There is a common misunderstanding that just because a food is good for you, it means you can eat as much of it as you want and still enjoy weight loss. This would make it much easier to be able to know what to eat while on a diet, but the truth is that foods like avocado can make you gain weight if you’re not careful.
While it is also considered to be a nutritious and diet friendly food, avocado can make you gain weight if you eat too much of it. Unfortunately, in the way that many people like to enjoy this fruit, it is often pretty hard on the waistline. Whether you use it as a spread, dip, in smoothies or chopped up into pieces, the fact remains that it should be enjoyed in moderation or you will place yourself at risk of consuming far too many calories.
At the same time that avocado can make you gain weight, if you eat it in appropriate amounts, it can also help you to lose weight. The risk of weight gain is the result of the high number of calories it contains. Still, it is also high in fiber, folate, potassium and both vitamins C and E. It’s wonderful in healthy monounsaturated fat, too. It’s great for your heart health and your skin, among other things.
Having some avocado every day can be a fantastic way to boost your nutrition. On the other hand, eating too much is a direct way to boost your waistline. This includes the ever-popular avocado toast, which can result in adding a whole avocado to your breakfast or lunch. The number of calories in an avocado depends its type, size and other factors.
For instance, California varieties (small, with textured, dark skins) contain 30 percent more calories per ounce than those from Florida (which are larger, with smooth green skin). That said, if you eat a whole Florida avocado, you’ll likely eat more than if you had a whole California variety, simply because the fruit is bigger.
One average California avocado contains around 230 calories and an average Florida variety contains closer to 365. Depending on your calorie goal for the day, this one fruit could easily take up a sizeable chunk of your daily limit.
Furthermore, while avocados contain healthy fat, there’s still the risk of having too much of a good thing. The average healthy adult should typically receive 20 to 35 percent of daily calories from fat, which generally equates to between 300 and 700 calories. If you eat a whole avocado, you might find yourself having to be extremely lean about the rest of your day or you’ll risk increasing the number on the scale. The key to avoiding that problem is simply to eat half of the fruit instead of a whole one and pay attention to the balance in the rest of your foods.
