Bananas are one of the most widely consumed fruits in the world for good reason. Eating them could help lower blood pressure and reduce the risks of cancer and asthma. Today, bananas are grown in at least 107 countries and are ranked fourth among the world's food crops in monetary value. Americans consume more bananas than apples and oranges combined.
Health benefits : Listed below are the possible health benefits associated with bananas. It is important to note that more high quality studies are required before these health benefit links are proved definitive.

Potassium : 

• Bananas are rich in a mineral called potassium. This mineral is important as it helps maintain fluid levels in the body and regulates the movement of nutrients and waste products in and out of cells. Potassium also helps muscles to contract and nerve cells to respond. It keeps the heart beating regularly and can reduce the effect of sodium on blood pressure.
• Potassium may reduce the risk of kidney stones forming as people age. In turn, healthy kidneys make sure that the right amount of potassium is kept in the body. One medium-sized banana contains 422 milligrams of potassium. It is best to try to get potassium from dietary sources such as bananas.

Nutritional profile :
One serving of banana is considered to be about 126 grams. One serving of banana contains 110 calories, 30 grams of carbohydrate and 1 gram of protein. Bananas are naturally free of fat, cholesterol, and sodium.

Bananas provide a variety of vitamins and minerals :

• Vitamin B6 - 0.5 mg
• Manganese - 0.3 mg
• Vitamin C - 9 mg
• Potassium - 450 mg
• Dietary Fiber - 3g
• Protein - 1 g
• Magnesium - 34 mg
• Folate - 25.0 mcg
• Riboflavin - 0.1 mg
• Niacin - 0.8 mg
• Vitamin A - 81 IU
• Iron - 0.3 mg

The recommended intake of potassium for adults is 4,700 milligrams per day
Bananas in the diet : 

• Fresh bananas are available year-round. Unlike other fruits, the ripening process of bananas does not slow down after they are picked. Bananas should be stored at room temperature. The warmer the temperature, the faster bananas will ripen.
• However, to slow ripening, bananas should be refrigerated. The outer peel of the banana will darken but the banana itself will stay intact longer. To encourage faster ripening, place the banana in a brown paper bag at room temperature. In 2008, a popular diet fad known as the Morning Banana Diet recommended eating a banana in the morning along with water, eating a normal lunch and having dinner before 8pm. Add a sliced banana to your morning cereal or oatmeal for a more nutritious breakfast.
• Like apple sauce, ripe mashed bananas can be used in baked goods to replace oil or butter. Mashed bananas lend a moist, naturally sweet flavor to muffins, cookies and cakes. Peel and freeze bananas for a great addition to any smoothie.

Contain Nutrients That Moderate Blood Sugar Levels :

• Bananas are rich in a fiber called pectin, which gives the flesh its structural form. Unripe bananas contain resistant starch, which acts like soluble fiber and escapes digestion. Both pectin and resistant starch may moderate blood sugar levels after meals, and reduce appetite by slowing stomach emptying.  Furthermore, bananas also rank low to medium on the glycemic index, which is a measure (from 0–100) of how quickly foods increase blood sugar levels.
• The glycemic value of unripe bananas is about 30, while ripe bananas rank at about 60. The average value of all bananas is 51. This means that bananas should not cause major spikes in blood sugar levels in healthy individuals. However, this may not apply to diabetics, which should probably avoid eating lots of well-ripened bananas and monitor their blood sugars carefully when they do.

Improve Digestive Health : Dietary fiber has been linked to many health benefits, including improved digestion. A medium-sized banana contains about 3 grams of fiber, making bananas a fairly good fiber source. Bananas contain mainly two types of fiber :

• Pectin -  Decreases as the banana ripens.
• Resistant starch -  Found in unripe bananas.
• Resistant starch escapes digestion and ends up in our large intestine, where it becomes food for the beneficial gut bacteria. Additionally, some cell studies propose that pectin may help protect against colon cancer.

Help With Weight Loss : No study has directly tested the effects of bananas on weight loss. However, bananas do have several features that should make them a weight loss friendly food. For starters, bananas contain relatively few calories. An average banana contains just over 100 calories, yet it is also very nutritious and filling. They are also rich in fiber. Eating more fiber from fruit and vegetables has repeatedly been linked with lower body weight and weight loss. Furthermore, unripe bananas are packed with resistant starch, so they tend to be very filling and may reduce your appetite.
Bananas May Support Heart Health :

• Potassium is a mineral that is essential for heart health, especially blood pressure control. Yet despite its importance, most people are not getting enough potassium in their diet. Bananas are a great dietary source of potassium. One medium-sized banana (118 grams) contains 9% of the RDI.
• A potassium-rich diet can help lower blood pressure, and people who eat plenty of potassium have up to a 27% lower risk of heart disease. Furthermore, bananas contain a decent amount of magnesium, which is also important for heart health.

Contain Powerful Antioxidants :

• Fruits and vegetables are excellent sources of dietary antioxidants, and bananas are no exception. They contain several types of potent antioxidants, including dopamine and catechins.
• These antioxidants have been linked to many health benefits, such as a reduced risk of heart disease and degenerative diseases. However, it is a common misunderstanding that the dopamine from bananas acts as a feel-good chemical in the brain. In reality, dopamine from bananas does not cross the blood-brain barrier. It simply acts as a strong antioxidant instead of altering hormones or mood.

Help You Feel More Full : Resistant starch is a type of indigestible carbohydrate found in unripe bananas, which functions sort of like soluble fiber in the body. As a rule of thumb, you can estimate that the greener the banana is, the higher the amount of resistant starch it contains. On the other hand, ripe (yellow) bananas contain lower amounts of resistant starch and total fiber, but proportionally higher amounts of soluble fiber. Both pectin and resistant starch have been shown to have appetite-reducing effects and increase the feeling of fullness after meals.
Improve Insulin Sensitivity : Insulin resistance is a major risk factor for many of the world's most serious diseases, including type 2 diabetes. Several studies have shown that 15–30 grams of resistant starch per day may improve insulin sensitivity by 33–50%, in as little as 4 weeks. Unripe bananas are a great source of resistant starch, and may therefore help improve insulin sensitivity. However, the reason for these effects is not well understood, and not all studies agree on the matter.
Improve Kidney Health : Potassium is essential for blood pressure control and healthy kidney function. As a good dietary source of potassium, bananas may be especially beneficial for maintaining healthy kidneys. One study in women showed that over 13 years, those who ate bananas 2–3 times per week were 33% less likely to develop kidney disease. Other studies have found that those who eat bananas 4–6 times a week are almost 50% less likely to develop kidney disease, compared to people who don't eat bananas.

Bananas are one of the most widely consumed fruits in the world for good reason. Eating them could help lower blood pressure and reduce the risks of cancer and asthma. Today, bananas are grown in at least 107 countries and are ranked fourth among the world's food crops in monetary value. Americans consume more bananas than apples and oranges combined.
Health benefits : Listed below are the possible health benefits associated with bananas. It is important to note that more high quality studies are required before these health benefit links are proved definitive.

Potassium : 

• Bananas are rich in a mineral called potassium. This mineral is important as it helps maintain fluid levels in the body and regulates the movement of nutrients and waste products in and out of cells. Potassium also helps muscles to contract and nerve cells to respond. It keeps the heart beating regularly and can reduce the effect of sodium on blood pressure.
• Potassium may reduce the risk of kidney stones forming as people age. In turn, healthy kidneys make sure that the right amount of potassium is kept in the body. One medium-sized banana contains 422 milligrams of potassium. It is best to try to get potassium from dietary sources such as bananas.

Nutritional profile :
One serving of banana is considered to be about 126 grams. One serving of banana contains 110 calories, 30 grams of carbohydrate and 1 gram of protein. Bananas are naturally free of fat, cholesterol, and sodium.

Bananas provide a variety of vitamins and minerals :

• Vitamin B6 - 0.5 mg
• Manganese - 0.3 mg
• Vitamin C - 9 mg
• Potassium - 450 mg
• Dietary Fiber - 3g
• Protein - 1 g
• Magnesium - 34 mg
• Folate - 25.0 mcg
• Riboflavin - 0.1 mg
• Niacin - 0.8 mg
• Vitamin A - 81 IU
• Iron - 0.3 mg

The recommended intake of potassium for adults is 4,700 milligrams per day
Bananas in the diet : 

• Fresh bananas are available year-round. Unlike other fruits, the ripening process of bananas does not slow down after they are picked. Bananas should be stored at room temperature. The warmer the temperature, the faster bananas will ripen.
• However, to slow ripening, bananas should be refrigerated. The outer peel of the banana will darken but the banana itself will stay intact longer. To encourage faster ripening, place the banana in a brown paper bag at room temperature. In 2008, a popular diet fad known as the Morning Banana Diet recommended eating a banana in the morning along with water, eating a normal lunch and having dinner before 8pm. Add a sliced banana to your morning cereal or oatmeal for a more nutritious breakfast.
• Like apple sauce, ripe mashed bananas can be used in baked goods to replace oil or butter. Mashed bananas lend a moist, naturally sweet flavor to muffins, cookies and cakes. Peel and freeze bananas for a great addition to any smoothie.

Contain Nutrients That Moderate Blood Sugar Levels :

• Bananas are rich in a fiber called pectin, which gives the flesh its structural form. Unripe bananas contain resistant starch, which acts like soluble fiber and escapes digestion. Both pectin and resistant starch may moderate blood sugar levels after meals, and reduce appetite by slowing stomach emptying.  Furthermore, bananas also rank low to medium on the glycemic index, which is a measure (from 0–100) of how quickly foods increase blood sugar levels.
• The glycemic value of unripe bananas is about 30, while ripe bananas rank at about 60. The average value of all bananas is 51. This means that bananas should not cause major spikes in blood sugar levels in healthy individuals. However, this may not apply to diabetics, which should probably avoid eating lots of well-ripened bananas and monitor their blood sugars carefully when they do.

Improve Digestive Health : Dietary fiber has been linked to many health benefits, including improved digestion. A medium-sized banana contains about 3 grams of fiber, making bananas a fairly good fiber source. Bananas contain mainly two types of fiber :

• Pectin -  Decreases as the banana ripens.
• Resistant starch -  Found in unripe bananas.
• Resistant starch escapes digestion and ends up in our large intestine, where it becomes food for the beneficial gut bacteria. Additionally, some cell studies propose that pectin may help protect against colon cancer.

Help With Weight Loss : No study has directly tested the effects of bananas on weight loss. However, bananas do have several features that should make them a weight loss friendly food. For starters, bananas contain relatively few calories. An average banana contains just over 100 calories, yet it is also very nutritious and filling. They are also rich in fiber. Eating more fiber from fruit and vegetables has repeatedly been linked with lower body weight and weight loss. Furthermore, unripe bananas are packed with resistant starch, so they tend to be very filling and may reduce your appetite.
Bananas May Support Heart Health :

• Potassium is a mineral that is essential for heart health, especially blood pressure control. Yet despite its importance, most people are not getting enough potassium in their diet. Bananas are a great dietary source of potassium. One medium-sized banana (118 grams) contains 9% of the RDI.
• A potassium-rich diet can help lower blood pressure, and people who eat plenty of potassium have up to a 27% lower risk of heart disease. Furthermore, bananas contain a decent amount of magnesium, which is also important for heart health.

Contain Powerful Antioxidants :

• Fruits and vegetables are excellent sources of dietary antioxidants, and bananas are no exception. They contain several types of potent antioxidants, including dopamine and catechins.
• These antioxidants have been linked to many health benefits, such as a reduced risk of heart disease and degenerative diseases. However, it is a common misunderstanding that the dopamine from bananas acts as a feel-good chemical in the brain. In reality, dopamine from bananas does not cross the blood-brain barrier. It simply acts as a strong antioxidant instead of altering hormones or mood.

Help You Feel More Full : Resistant starch is a type of indigestible carbohydrate found in unripe bananas, which functions sort of like soluble fiber in the body. As a rule of thumb, you can estimate that the greener the banana is, the higher the amount of resistant starch it contains. On the other hand, ripe (yellow) bananas contain lower amounts of resistant starch and total fiber, but proportionally higher amounts of soluble fiber. Both pectin and resistant starch have been shown to have appetite-reducing effects and increase the feeling of fullness after meals.
Improve Insulin Sensitivity : Insulin resistance is a major risk factor for many of the world's most serious diseases, including type 2 diabetes. Several studies have shown that 15–30 grams of resistant starch per day may improve insulin sensitivity by 33–50%, in as little as 4 weeks. Unripe bananas are a great source of resistant starch, and may therefore help improve insulin sensitivity. However, the reason for these effects is not well understood, and not all studies agree on the matter.
Improve Kidney Health : Potassium is essential for blood pressure control and healthy kidney function. As a good dietary source of potassium, bananas may be especially beneficial for maintaining healthy kidneys. One study in women showed that over 13 years, those who ate bananas 2–3 times per week were 33% less likely to develop kidney disease. Other studies have found that those who eat bananas 4–6 times a week are almost 50% less likely to develop kidney disease, compared to people who don't eat bananas.