| 1. | How can I get my baby to eat avocados? |
| Avocados are a healthy and easily digestible meal for your baby. Mashing avocado with other fruits is wonderfully healthy. Plus your baby will love its creamy and sweet flavour.
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| 2. | Is an avocado a fruit or a vegetable? |
| Avocados are widely thought to be a vegetable as it is used in a lot of savoury cooking. The truth is they're actually a fruit. They're also known as an avocado pear or alligator pear.
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| 3. | Is there a way to use avocados instead of butter? |
| Try spreading avocados with a little salt and pepper straight onto your toast or sandwich. You can add sliced bananas or jam as well. Using avocado as an alternative to butter is a much healthier alternative.
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| 4. | How much better is avocado than margarine? |
| Most margarine is heated and high in hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats. These fats help to solidify the margarine to make it spreadable. These fats are extremely hard for your body to breakdown and contain very little or no nutritional value. Avocados on the other hand are high in beneficial fatty acids that are easy for the body to breakdown and are packed full of nutritional value.
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| 5. | What is the best way to use avocados as a salad dressing? |
| 1-2 medium sized ripe avocados
1 cup fresh orange juice (use more or less to change the consistency)
1 tsp curry powder
Pepper and salt to taste
1 tbsp fresh herbs (e.g. parsley, coriander or basil)
1 clove of garlic
Now peel and deseed the avocados. Blend all the ingredients together in a food processor until smooth and pour over your salad.
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| 6. | What fats are found in avocados and are they good and bad for you?
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| The fats found in avocados are called monounsaturated fats, and they're very good for your health. The most important monounsaturated fat is called Oleic Acid, and it's found in avocados. Oleic acid is very stable when it's heated and is great for the health of your arteries.
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| 7. | Can you freeze avocados?
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| Any foods frozen for a long period of time will lose some nutritional value. So if you are going to freeze avocados, do it only briefly. It's best to remove the skin, seed and cut into cubes before freezing.
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| 8. | How can I use avocados in sweet foods?
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| You can use avocados as a creamy alternative to dairy. And as most fatty desserts use cream, it's a healthy alternative. You'll be glad to know that making avocado ice cream is easy. Simply blend frozen avocados and bananas with a little honey and serve with a sprinkle of cinnamon.
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| 9. | How much avocado is healthy to eat per day?
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| If you're eating a balanced diet with very little bad saturated and trans fatty acids, eating 1-2 avocados would be fine. But as most people do have these other fats in their diet, I recommend you consume approximately ½ an avocado per day.
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| 10. | How can I make a healthy summer breakfast with avocados?
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| Next time you make a fruit salad, try adding avocado instead of yoghurt. It’s a fantastic dairy alternative and has a creamy texture too. Plus there’s no lactose.
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| 11. | How can I change my diet for summer?
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| When we want to change our diet, we jump into routines that can be excessive and hard to maintain. You should always aim to make a small change each week. For example, during week 1 drink more water. In week 2, eat healthy snacks. In week 3 you should eat 2 servings of fruit and keep a record of everything you eat and how you feel. This gives you a more sustainable and healthier approach.
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| 12. | How can I make my hair shiny for summer?
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| Healthy hair is a must for summer. You should try making an avocado hair conditioner by using a ripe, mashed avocado. Wash your hair and then massage the avocado conditioner into your scalp for 5-10 minutes. As avocados are packed full of beneficial oil, vitamins and minerals, they will penetrate into your hair follicle and will help nourish your hair.
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| 13. | What’s the best way to tone up for summer?
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| Every person is different, but a healthy recommendation is to try a combination of walking, jogging or light weights. A good way to start your exercise regime is to set long-term and short-term goals. Your long-term goal could be that you want to lose 10kg of weight. Your short-term goal could be to walk or jog 2.5km four days per week for a month, then increase the distance covered daily by 0.5km each month.
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| 14. | How can I ripen my avocados quickly?
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| Place your under-ripened avocado into a brown paper bag. Its natural ethylene gas will help ripen your avocado and have it on your plate quicker.
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| 15. | How can I get the bikini body I want for summer?
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| The fat you eat can determine how good your bikini body is this summer. Eating a diet high in bad fats such as trans-fatty acid or high amounts of saturated fats are more likely to result in a higher body-fat percentage. This is because these forms of fats are much harder for your body to burn. However, avocados are full of good monounsaturated fatty acids. These help control your calorie intake, giving your body the fats you need.
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| 16. | What’s a healthy summer menu?
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| Breakfast: Wholegrain toast with avocado, instead of butter and a poached egg.
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| 17. | What are healthy summer snacks?
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| You should try avocado dip with vegetable sticks. Raw and unsalted nuts and seeds are a good idea. You’ll also enjoy ½ an avocado with a squeeze of lemon juice and pepper. Or wholegrain crackers with slices of avocado, sprinkled with herbs and sea salt.
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| 18. | What’s a quick cleanse for summer?
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| Your body is always cleaning itself, and this is the job of the liver. Your aim should be to remove toxic foods and drinks so it can do its job more effectively. Aim for one week to remove caffeine based drinks, alcohol and processed foods. Increase water, fresh fruit and vegetables, nuts and seed, full grains and legumes and lean protein into every meal. Simple.
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| 19. | How can I help my skin for summer? |
| Your skin’s health is important all year round, but in the hot Australian summer it’s even more important. You should always wear sun block every day. And at night it’s vital to moisturise the skin and put back what the harsh sun can take out. Make an avocado mask using mashed avocados and apply it each night for 5-10 minutes before washing off. This will help give your skin a boost of vitamin E and beta-carotene, vital for your skin’s health. |
| 20. | Worried about your feet during summer?
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| Having your feet in shoes all winter can leave them feeling and looking a little rough. Exfoliating your feet will help freshen them up. Make an avocado exfoliation with a mashed avocado and bicarbonate of soda. Mix together and then massage over your feet, wash thoroughly and then moisturise.
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| 21. | Every winter I put on weight. How can I avoid this? |
| In winter, we often lose our routine of eating healthy food and getting exercise. So try to make a 7-day eating and exercise plan and write down everything you eat or drink. By being accountable you are more likely to stick to it. |
| 22. | In winter I never feel like exercising outdoors, are there some easy ways to exercise indoors? |
| Exercise is not only a brilliant way to keep you healthy, it’s a fantastic stress release! Luckily there are a number of ways to stay fit during winter. You can join a local gym or health club. If expense is an issue, there are an abundance of fantastic exercise DVDs in the market. You could even Google ‘exercise plans’ and get some great tips. The most important thing is to exercise anyway you can, and ideally at least three times a week. |
| 23. | I have lower energy levels in the morning, is there something I could be eating that will help? |
| Most people’s energy levels seem to be a little lower in winter. This can be for a number of reasons like the change of weather, different sleep patterns and diet. Make sure you’re diet is high in B-vitamins, which are luckily found in avocados. B-vitamins help maintain and increase energy levels. |
| 24. | My skin feels very dehydrated in winter, what can I do or eat that will help? |
| You’ll find that most people drink less water in winter. So the first tip is to make sure you drink enough throughout the day. Another tip is to increase your intake of beneficial fats such as the essential fatty acids found in avocados. They’re fantastic for helping you keep your skin wonderfully healthy and moist. |
| 25. | I feel like drinking a lot of water in winter. How much water do I need and are there other liquids I can drink? |
| Your body requires 2.4 litres of fluid a day. Half a litre will come from the food we eat, but the rest ideally should come from water. If the thought of drinking cold water in winter turns you off, then try herbal tea or even warm water with lemon. Avoid drinking soft drinks or too many juices. They’re high in calories. |
| 26. | Should I be getting more sleep in winter? |
| You’ll probably notice that animals will sleep more or hibernate in winter. This is because the rising of the sun and the setting of the moon control their internal body clock. So in theory, we should be sleeping more in winter, as the days are longer. Unfortunately, we still have our day-to-day life to lead and can't spend more time in bed.
However, a good thing to remember is that when your alarm goes off, don’t press the snooze button. Get out of bed straight away and you’ll feel much better in the long run. |
| 27. | I seem to be hungrier in winter. Are there any healthy snack ideas that will help satisfy my hunger? |
| In winter, the body tries very hard to keep warm. As a result, the body needs more fuel and this comes from the food we eat. Unfortunately, most people opt for high calorie and poor fatty foods.
Try these healthy tips:
- Eat foods that are warm and nourishing such as a healthy soup
- Try healthy snacks like avocado on toast.
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| 28. | How do I avoid the common cold? |
| Avoiding the common cold this winter is easier than you think. You’ve just got to keep your immune system healthy.
There are vitamins and minerals found in foods that your body needs to help keep your immune system functioning well. Zinc is one of them.
The good news is that you can find a healthy amount of Zinc in avocados. Adding an avo to your diet won’t only help your food taste better, but will help you fight off the dreaded common cold. |
