A must for guacamole and fish tacos, avocados are a popular fruit that helps give your diet a boost of healthy fats when they are included in your meals. In a clinical trial, participants who ate an avocado a day, as part of a moderate-fat diet, had reduced total cholesterol and bad LDL-cholesterol and improved the ratio of total cholesterol to good HDL-cholesterol levels, compared to participants who did not consume avocado (low-fat or moderate-fat oils diets). While the conclusions from a single study cannot be generalized to larger, more diverse populations, the study supports the growing body of evidence demonstrating avocados as a heart-healthy fruit.
In a different clinical study, 45 overweight or obese adults added one avocado a day to their low-fat and moderate-fat oil diets. By adding the avocado, researchers noted increased blood antioxidant levels and decreased the oxidation of small, dense LDL-cholesterol levels.