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15 Serious Side Effects of Bananas You Must Be Aware Of
Bananas are everyone’s favorite. A workout snack tool, however, their consumption remains unchecked. Let's find out the side effects of bananas that might be overlooked.
Bananas are everyone’s favorite. A workout snack tool, their consumption remains unchecked. Let's find out the side effects of bananas that might be overlooked.
Bananas, regarded as botanical berries, are among the most loved and consumed fruits globally. However, the side effects of bananas aren’t paid much attention. As per the latest statistics, almost 100 billion bananas are eaten per year (1). Bananas are highly enriched in fiber, potassium, amino acids, vitamin B6, and a lot of essential nutrients (1). They have gained immense popularity as pre and post-workout snacks. Owing to their positive impact on blood pressure and metabolism, people consume them daily in one way or another (2). Banana smoothies, bread, pancakes, and sandwiches are scrumptious to indulge in. Bananas are also added generously in fruit salads for extra healthiness owing to the fact that they may contribute to reducing heart attacks and other cardiovascular diseases. However, it might be necessary to find out more about bananas and the side effects of banana eating. Read through this article to explore what happens to your body when you eat bananas every day.
15 Side Effects of Bananas
Bananas, Musa sapientum, a popular fruit, serve as a budget-friendly and superior source of nutrition for developing countries (1). According to a study, almost 100 million people consume bananas daily as their prime source of energy (2). And, it won’t come off as a surprise that banana is counted as the fifth most important agricultural crop grown and consumed globally (3). The importance of bananas might be understood by the fact that it is considered next to rich, wheat and maize (3).However, speaking of the short-term and long-term impacts of bananas, they might not be the best fruits for everyone, especially those with some medical condition. Why is that? Let’s delve deeper to find the negative effects of bananas on the body:
Metabolic Imbalance:
Banana is a tropical yellow fruit and as many other tropical fruits are, it’s also quite susceptible at temperatures below 13 Degrees Celsius (4). This not only enhances the chilling injury symptom (CI) of banana peel and pulp but also results in disturbances of the physiological activities of fruit pulp that may lead to metabolic imbalance after consumption (4).
Weight Gain:
In a recent survey, bananas with a considerable starch content, have proven to possess weight-gaining characteristics despite their positive impact on digestive health (5). Green bananas might be a better alternative given they contain resistant starch which is proven effective for weight management (5). So, you might as well want to reconsider eating 3 bananas a day or more than your body requirements. Having said that, a medium-sized banana may not be as harmful.
Hyperkalemia:
Increased intake of potassium is harmful to both children, adults, and the elderly (6). Hyperkalemia, defined as a higher plasma potassium concentration than the predefined value of potassium in plasma, is triggered by excessive potassium intake (6). What you may focus on is how many bananas you consume per day given a middle-sized banana contains 422 mg of potassium (6).
Migraine:
Migraine affects almost 15% of the population (7). According to some studies, food intolerance and migraine might be quite closely associated (8). Banana consumption has been one of the triggers for causing frequent migraine attacks and headaches (8). Bananas, in some cases, might also be responsible for initiating occasional attacks (9). So, if you have a family history of migraine or food allergies, familiarize yourself with the negative effects on the body.
Constipation:
Banana is rich in natural dietary fibers and a lot of other nutrients (10). However, excess fiber may cause a negative effect on functional constipation in case of dehydration or inadequate water intake(11). The takeaway here is that if you aren’t drinking enough water, banana consumption might cause some trouble.
Limited Consumption for Diabetic People:
A fully ripe banana contains 23% sugar, while an overripe banana contains 27% sugar content with limited data available on unripe bananas (12). A study also indicates that sucrose constitutes 70% of the total sugars in fully ripe bananas and half of it in overripe ones (12). So, by that measure, if you are a diabetic person, think what may happen when you eat 3 bananas in a day, given the side effect of eating a ripe banana.
Endometrial Cancer:
Bananas at different stages contain varying amounts of sucrose (12). According to research, sucrose may be associated with endometrial cancer which is among the surprising side effects of eating bananas (13). So, you may properly weigh all the disadvantages of eating bananas daily.
Excessive Calorie Consumption:
Consuming a 100g portion of bananas produces almost 74-150 calories (13). So, you may need to see if you are having a balanced diet while consuming the respective number of bananas and calories.
Abdominal Pain:
A 100 g of banana may contain as many as 35 grams of carbohydrates (13). And, consumption of carbohydrates may contribute to childhood functional gastrointestinal disorders, abdominal cramps, and other negative effects including bloating (14).
Not Suitable for CKD:
Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is proven to be influenced by potassium consumption and potassium control may as well improve neuromuscular outcomes in CKD (15).
Latex Allergy:
Latex allergy or latex-fruit syndrome has clinical consequences (16). And, banana allergy has proven to be one of the triggers for causing this syndrome (16).
Bloating:
According to a recent study, bananas have been proven to cause bloating and some other active responses to cycling performance and exercise (17). Well, if you have a no-no relationship with bloating, consider how and when you consume bananas.
Acute Pancreatitis:
Bananas have been considered among the fresh fruits that might be responsible for causing acute pancreatitis, an adverse immune response to food (18). Pancreas may get inflamed due to this allergy triggered by the consumption of many foods including bananas (18). If you are sensitive to food allergies, notice and observe how your body responds to banana consumption for a few days.
Extended Digestion:
Bananas definitely are a good source of potassium but might take a long time to digest so if that bothers your bodily function, you may want to avoid eating bananas all the time for better digestive health (19).
Dizziness:
There has been a survey indicating the side effects of eating bananas empty stomach despite them being considered a healthy food. According to this survey, eating bananas on an empty stomach may cause a sudden increase in levels of potassium (potassium ions) in the body that in turn leads to dizziness or irregular heartbeat (20).
Conclusion
Bananas definitely are a good source of fiber, potassium, and energy. It’s probably not eating a banana that needs more discussion but their excessive consumption. Rather than worrying about the negative effects of bananas on your body, you might need to pay more attention to the side effects of bananas when you eat more than your daily calorie, energy, and potassium requirement. With some serious implications for different medical conditions, you may need to keep a check on the number of bananas you eat daily.
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