Avocado Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits

Avocado (Persea americana) is a flowering plant of the Laurel family (Lauraceae), where camphor, cinnamon, bay laurel, and spicebush belong. It is native tree of Mexico, Central America, South America, Mexico and the Caribbean, but it is now cultivated in all tropical regions of the world and in some temperate regions. It produces an edible, egg-shaped fruit (also called avocado) that contains a large seed. There are various avocado varieties: Hass, Gwen, Pinkerton, Reed, Bacon, Ettinger, Fuerte, Sharwil, Zutano, and Spinks.

Avocado fruit is among the most favorite fruits, although some people don’t like its “exotic” taste. It is avoided by some health-conscious people because of its high-fat content. Nevertheless, avocado is claimed by health experts as one of the most nutritious fruits in the world. The table below proves this claim. The table shows that avocado contains carbohydrates, minerals, vitamins, fibers, and lipids.

Refuse: 26%  (Seed and skin)
Scientific Name: Persea americana (All Commercial Varieties)
NDB No: 9037 (Nutrient values and weights are for edible portion)

Reference: USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 22 (2009)

Nutrient	Units	Value per 100 grams	Number of Data Points	Std. Error
Proximates
Water	g	73.23	40	1.898
Energy	kcal	160	0
Energy	kJ	670	0
Protein	g	2.00	34	0.136
Total lipid (fat)	g	14.66	35	0.542
Ash	g	1.58	34	0.118
Carbohydrate, by difference	g	8.53	0
Fiber, total dietary	g	6.7	27	0.879
Sugars, total	g	0.66	12	0.019
Minerals
Calcium, Ca	mg	12	29	0.583
Iron, Fe	mg	0.55	29	0.105
Magnesium, Mg	mg	29	17	1.542
Phosphorus, P	mg	52	16	1.622
Potassium, K	mg	485	29	31.316
Sodium, Na	mg	7	23	1.173
Zinc, Zn	mg	0.64	17	0.029
Copper, Cu	mg	0.190	17	0.039
Manganese, Mn	mg	0.142	17	0.007
Fluoride, F	mcg	7.0	9
Selenium, Se	mcg	0.4	5	0.068
Vitamins
Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid	mg	10.0	20	0.505
Thiamin	mg	0.067	16	0.002
Riboflavin	mg	0.130	16	0.008
Niacin	mg	1.738	16	0.081
Pantothenic acid	mg	1.389	16	0.301
Vitamin B-6	mg	0.257	15	0.046
Folate, total	mcg	81	24	10.343
Folic acid	mcg	0	0
Folate, food	mcg	81	24	10.343
Folate, DFE	mcg_DFE	81	0
Choline, total	mg	14.2	0
Betaine	mg	0.7	2
Vitamin B-12	mcg	0.00	0
Vitamin B-12, added	mcg	0.00	0
Vitamin A, RAE	mcg_RAE	7	0
Retinol	mcg	0	0
Carotene, beta	mcg	62	33	7.715
Carotene, alpha	mcg	24	31	11.540
Cryptoxanthin, beta	mcg	28	29	16.722
Vitamin A, IU	IU	146	0
Lycopene	mcg	0	7	0.000
Lutein + zeaxanthin	mcg	271	16	16.660
Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol)	mg	2.07	23	0.214
Vitamin E, added	mg	0.00	0
Tocopherol, beta	mg	0.05	10	0.009
Tocopherol, gamma	mg	0.33	19	0.114
Tocopherol, delta	mg	0.02	10	0.004
Vitamin D (D2 + D3)	mcg	0.0	0
Vitamin D	IU	0	0
Vitamin K (phylloquinone)	mcg	21.0	8	0.766
Lipids
Fatty acids, total saturated	g	2.126	0
4:0	g	0.000	0
6:0	g	0.000	0
8:0	g	0.001	7	0.001
10:0	g	0.000	8	0.000
12:0	g	0.000	8	0.000
14:0	g	0.000	8	0.000
15:0	g	0.000	8	0.000
16:0	g	2.075	8	0.104
17:0	g	0.000	8	0.000
18:0	g	0.049	8	0.005
20:0	g	0.000	8	0.000
22:0	g	0.000	8	0.000
24:0	g	0.000	4	0.000
Fatty acids, total monounsaturated	g	9.799	0
14:1	g	0.000	8	0.000
15:1	g	0.000	8	0.000
16:1 undifferentiated	g	0.698	8	0.039
17:1	g	0.010	8	0.001
18:1 undifferentiated	g	9.066	8	0.474
20:1	g	0.025	8	0.002
22:1 undifferentiated	g	0.000	4	0.000
Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated	g	1.816	0
18:2 undifferentiated	g	1.674	8	0.063
18:3 undifferentiated	g	0.125	0
18:3 n-3 c,c,c (ALA)	g	0.111	4	0.007
18:3 n-6 c,c,c	g	0.015	4	0.000
18:4	g	0.000	4	0.000
20:2 n-6 c,c	g	0.000	8	0.000
20:3 undifferentiated	g	0.016	8	0.002
20:4 undifferentiated	g	0.000	8	0.000
20:5 n-3 (EPA)	g	0.000	4	0.000
22:5 n-3 (DPA)	g	0.000	4	0.000
22:6 n-3 (DHA)	g	0.000	4	0.000
Cholesterol	mg	0	0
Stigmasterol	mg	2	6	0.000
Campesterol	mg	5	6	0.196
Beta-sitosterol	mg	76	6	5.583

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