All About Banana

Banana is called 'the fruit of wise'. It contains vitamins and minerals that are essential for the body. Let us explore the various banana nutrition and others facts in this article.
Banana is a perennial herbaceous plant that develops from the underground rhizome. It flourishes well under tropical moisture-rich, humid low-lying farmlands. In fact, the whole plant is a false stem (pseudostem), consisting of broad leaves along with their petioles overlapping around each other in a circular fashion standing up to 2 to 6 meters tall from the ground surface depending upon the cultivar types. At maturity, the rhizome gives rise to flower (inflorescence) that is carried up on a long smooth un-branched stem through the centre of the pseudo-stem emerging out at the top in the centre of the leaf cluster. The flower subsequently develops to hanging bunch consisting of 3 to 20 hands (tiers), each with at least 5-10 fingers (fruits) in each hand (tier). Banana plant or plantain bears hanging clusters of fruits as a bunch. Fruits are arranged in tiers, with 6-20 fruits in each tier.
High vitamin and mineral content Low-fat dieters also love bananas as they contain virtually no fat. Bananas do have a gram or two of protein, but where a banana really shines nutritiously is in its vitamin content. A banana is high in the following: Vitamin C: 17 percent of recommended daily value in one banana Vitamin B6 (22 percent; good for the nervous system) Folate (6 percent; good for cell repair) Bananas are also high in the mineral manganese (good for bone health), supplying 16 percent of the recommended daily value. Are you susceptible to cramping? Magnesium can help prevent cramps and bananas contain 8 percent recommended daily value.			Some Banana Nutrition Facts The banana is perhaps the oldest recorded fruit in the world as well as the most consumed. But some dieters avoid bananas like a slippery peel. Are bananas unhealthy? Or have some carb-phobic dieters gone bananas? Here are some banana nutrition facts... Vitamin C which is found in bananas, helps the body to defend and heal against infections. This vitamin also proves valuable in the synthesis of the connective tissue, absorption of iron and the formation of blood. Not only are bananas rich in vitamin C, they also contain potassium. Potassium is a mineral that helps in the building of muscles and protein synthesis. This is done as potassium stimulates nerve impulses for muscle contraction. A diet rich in potassium is said to reduce the risk of hypertension and stroke. As bananas are free from sodium and very rich in potassium, they can be included in the diet to reduce the risk of high blood pressure. Bananas contain three natural sugars, sucrose, fructose and glucose, along with fiber. A banana thus gives an instant and substantial boost of energy. A banana contains vitamin B6, which helps in the synthesis of antibodies in the immune system, apart from red blood cell formation, protein metabolism and functioning of the central nervous system. No other fruit contains more digestible carbohydrates than bananas. This is advantageous, because the body burns off calories from carbohydrate more easily and quickly than calories from fat or protein.
There are several cultivars of banana grown with different size (4”-9”inch), color (yellow to brown), weight (70-150g) and taste. Structurally, fruit has a protective outer skin and delicious, sweet and tart, creamy-white color edible flesh inside. Plantains are other cultivar types, more often used as cooking bananas. They are closely related to the familiar fruit banana or dessert banana. Plantains are used as a staple diet in Thailand, Laos, and other Southeast Asian as well as in many parts of tropical African and Caribbean regions.				Amazing Facts
				The word banana is derived from the Arab word 'banan', which means finger. Bananas are harvested green because they keep ripening even after they are picked. Unlike most other fruits that grow on trees, bananas grow on plants. An average American is said to consume more than 28 pounds of bananas every year. Brisbane holds the world record for the longest banana split, which measured 4.6 miles or 7.3 kilometers. 3 medium bananas would weigh about a pound. Despite the fact that bananas love a tropical climate, they are grown in Iceland too, by heating the soil with geysers.
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Health benefits of banana fruit
§  Banana fruit is one of the high calorie tropical fruits. 100 g of fruit provides 90 calories. Besides, it contains good amounts of health benefiting anti-oxidants, minerals, and vitamins. §  Banana pulp is composed of soft, easily digestible flesh with simple sugars like fructose and sucrose that when eaten replenishes energy and revitalizes the body instantly; thus, for these qualities, bananas are being used by athletes to get instant energy and as supplement food in the treatment plan for underweight children. §  The fruit contains a good amount of soluble dietary fiber (7% of DRA per 100 g) that helps normal bowel movements; thereby reducing constipation problems. §  It contains health promoting flavonoid poly-phenolic antioxidants such as lutein, zea-xanthin, ß and α-carotenes in small amounts. These compounds help act as protective scavengers against oxygen-derived free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) that play a role in aging and various disease processes. §  It is also a very good source of vitamin-B6 (pyridoxine), provides about 28% of daily-recommended allowance. Pyridoxine is an important B-complex vitamin that has a beneficial role for the treatment of neuritis, and anemia. Further, it helps decrease homocystine (one of the causative factors in coronary artery disease (CHD) and stroke episodes) levels within the body. §  The fruit is an also moderate source of vitamin-C (about 8.7 mg per 100g). Consumption of foods rich in vitamin-C helps the body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful oxygen-free radicals. §  Fresh bananas provide adequate levels of minerals like copper, magnesium, and manganese. Magnesium is essential for bone strengthening and has a cardiac-protective role as well.  Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase. Copper is required in the production of red blood cells. §  Fresh banana is a very rich source of potassium. 100 g fruit provides 358 mg potassium. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids that helps control heart rate and blood pressure, countering bad effects of sodium.
Medicinal Importance	Banana fruits are sometimes known to cause skin and systemic allergic reactions. In "oral allergy syndrome" which causes itching and swelling around the mouth or throat within hours after ingestion and is related to birch tree and other pollen allergies. The other type of reaction is related to latex allergies and causes urticaria and potentially serious gastrointestinal symptoms like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.