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Don’t just eat bananas because they’re cheap and pre-wrapped. They're good for your health--and your weight.

Going Bananas

Before the early 1900’s, the average American had never eaten a banana. Introduced into the U.S. at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition, bananas were exotic and expensive, selling for 10 cents apiece—the equivalent of $2 today.

Now bananas are one of our least expensive fresh fruits, available year round, and eating trends have changed along with the prices. In the early 1900s an advertisement showed a bowl of sliced bananas with a small amount of cereal sprinkled on top, minus the milk!

It’s not that surprising that bananas became popular in the US at the same time that discoveries were being made about calories, vitamins and bacteria. The American Medical Association recommended bananas as a healthy food in 1931 because they came in a “germ proof” wrapper. They were promoted for the treatment of diarrhea, ulcers, tuberculosis, diabetes, obesity, malnutrition, infertility, scurvy and gout. We know now that bananas are not magic cure-alls, but they are nutrition powerhouses.

A dwarf or midget banana has only 72 calories, a medium banana 105, and an extra large just 135 calories. Containing only a trace of fat and sodium and no cholesterol, bananas are rich sources of complex carbs and good sources of fiber, vitamin C, B¬6 and potassium. Athletes call bananas potassium sticks, a quick post-exercise snack used to replenish potassium and simple sugars.
Foods rich in potassium, like bananas, have been credited with many health benefits: lowering blood pressure, promoting bone health, preserving muscle mass in older adults, and contributing to a healthy heart. And an old wives tale that says women who eat more bananas during pregnancy are more likely to have sons may actually be based in fact. Research has shown that women who eat 300 milligrams more potassium daily (a medium banana has over 400 milligrams) are more likely to have boys.

Bananas are also an excellent source of prebiotic fiber, which provides nourishment for the natural bacteria in your digestive tract. These dietary hitch-hikers have been with you since birth and help to strengthen you immune system and maintain your health from the inside out. Bananas help your body absorb iron. And if all that isn’t convincing enough, bananas can help you lose weight. Resistant starch, found in unripe bananas, helps to curb your appetite and blocks the conversion of some carbohydrates into fuel—that forces the body to burn more fat. Eating a slightly greenish banana at breakfast could help you burn more fat all morning.

A little banana trivia:

• It’s believed bananas originated in the Southeast Asia and were brought to the New World by Spanish explorers
• All bananas are imported; commercial banana plantations on mainland U.S. have never been successful
• Bananas ripen after harvesting; they lose their sweet taste and texture if they ripen on the plant
• Bananas ripen best a room temperature; refrigerated the skin turns brown and the fruit doesn’t sweeten
• The first banana split was made in the early 1900’s, but there is debate over whether it originated Pennsylvania or Ohio
• Banana bread is credited to a Depression era housewife trying to earn extra cash baking at home
• The Random House Historical Dictionary traces the phrase “going bananas” to the late 1960’s when university students believed that smoking banana peels could lead to hallucinations similar to LSD.
  (Sorry, not true).

© NRH Nutrition Consultants, Inc., June 2009

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