Avocados reduce cholesterol and so reduce the risk of atherosclerosis. These fruit also have antioxidant ability and contain vitamins E, C and B6, as well as potassium and folic acid.

One avocado provides 40% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for folic acid, which makes the fruit particularly beneficial for pregnant women. Research shows that folic acid helps to prevent birth defects in babies.

While avocados are quite high in monounsaturated fat, the good news is that this type of fat is good for you. What's more, including avocados in your diet can help you to cut out other unhealthy fats.

Avocados are also a good source of dietary fibre.

Intake of avocados should be moderate, as they are high in calories. A whole avocado weighs about 130g and has about 240 calories (1008 kilojoules). Eat no more than a quarter of an avocado per day.

To ripen avocados at home, keep them at room temperature.

A good way of ensuring that they don't go brown once cut open, is to sprinkle a dash of lemon or orange juice on the exposed part of the fruit.

Calories	190
Potassium	450 mg
Fibre	3,4g
Vitamin E	3,2mg
Per 100 g raw