July 29, 2017
Being born and raised Mexican, I have been attached to avocados ever since I can remember. When I was about five years old, my father explained to me that there were more than 80 types of avocados. You can find them in the central part of Mexico, all the way to Central America.
Green is life!
The name Aguacate (in Spanish) comes from Nahuatl – “Ahuacatl” (Uto-Aztecan language), and it means “Tree’s testicles.” Of course, I had to say I didn’t get this last information from my dad.
I always felt surrounded by these green fruits; they were just there: in my house, parties, markets, and supermarkets. Every year we used to travel from Mexico City to a city near the Pacific ocean to visit my mother’s relatives. All the house backyards had at least one avocado tree, lots of them fell and covered the ground. When you think about it, when a human has a lot of something, they end up not appreciating it.
One day, I heard my mother referring to the avocado as “The Mexican butter.” When I turned 14 years old, I decided to stop eating them, blaming this “butter” for any extra pounds and pimples I had. How could something fatty – buttery do well in my body and overall, on my skin? As I was converting into an adult, I heard some of its benefits, but the stubborn person I was, I thought I had enough of that “Mexican butter” in my life.
In 2005 when I moved to Canada, one of the first events I remember is almost getting a heart attack when I realized the price of one piece in the supermarket. “Who cares?” I said.
In May 2017, I decided to make a career change and follow my instincts. I registered for this course, and it was not until I started reading through the chapters, that I was amazed at what avocado could provide to my health, and this is the reason why I am writing this article.
I call it now the “perfect food.”
The Magical Benefits of Avocado
That butter is a healthy fat, high in Omega 3’s; also Vitamins: C, B D and E, and Beta-carotene just to mention few. It is so versatile that it is the only fruit that provides a substantial amount of healthy monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA). Avocados are a naturally nutrient-dense food and contain nearly 20 vitamins and minerals. So it doesn’t only support my skin and hair, it also supports my immune system and heart. It also may help reduce the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration, and guess what: “it’s delicious!”
Knowing all this information, I can’t wait to keep eating avocados. I laugh paying for them in Canadian dollars, remembering those days that I saw them falling from the trees, and did not appreciate them; I’ve also stopped blaming them for my pimple phase during my younger years, and encourage my teenage daughter to eat and enjoy all its miracles.
