The benefits of avocado seed.

Avocado seeds have substantial nutritional value in addition to cosmetic and industrial benefits. This is due to the presence of some of the nutrients you get in avocado flesh including some chemical components with unproven safety for human consumption. For this reason, eating the seed isn’t recommended.

Avocado seeds can’t be eaten in their natural state because of their hardness. They are also called stones which to me is a good descriptor of their level of hardness. Those wishing to eat it usually dry it first which also reduces its potential for toxicity. In the dried state it is composed mainly of starch.

The dried seed is then blended to form a powder. Powdered avocado seeds make it possible to eat it by adding it to your meals in small amounts because of the bitterness and also possible side effects when consumed in larger quantities as proven in animal studies.

In this article, we’ll highlight the benefits of avocado seeds starting with their nutritional and chemical composition.

The nutritional and chemical(Phytochemical) composition of avocado seeds.

Though there hasn’t been much research on the safety of avocado seeds for human consumption, their nutritional and phytochemical composition has been well-researched and documented as contained in the National Library of Medicine.¹

The seeds make up about 13 – 17 percent of avocado fruit and are rich in various bioactive compounds and nutrients as shown in the table below.

We know for a fact avocados are low in carbohydrates and most of the calories they contain come from healthy fatty acids. However, carbs make up 64.9% of the big molecules you’ll find in an avocado seed. Furthermore, Starch constitutes 91.2% of these carbs. (source)

What are the benefits of avocado seed?

Research has found extracts of avocado seeds to have numerous health benefits as well as industrial, and cosmetic uses. Nonetheless, no research has yet proven the safety of consuming avocado seeds for its health benefits. Below are some of the potential benefits of avocado seeds.

Industrial.

• Textiles: Avocado seed extract is used as ink on textiles and even for writing.
• Pharmaceutical: The starch derived from the seeds, because of its low fiber content, is used as a gelling agent and emulsifier in the pharmaceutical industry.
• Foods: Flour derived from avocado seeds has good protein, fat, and fiber content that has made it useful as a nutrient source in the baking of cakes, cookies, and bread. This is a good alternative to synthetic food additives. Its starch is also used as a thickener and gelling agent in foods as well as a natural food dye. (source) Natural food dyes are better, safer, and healthier than artificial ones that have been in use for years.

Cosmetic.

The milk derived from avocado seed is known to turn red on exposure to the air. For this reason, it is employed as a topical ointment. It also has rubefacient properties by which it causes dilation of superficial blood vessels (the capillaries) network thereby boosting circulation.

8 Health benefits of avocado seeds.

1. Antioxidant benefits: They contain secondary metabolites called phenolic compounds and procyanidins which scavenge for free radicals in your body but are also used in foods to prevent oxidation(source).²

2. Anti-diabetic: One of the health benefits of avocado flesh is the management of diabetes since it’s low in carbs as discussed in detail in a previous article. Extracts from its seed enhance the conversion of blood glucose to glycogen(the storage form of glucose) in the liver which is a vital process in the maintenance of blood sugar levels.

3. Antimicrobial benefits: It contains compounds that damage the cellular membranes of microbes. This leads to the leaking of their intracellular materials and ultimately results in the death of these microbial cells. This confers avocado seeds with both antibacterial and antifungal properties.

4. Anti-cancer effect: It contains flavanol compounds like bis-catechin that suppress the multiplication and inflammation of cancerous cells.

5. Anti-inflammatory and analgesic effect: A study has shown infusion and methanolic extracts from avocado seeds have potential anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties.³

6. Cholesterol control: The high unsaturated fatty acid contents in avocados are known to reduce cholesterol. Research has shown the seeds also have components that help tackle hypercholesterolemia.

7. Surgical benefits: One animal study suggests avocado seed powder could reduce Cyclosporine A (CsA) induced nephrotoxicity following organ transplantation by enhancement of CsA’s immunosuppressive effect while reducing its side effects.⁴ CsA is an antibiotic derived from a fungus called Tolypocladium inflatum gams.

8. Cancer treatment: A study has shown lipid-rich extracts from avocado seeds(LEAS) have been found to have cytotoxic and antiproliferative effects on bone cancer cells and can also be used synergistically with cancer drugs for enhanced potency.⁵ It is believed to have potential for use for this purpose in dogs and humans.

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Benefits of avocado seed sexually.

Avocado flesh and avocado seeds share similarities in their nutritional contents. For this reason, the seeds also have the same sexual benefits as the flesh. For instance, their anti-oxidant effects help protect the cells in sexual organs from oxidative damage. You may want to see an earlier article where this was discussed.

Prostate and cervical cancers which affect sexual organs, are also inhibited by the anti-cancer properties of the seeds. It also boosts fertility or reproduction by the presence of elements like zinc. The methanolic extracts from the seeds can boost fertilization potential in diabetic men.

Avocado seed benefits for men and women.

The benefits of avocado seeds for men and women are no other than their health benefits as highlighted earlier in this article. Most of these benefits are also provided by avocado flesh as discussed in detail in a previous article you may want to see. Some of the benefits are:

Anti-aging which is due to its anti-oxidant effect.

• Maintenance of vision,
• Cancer prevention,
• Cholesterol reduction,
• Anti-bacterial effect,
• Anti-fungal effects,
• Analgesia and anti-inflammatory benefits, etc.

These are in addition to the sexual and reproductive benefits for men and women as mentioned earlier.

Side effects of avocado seed.

Studies so far have mainly been carried out on animals and these have shown there are potential side effects when taken in higher doses. Laboratory rats have died from exposure to high amounts of avocado seed extracts and there is yet no evidence of their safety for humans.

You may want to avoid taking avocado seed powder or the extracts especially if you are pregnant or a lactating mother.

Research suggests avocado seed extracts have an immunosuppressive effect but this may be useful in the reduction of oxidative stress-dependent nephrotoxicity in patients caused by the use of cyclosporine antibiotics, in post-organ transplant surgery.

Is avocado seed poisonous?

Avocado seeds contain tannins which can be poisonous, especially in high doses and they are present in fresh avocado seeds. Luckily, the process of preparing avocado seed powder requires it to be dried first. So if you must eat avocado seeds, dry them first and keep your consumption low.

Be that as it may, both the fresh and dried seeds contain saponins which are just as poisonous as tannins when taken in high doses for extended periods. They could induce symptoms like:

• Diarrhea,
• Paralysis,
• vomiting,
• loss of appetite. (source)

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Reference

1. Bangar, S. P., Dunno, K., Dhull, S. B., Siroha, A. K., Changan, S., Maqsood, S., & Rusu, A. V. (2022). Avocado seed discoveries: Chemical composition, biological properties, and industrial food applications. Food Chemistry: X, 16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fochx.2022.100507 ↩︎
2. Gómez, F. S., Sánchez, S. P., Iradi, M. G., Azman, N. A., & Almajano, M. P. (2014). Avocado Seeds: Extraction Optimization and Possible Use as Antioxidant in Food. Antioxidants, 3(2), 439-454. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox3020439 ↩︎
3. Kristanti, Caecilia D., et al. “Anti-inflammatory and Analgesic Activities of Avocado Seed (Persea Americana Mill.).” Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Community, vol. 14, no. 2, 2017, pp. 104-111, doi:10.24071/jpsc.142858. ↩︎
4. Elmoslemany, A. M., A., M., Ghamry, H. I., Alshahrani, M. Y., Zidan, N. S., & Zedan, A. M. (2021). Avocado Seeds Relieve Oxidative Stress-Dependent Nephrotoxicity but Enhance Immunosuppression Induced by Cyclosporine in Rats. Antioxidants, 10(8), 1194. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox10081194 ↩︎
5. Edmundo, J. (2020). Cytotoxicity of a Lipid-Rich Extract from Native Mexican Avocado Seed (Persea americana var. Drymifolia) on Canine Osteosarcoma D-17 Cells and Synergistic Activity with Cytostatic Drugs. Molecules, 26(14), 4178. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26144178 ↩︎