Vitamins from bananas: the most important questions and answers

Each of us knows that bananas are very healthy. They should give energy, especially during sport, and keep our body healthy. But what vitamins does a banana have and how many of the individual vitamins?

In our article we want to show you exactly which vitamins are contained in bananas. We want to show you which vitamins are particularly important for you and how much of them you should take for your health. We also show you the nutritional values ​​​​of a banana and what alternatives to bananas there are.

the essentials in brief

• Bananas are an important supplier of energy, which has a lot of vitamin B and vitamin C. Bananas also have important healthy minerals and fiber.
• Banana vitamins are very good for our health. They can protect us from diseases and shorten the duration of illness.
• One should consume the right amount of banana vitamins. An overdose is just as harmful as a vitamin deficiency. The daily requirement for bananas is estimated at 2 bananas per day.

Vitamins from bananas: what you should know

When it comes to the ingredients of food, a lot of information can be obtained and it is often difficult to filter out the most important information.

We have selected the most important questions about banana vitamins for you and hope that this article will clear all your doubts about banana vitamins.

What vitamins does a banana have?

A normal banana has a multitude of important and different vitamins. Bananas are rich in vitamin B6 and vitamin C. To be more specific, bananas have the following vitamins:

• Vitamin B1
• Vitamin B3
• Vitamin B5
• Vitamin B6
• Vitamin B9 (folic acid)
• vitamin C
• vitamin E

There are still a few vitamins from bananas, but they are not listed. However, these vitamins are not present in such large amounts to specifically mention them as important banana vitamins.

Bananas have a lot of vitamins that are said to give us energy and keep us healthy. (Image source: Giorgio Trovato / unsplash)

How high is the vitamin content in bananas?

To indicate the amount of vitamins of products are often indicated the amount of vitamins per 100 grams of the amount of food. However, an average banana usually weighs 120 grams. We have created a table for you where you can see the amount of vitamins in 100 grams and in a normal banana.

vitamins	per 100g	per 1 banana (120g)
Vitamin B1	0.04 mg	0.048mg
Vitamin B3	0.65 mg	0.78 mg
Vitamin B5	0.23 mg	0.28 mg
Vitamin B6	0.36 mg	0.43 mg
Vitamin B9	0.014 mg	0.017mg
vitamin C	12 mg	14.4 mg
vitamin E	0.27 mg	0.32 mg

Bananas are high in vitamin C. But vitamin B6 is plentiful. With 0.36 mg, one banana covers a third of the daily requirement. But bananas also have a lot of vitamin B3, folic acid and vitamin E.

What are the nutritional values ​​of a banana?

The striking thing about bananas is that they have significantly more carbohydrates and calories than other fruits. Bananas have a lot of fructose, which makes the banana a suitable source of energy. Bananas are commonly eaten by athletes to get more energy during exercise. A banana per 100 grams has the following nutritional values:

• Energy: 96 kcal / 402 kJ
• Fat: 0.18g
• Protein: 1.1g
• Carbohydrates: 20 g
• of which sugar: 17.2 g

Bananas are also high in copper, magnesium and potassium. If you should eat a banana, you have already covered 10% of the substances of the daily requirement. Furthermore, bananas have 2 grams of fiber, which is particularly good for digestion.

How high should my daily requirement of bananas be?

There are many different studies that show how high a person's daily vitamin requirement should be. The World Health Organization recommends consuming 5 servings of fruit and vegetables a day. Of course, a healthy mix can be assumed here and it is best not to eat 5 bananas a day and ignore the other fruits.

A study has found that consuming bananas every day doesn't do much harm to health, but actually provides more benefits to the body.(1) So it can be concluded that eating a banana every day is not a problem.

The daily vitamin requirement is as follows:

vitamins	Vitamin needs women	Vitamin requirements men
Vitamin B1	1.0 mg	1.2 mg
Vitamin B3	12 mg	15 mg
Vitamin B6	1.4 mg	1.4 mg
Vitamin B9	0.3 mg	0.3 mg
vitamin C	95 mg	110 mg
vitamin E	12 mg	14 mg

Of course, you also have to differentiate between infants and pregnant women, but it is best to use these guidelines as a guide. The majority believe that 2 bananas a day is best for the body. But if you eat more bananas, the body could do more harm than good.

What are the benefits of bananas as a source of vitamins?

Bananas are rich in vitamin C. Consuming plenty of vitamin C helps protect the body against colds and nine infections. It can also greatly reduce the duration of illness from a flu or cold. (2) Vitamin C is also said to be.(3) Another point is that vitamin C is good for the joints and helps prevent fractures in old age.(4)

Vitamin C is also a good help against severe asthma symptoms.

The folic acid in bananas also has the advantage that it can help against depression. Depression is a common cause of folate deficiency, and getting enough vitamin B9 improves it.(5)

Bananas are a good way to protect yourself from colds and even depression. (Image source: Giorgio Trovato / unsplash)

Another great benefit of bananas is vitamin B3. It is said to help the skin very well and protect it from acne and other skin infections. It can also prevent age spots and it also helps repair DNA damage.(6)

Is a lack of vitamins harmful?

As with any food, too little is always harmful. If you don't eat bananas, then you definitely have too little vitamin C. Too little vitamin C consumption leads to a weakening of the immune system. A weakened immune system makes you more susceptible to inflammation and can cause more serious damage to your body.(7)

Fatigue, difficulty breathing and loss of appetite are the first symptoms of a folic acid deficiency.

In adults, a lack of folic acid can lead to problems with the formation of new red blood cells. This can lead to anemia. A folic acid deficiency is particularly unfavorable during pregnancy and can lead to severe developmental disorders of the nerve tissue in the unborn child.

As with a vitamin B9 deficiency, a vitamin B6 deficiency also leads to anemia. But skin rashes, diarrhea and vomiting are also the consequences of a vitamin B6 deficiency. Babies with a vitamin B6 deficiency can become cramped and restricted in their movement.

Too little vitamin B6 can also lead to disorders of the nervous system and thus to increased sensitivity to light.

A lack of vitamin E has particularly bad effects. A low vitamin E consumption can lead to restricted functions of the reflexes and coordination. In addition, people with a vitamin E deficiency can develop severe anemia.

Can you overdose on vitamins with bananas?

Here too, as with a deficiency, one can say that too much can also be harmful. If you eat a lot of bananas a day, you automatically take in a lot of vitamin C. A study has shown that consuming too much vitamin C can lead to the formation of kidney stones.(8)

The overdose of vitamin B6 can also have serious consequences. Too much can promote the formation of cancer cells in the lungs. (9) One may also suffer nerve disorders and skin rashes as well.

Obtaining an overdose of vitamins is relatively hard to come by just consuming bananas. You would have to consume a large amount of bananas over a period of time. Nevertheless, you should be careful and not think that too much is good for you.

What do the vitamins in bananas help against?

Banana vitamins can prevent many different diseases. One study found that consuming bananas can prevent cancer.

Bananas are good for preventing diarrhea and facilitating digestion.

Bananas activate certain defense mechanisms, which particularly promote the formation of TNF (tumor necrosis factor). TNF is very important in fighting cancer and can therefore protect the body from serious cancer diseases later.(10)

If you consume enough bananas, you also get enough B vitamins. Vitamin B is very good for the blood and therefore bananas can help to regulate blood pressure. It can also protect you from heart attacks and strokes later on.

Vitamin C and folic acid are also known to be very good for the skin. Bananas can keep skin healthy and firm. Bananas can also slow down skin aging.

Are bananas sufficient as a source of vitamins?

Of course, while bananas are plentiful in several essential vitamins, there is no point in ignoring the other essential vitamins. Unfortunately, vitamin A and vitamin D are present in very small amounts in bananas and these are essential for the body.

But bananas have many special properties that make it possible to replace some vitamins. Namely, bananas contain various of carotenoids (provitamin A, beta-carotene and alpha-carotene). These carotenoids can be converted into vitamin A by the body, thus compensating for the vitamin A deficiency.

Of course, you shouldn't rely on it and rather consume other foods with plenty of vitamin A. That's why you can answer the question of whether bananas are sufficient as a vitamin supplier with no. Bananas are a good vitamin bomb, but not enough to be considered the sole source of vitamins.

What alternatives are there to bananas?

So if you eat a banana every day, you are not doing anything wrong and are absorbing important vitamins. But of course there are also people among us who do not have a great fondness for bananas. But even for these people there are alternatives where you can get the same vitamins.

Meat

Meat is mostly B vitamins. Namely vitamin B1 (predominantly in pork), vitamin B6 and vitamin B12. Meat also has a lot of vitamin K and minerals such as sodium, potassium, iron and zinc.

Fish

Unlike bananas, fish has a lot of vitamin D. But like bananas, fish also has a wide range of B vitamins. Especially B1, B2, B6 and B12. This combination makes fish a good substitute for bananas.

avocados

Avocados are considered a real miracle fruit. They contain almost the same vitamins as bananas. So a lot of vitamin C, vitamin B and vitamin E. In addition, avocados have a high content of healthy fats and are very good for the metabolism.

kiwis

Kiwis have an extremely high vitamin C content. Also, kiwis have almost the same amount of potassium as bananas. Kiwis are high in fiber and a good source of folate. In addition, kiwis are considered to be one of the most nutritious fruits.

Kiwis are also rich in vitamins and can be consumed as an alternative to bananas. (Image source: unsplash / Anton)

dates

Just like bananas, dates also contain a lot of magnesium and potassium. They are also a very good source of vitamin B and, like bananas, have a lot of important fiber. Dates also contain a lot of vitamin A, which is particularly good for the eyes.

apples

Apples are also a real vitamin bomb. They contain a lot of vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C and vitamin E. Apples also contain important minerals that lower cholesterol levels and they can protect against lung diseases very well

vitamin tablets

Of course, you can also acquire the important banana vitamins via vitamin tablets. You can thus control the vitamin import well and cover the vitamin requirement. However, this is not a good substitute for consuming food and tablets should only be used in special cases.

Conclusion

Bananas have a large variety of different and important vitamins. These give us energy and are fundamentally important for our health. For example, banana vitamins can protect us from cancer and regulate our blood pressure.

You shouldn't eat too few banana vitamins, but of course not too much either. It would be best to eat up to 2 bananas a day to meet an important part of the vitamin needs. There are also many good alternatives, but if you have the opportunity to access bananas, then do so without thinking twice.

Itemization(10)

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2. Harri Hemilä, Pekka Louhiala JR Soc Med. 2007 Nov; 100(11): 495-498. doi: 10.1258/jrsm.100.11.495 source
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4. McAlindon TE, Jacques P, Zhang Y, Hannan MT, Aliabadi P, Weissman B, Rush D, Levy D, Felson DT. Do antioxidant micronutrients protect against the development and progression of knee osteoarthritis? arthritis rheumatism. 1996 Apr;39(4):648-56. doi: 10.1002/art.1780390417. PMID: 8630116 Source
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6. Kajal Babamiri, MD, Reza Nassab, MBChB, MBA, MRCSEd, MRCSEng, Cosmeceuticals: The Evidence Behind the Retinoids, Aesthetic Surgery Journal, Volume 30, Issue 1, January 2010, Pages 74-77 Source
7. Carr AC, Maggini S. Vitamin C and Immune Function. nutrients. 2017 Nov 3;9(11):1211. doi: 10.3390/nu9111211. PMID: 29099763; PMCID: PMC5707683 Source
8. Fletcher RH. The risk of taking ascorbic acid. JAMA Intern Med. 2013 Mar 11;173(5):375-94. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2013.2305. PMID: 23381657 Source
9. Brasky TM, White E, Chen CL. Long-Term, Supplemental, One-Carbon Metabolism-Related Vitamin B Use in Relation to Lung Cancer Risk in the Vitamins and Lifestyle (VITAL) Cohort. J Clin Oncol. 2017 Oct 20;35(30):3440-3448. doi: 10.1200/JCO.2017.72.7735. Epub 2017 Aug 22. PMID: 28829668; PMCID: PMC5648175 Source
10. Wang R, Feng X, Zhu K, Zhao X, Suo H. Preventive activity of banana peel polyphenols on CCl4-induced experimental hepatic injury in Kunming mice. Exp Ther Med. 2016 May;11(5):1947-1954. doi: 10.3892/etm.2016.3155. Epub 2016 Mar 11. PMID: 27168833; PMCID: PMC4840597 Source