found in the Amazon, cannot be ingested as food, but serves as a component of medicine.
Altogether, it is estimated that there are more than 300 types of bananas, spread across continents around the world, in about 100 countries.
Another curious detail: banana trees are not considered trees, but “giant herbs”.
This is because its trunk is a pseudostem formed by the leaf sheath and its stem is underground, from where the roots and leaves sprout. The height varies according to the species and reaches up to 7 meters.
Large amount of water in the composition
When we take a banana, we don’t relate this fruit to water, right? This is much simpler on a piece of melon, watermelon or even orange. Still, about 75% of the banana’s composition is made up of water.
After all, foods rich in water and mineral salts, in general, have few calories and are very nutritious, being a good option to complement the diet of those who want to lose weight in a healthy way.
Bananas ripen quickly
It’s not uncommon to look at a banana one day and it’s still green. Then, the next day, it was already very yellow and, a little while later, it was already gone, with black spots on the skin.
The tip is to always buy bananas in small quantities and, therefore, you will always have a fresh one!
This rapid ripening has an explanation and makes it one of the fastest fruits in this process. The issue is the presence of a hormone called ethylene, which accelerates the stages of food maturation. Therefore, it is one of the curiosities of this fruit.
Most consumed fruit in Brazil
In this way, as we close our list, we are curious that the banana is, according to estimates by specialized fruit bodies, such as Ceagesp, the most consumed fruit among Brazilians.
It is not the most sold, since it belongs to the orange, but it is the leader in consumption, mainly because several families end up planting their own banana trees in the back of the house or in the orchard of their farm, without the need to buy the fruit.
Therefore, these are some of the curiosities and characteristics that concern the banana, a fruit so common in people’s daily diet.
For those in love with fruits, meet six of them that are native to Brazil.
