Before we start to talk about the calories:

Avocados are good for your health.

We are obviously not only interested in calories,but also in avocado-related health benefits. Being slim but unhealthy will not bring us what we want: you probably want to be slim, fit and healthy. So let's have a close look.

If your cholesterol level is a bit too high, the oleic acid, a mono-unsaturated fat which has shown to lower moderately high cholesterol levels. The improvement of your cholesterol balance can be proven after 7 days already!

Avocados have a high content of potassium, which keeps your blood pressure down and helps fight against circulatory diseases, like heart disease or stroke.

A folate-rich diet brings about a measurable lower risk of cardiovascular disease or stroke. One cup of avocado has 23% of the Daily Value for folate.

2 avocados, halved and pitted

200 grams medium sized shrimps (preferably fresh or frozen)

1 red pepper(paprika)

3 tbsp. mayonnaise

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

Garlic salt to taste

Clean avocado shells and reserve. Cook shrimps very short in boiling water with salt, and clean them. Wash and cut red pepper in little cubes. Blend avocado, red pepper, shrimps, mayonnaise, salt, pepper and garlic salt. Stuff mixture in shells and refrigerate. Serve on bed of lettuce as salad or appetizer.

Avocados have a high content of carotenoid lutein and related carotenoids (zeaxanthin, alpha-carotene and beta-carotene); and in addition significant quantities of tocopherols (vitamin E).

In a laboratory study published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, an extract of avocado containing these exact mixture of ingredients, showed to inhibit the growth of both androgen-dependent and androgen-independent prostate cancer cells.

Just as Nature intends, avocado delivers the whole health-promoting package.

Enjoy a few slices of avocado in your salad, or mix some chopped avocado into your favorite salsa: This will not only add a rich, creamy flavor, but through the combination of ingredients, your body will better absorb the health-promoting carotenoids that vegetables provide.

Carotenoids are lipophilic (literally, fat-loving, which means they are soluble in fat, not water), and if you eat them together with monounsaturated-fat-rich avocado you enhance their availability for your body.

In a scientific study about the health effects of avocado, it was shown that the availability of carotene and carotenoids highly increased by mixing the avocado in with a salad of carrot, lettuce and baby spinach or to salsa. When eaten in this mixture, the study participants absorbed significantly more of carotenoids from these foods. The improvement in carotenoid availability occurred even when a very small amount-as little as 2 ounces-of avocado was added.

Adding avocado to salad increased absorption of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene and lutein 7.2, 15.3, and 5.1 times higher, respectively, than the average amount of these carotenoids absorbed when avocado-free salad was eaten.

Adding avocado to salsa also increased lycopene and beta-carotene absorption 4.4 and 2.6 times higher, respectively, than the average amount of these nutrients absorbed from avocado-free salsa. Since avocados contain a large variety of nutrients including vitamins, minerals, as well as monounsaturated fat (which is good for your heart), eating a little avocado along with carotenoid-rich vegetables and fruits is an excellent way to improve your body's ability to absorb carotenoids while also receiving other nutritional-and taste-benefits.

I love Rob Wilson's recipes and meals.. After a long time career as a chef in great places, he now is Executive Chef at The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel. In his own words, Rob attributes his success to creative spark and "joie de cuisine." He loves to teach new students at his alma mater, Dana Hills High School, and local community colleges, along with kitchen interns from the world's most prestigious culinary schools.

have a look at this recipe. I tried it out myself, and his has become one of our favourites. I am not a chef at all, so if I can do it, probably you can do it better :-)

Avocado Lime Soup

Ingredients

• 1/3 Cup Onion, finely chopped
• 1/3 Cup Celery, finely chopped
• ¼ Cup Leek (white only), finely chopped
• 1/6 Tbsp Garlic, finely chopped
• 1 oz Unsalted butter
• ¼ Cup Flour
• 2 Pints Chicken stock
• 1 Pound California Avocados, pureed
• 1/8 Cup Fresh lime juice
• 1/12 Cup Cilantro, chopped
• Salt and freshly ground white pepper - to taste
• Creme fraiche or sour cream - as needed for garnish
• Roasted pimiento or red bell pepper, julienned - as needed for garnish

Instructions

• Sauté onion, celery, leek and garlic in butter until translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in flour; cook over low heat, stirring constantly 3 or 4 minutes.
• Whisk in stock; simmer until vegetables are very soft, about 20 minutes.
• Stir in avocado; simmer 10 minutes.
• Stir in lime juice, cilantro, salt and pepper.

To serve chilled or hot, garnish 1-1/2 cup soup with a dollop of crème fraiche and a few strips of pimiento.

Cleansing Oil

15 drops essential lavender oil 15 drops essential eucalytus oil ½ oz avocado oil

Mix the ingredients in a small bottle and store in the refrigerator.

Add a little to your face on a damp skin after you have cleansed the face.

Then add a night cream.

http://www.olehenriksen.com/

I started a search on CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid) after I bought the container. It claims that it helps to lose weight and, maybe more important, to keep it off. I discovered some really interesting facts...

Your only source of CLA comes from the foods they eat. Beef and dairy fats contain the largest quantities. When cattle eat grass, which is rich in linoleic acid, their digestive tract converts the linoleic acid into conjugated linoleic acid.

The amount of Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) in the diet of people in the developed world, has decreased because of changes in the way we eat and in how farmers are raising their cattle.

Over the last 30 years, worldwide people have made fundamental changes in their diets. Manual labor has decreased significantly, and people have adjusted their diets by eating less beef and dairy fats.

The intake of CLA decreased by 80% for two reasons. Today, dairy production and beef production rely heavily on bought foods like grains and soy, instead of pasture, which leads to a lower content of CLA in meat and dairy products. Secondly, we also eat less red meat and dairy fats, which even further reduces the amount of CLA in our diets.

A recent scientific study shows that CLA inhibits lipoprotein lipase. Lipoprotein Lipase is an enzyme which breaks down fat globules in the blood. So. The more Lipoprotein Lipase you have in your blood, the easier your fat cells can absorb the fat and store it as body fat. This means that the inhibition of lipoprotein lipase results in reduced fat deposition.

In addition, CLA stimulates the body to use stored fats as energy. CLA increases the activity of hormone sensitive lipase which breaks down fats stored in fat cells. The fats get returned to the blood stream to be used as an energy sourcefor muscle cells and the liver.

A recent research in humans showed a 20% reduction in body fat for those taking CLA. When taking 3 grams of CLA daily with meals, during a 90 day placebo-controlled study, the CLA group demonstrated a significant reduction in body fat from 21.3% to 17.5%. This meant an average weightloss of 7 pounds of fat. No change was seen with the placebo group.Not only did the CLA-group look trimmer and feel healthier, they also had an increased level of energy.

People taking a placebo put pounds back on at a ratio of 75% body fat, 25% lean muscle. Those that continued taking CLA and regained weight showed a 45% body fat, 55% lean muscle. Pariza theorizes that CLA may help block fat cells that are in the body from filling up with fat. CLA also may have some effect on skeletal muscle, possibly stimulating muscle growth and fat burning, Pariza says.

Dieters who took CLA reported no adverse effects and had some reductions in blood pressure and LDL (bad) cholesterol.

Other health benefits noted in the literature include a potential reduction in breast cancer by CLA blocking prostaglandin formation, prevent asthma attacks, and relaying the onset of type 2 diabetes and controlling the disease.