Is avocado the best food for weight loss?

New Delhi: While diet alone can't help, it obviously plays a vital role in maintaining the overall health of the body. Similarly, what you can can have immensely affect you weight loss plan.

In a new study, researchers suggest eating avocados may help lower body weight, body mass index (BMI) as well as lead to smaller waist circumference.

The study involving 29,684 adults (ages 19 years and older) found that avocado consumers were 33 per cent less likely to be overweight or obese and 32 per cent less likely to have an elevated waist circumference compared to non-consumers.

On average, avocado consumers weighed 7.5 lbs less, had a mean BMI of 1 unit less and 1.2 inches smaller waist circumference compared to non-consumers.

Further, avocado consumption may also lead to an overall better diet, as consumers had higher intakes of dietary fibre, total fat, good fats (monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids), vitamins E and C, folate, magnesium, copper and potassium.

Avocado consumers also had lower intakes of total carbohydrates, added sugars and sodium, compared to non-consumers.

"These findings indicate incorporating avocados could be one way to meet the recommended fruit and vegetable intake and potentially improve physiologic measures," said Nikki Ford, Hass Avocado Board Director of Nutrition in California, US.

"We encourage healthcare professionals to remain committed to recommending avocados as part of an overall healthy diet," Ford added.

Eating avocados also regulated the insulin levels and reduced levels of homocysteine - associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

Avocados are a nutritious fruit packed with disease-fighting antioxidants. The health benefits of eating avocados include lowering cholesterol and triglyceride levels, promoting eye health, reducing symptoms of arthritis and even preventing cancer.

The study has been published in the journal Internal Medicine Review.

(With IANS inputs)