Are you eating bananas wrong? Gastroentrologist shares 2 common mistakes: ‘Avoid eating on empty stomach…’

Find out which habits may be reducing the efficiency of bananas and what you can do to fix it.

What you put on your plate directly determines your health, but how you eat it is equally important. The banana is one of the most common fruits and a staple in everyday routines. Eating is undoubtedly healthy, as bananas have several essential nutrients. However, as mentioned earlier, how you consume something also determines its health value. There are certain mistakes while eating bananas that may not be all that healthy.

What are the mistakes that may be reducing the effectiveness of bananas? HT Lifestyle, in an interview with Dr Ashok Kumar, senior consultant and unit head - medical gastroenterology at Dharamshila Narayana Superspeciality Hospital, Delhi, tried to identify the common habits that can make bananas less effective.

2 mistakes you are making

Here are some of the common mistakes that make your bananas unhealthy for you:

1. Eating bananas when they are raw or overripe

Avoid raw or overripe bananas.

The first recommendation from the doctor is to ensure you pay attention to the ripeness when eating bananas. A common mistake is that people do not consider the ripeness while consuming them. The stage at which the fruit is eaten influences how the body digests and absorbs its nutrients.

The second is eating bananas with too many dark or bruised spots. How do they impact you? The gastroentrologist reasoned, “Super ripe bananas have a lot of simple sugars, which makes your blood sugar spike quickly and then crash later.”

What is the best stage when they are still nutritious without any adverse effects? Dr Kumar advised eating bananas when the peel is bright yellow with just a few brown spots.

2. Eating on empty stomach

You may think eating a banana first thing in the morning gives your day a nutritious start, but that may not always be true. In fact, the very nutrients in bananas, potassium and magnesium, can make bananas ineffective if you are eating them on an empty stomach.

The doctor talked about an ‘imbalance,’ elaborating, “Avoid eating bananas on an empty stomach. When a person consumes magnesium and potassium found in bananas on an empty stomach without any other nutrients, it occasionally creates a temporary mineral imbalance in the bloodstream.”

What is the effect? You may feel lethargic, and your stomach may also feel upset.

How to correctly eat bananas?

Add banana to your Greek yoghurt.

The doctor advised eating bananas with other foods and pairing them for better results instead of eating them alone, as digestion works better when you combine them with a mix of nutrients.

“Adding a spoonful of nut butter or mixing the fruit into a bowl of Greek yoghurt slows down the absorption of sugar,” Dr Kumar recommended, underlining the value of this pairing in stabilising energy levels and ensuring smooth digestion of bananas by the digestive system. When you pair Greek yoghurt, you are ruling out any chances of side effects.

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.