Everybody has heard the popular and often quoted “An Apple a day keeps the doctor away” phrase, which is meant to encourage children and even adults to consume one piece of apple for maximum health. However, what many are not aware of is that two bananas a day has been observed to produce better results than one apple at nearly half the price. So in order to further evaluate this, let us see if the elongated, yellow fruit is qualified to enter the realm of Superfoods.

Historically, the modern banana is a cultivated product from their wild cousins that the early humans did not find to be very edible. On record, the banana was first domesticated by Southeast Asian farmers. A recent gathering of archaeological and palaeoenvironmental evidence suggests that banana cultivation began as early as 5000 to 8000 B.C.E. in Papua New Guinea. After that, it was conjectured that other species were proliferated to other parts south of the continent and independently domesticated.

In the 15^th and 16^th century, Portuguese colonists started banana plantations in the Atlantic islands, Brazil and west Africa while North Americans began consuming banana on a small scale at very high prices only after the Civil War and became widespread in the 1880s.

Nowadays the banana is one of the most widespread agricultural products in the world owing to its amazing resilience to weather conditions except in the coldest reaches of the planet. Because of its taste, it has also garnered a lot of fans and is available to be enjoyed in many forms from being part of a dessert as banana split or fried as banana fritters.

As to the health benefits, the banana does not lose out to other fruits either and even surpasses some of them, flashy as they may be. For the complete list, here they are:

Immune system boosting

The banana has been shown to have nutritional properties which boost the immunity of the body from diseases even more effectively than apples do as it contains more of it. Plus, with its amiable taste and ease to carry, the banana is one of the handiest fruits to eat.

 Lots and lots of Energy

If somebody tells you that a banana or two can keep you going the whole day without eating anything else, you had better believe them. With the vast amount of vitamins and minerals stuffed into the little fruit, it provides plenty of energy barring anything else.

Happy days

Eating bananas have been shown to lift the spirit of anyone owing partly to the amount of energy it gives you and also the mood regulating substance called tryptophan that puts a smile on your face.

Ridding yourself of menstrual cramps

This is especially good news for ladies who have a big problem with their monthly visitor and want to do something about it without resorting to medicine. The high levels of vitamin B6 in bananas help regulate blood glucose levels and alleviate cramps and pains.

Get Smart

Recent studies have shown that regular consumption of bananas can have a measurable effect in intelligence which helps in carrying out tasks that require the use of the mind more efficiently.

Hangover solution

Waking up after a rough night is not exactly the most comfortable experience. But eating bananas will do a good job of easing the headaches and sensitivity to glare.

Iron for iron’s sake

Those with iron deficiencies will find that a healthy consumption of the yellow delight can go a long way to supplementing that and will have better results if coupled with vitamins.

Will not make you fat

Consuming enough bananas to add enough pounds to gripe about would be quite an accomplishment itself since the fruit has a habit of making you full after just a few pieces. This makes it the perfect companion to getting in shape.