The combination of bananas and
milk is common in smoothies and shakes.
However, despite the popularity of this pairing, many believe that
bananas and milk may not entirely be a match made in heaven.
Claims exist on the internet that mixing bananas and milk would
harm your digestive health, cause congestion, and cause havoc on your
waistline.
This article looks at whether eating bananas with milk is healthy.
Benefits
There are several potential benefits of consuming bananas and milk
together.
Highly nutritious
Both bananas and milk are rich in several essential nutrients.
For example, milk is an excellent protein, potassium, B vitamins,
and phosphorus source.
It's also high in calcium, an essential mineral for bone health,
muscle contractions, nerve function, etc.
On the other hand, bananas are high in fiber, manganese,
potassium, and vitamin B6.
Like other fruits, bananas are high in vitamin C, a water-soluble
vitamin that doubles an antioxidant to protect against cell damage.
Mixing bananas and milk in your diet can help you receive more
nutrients and increase your intake of vitamins and minerals.
Promotes post-workout recovery
What you eat after working out is incredibly important. Filling up
on the right foods can fuel muscle growth, enhance performance, and speed
recovery.
For example, eating a good amount of protein after exercise can
help repair tissues and promote muscle synthesis.
Consuming carbs can also rebuild glycogen stores in your muscles,
which may have been broken down for fuel during your workout.
Milk is often recommended as a post-workout snack because it
contains high-quality proteins like whey and casein.
Bananas are also a great option to help provide carbs to replace
glycogen stores in your muscles.
To get the best results, mix milk and bananas in a post-workout
smoothie for a simple way to increase your protein and carb intake.
Potential downsides
Despite the potential benefits of mixing milk and bananas, this
famous combination has a few disadvantages.
May contribute to weight gain.
Though milk and bananas are both very nutritious, they each
provide a moderate number of calories in each serving.
For instance, one medium banana has 105 calories.
Similarly, 1 cup (237 mL) of whole milk packs 149 calories.
While both ingredients are fine in moderation, enjoying multiple
servings of bananas and milk each day can cause your calorie intake to start
stacking up quickly.
Without making other adjustments to your diet, this may increase
weight gain over time.
May be incompatible
Bananas and milk are two ingredients considered incompatible by
Ayurvedic food principles.
Ayurveda is a holistic form of medicine focused on balancing
several forms of energy within your body to promote better health.
Eating bananas and milk together, according to Ayurveda, might
reduce Agni, or fire, which is responsible for food digestion and metabolism.
Consuming bananas and milk is also anecdotally claimed to
contribute to sinus congestion and increase the production of toxins in your
body.
However, while some research suggests that an Ayurvedic diet may
benefit weight management, there's little research on how it may affect other
aspects of health.
Furthermore, there's also no evidence to suggest that combining
foods, such as bananas and milk, can interfere with digestion or be harmful to
health.
Last but not least
Bananas and milk are both tasty and rich in essential nutrients.
Although Ayurveda considers bananas and milk incompatible, there
is no evidence that they are bad for health or digestion.
Therefore, these two nutritious ingredients can be safely enjoyed in moderation as part of a healthy, well-rounded diet.