{"id":270576,"date":"2025-11-08T19:23:09","date_gmt":"2025-11-08T19:23:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/270576\/"},"modified":"2025-11-08T19:23:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-08T19:23:09","slug":"skip-the-banana-for-a-healthier-smoothie-study-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/270576\/","title":{"rendered":"Skip the banana for a healthier smoothie, study says"},"content":{"rendered":"

If a healthy slurp is your aim, skip the banana when you whip up a smoothie.<\/p>\n

Researchers at the University of California-Davis found that adding banana may interfere with absorption of powerful compounds called flavanols, which are linked to brain and heart health.<\/p>\n

“We were really surprised to see how quickly adding a single banana decreased the level of flavanols in the smoothie and the levels of flavanol absorbed in the body,” lead author Javier Ottaviani said in a news release.<\/p>\n

Ottaviani is an adjunct researcher at UC-Davis and director of the Core Laboratory at Mars Edge, part of Mars Inc.<\/p>\n

Flavanols — which are found in such foods as apples, berries, cocoa and grapes — are natural compounds that help support memory, reduce inflammation and improve blood flow when consumed regularly.<\/p>\n

That is, unless banana or another ingredient get in the way, researchers say.<\/p>\n

The problem is an enzyme abundant in bananas called polyphenol oxidase (PPO). In experiments, banana-based smoothies dramatically cut flavanol absorption compared to berry-based ones, researchers reported recently in the journal Food and Function<\/a>.<\/p>\n

They wanted to learn whether the same enzyme activity that quickly causes a banana or apple to turn brown when peeled affected how much of these beneficial flavanols the body absorbs when the fruits are combined in a smoothie.<\/p>\n

“We sought to understand, on a very practical level, how a common food and food preparation like a banana-based smoothie could affect the availability of flavanols to be absorbed after intake,” Ottaviani said.<\/p>\n

Participants in the study enjoyed two different smoothies.<\/p>\n

One was made with banana, which has high-PPO activity; the other was made with mixed berries, which have low-PPO activity.<\/p>\n

Participants also took a flavanol capsule for comparison. Afterward, flavanol levels in their blood and urine were measured.<\/p>\n

The results were clear: Folks who drank the banana smoothie had 84% lower flavanol levels than those who swallowed the control capsule.<\/p>\n

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends consuming 400 to 600 milligrams of flavanols each day for cardiometabolic health.<\/p>\n

If you’re shooting to reach that level, go heavy on the berries when your smoothie is made of ingredients like pineapple, oranges, mango or yogurt — and skip the banana!<\/p>\n

Ottaviani said the findings could open the door to more research on how food prep affects nutrient absorption.<\/p>\n

Tea, for instance, is a major dietary source of flavanols, and how it is brewed could affect levels of the compounds available for the body to absorb.<\/p>\n

The study was funded by a grant from Mars Inc., which helps researchers study the potential health benefits of cocoa flavanols.<\/p>\n

More information<\/p>\n

Good Housekeeping has a guide to making healthy smoothies<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Copyright \u00a9 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n

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