~I honestly believe that bananas saved me to some degree when I was thick into my pneumonia suffering. After receiving two rounds of IV antibiotics while in the hospital on Halloween, the ER doctor prescribed me two oral antibiotics that I would take for at least a week (I can’t remember if they were the same ones I had gotten IV or two different ones).
I always tell my pet owners at work to give antibiotics with food, or else it could cause an upset stomach. I followed my own advice when I started my antibiotics, yet after finishing one and halfway through the other my stomach was WRECKED. A little TMI, but those antibiotics (I’m thinking Amoxicillin was the culprit) gave me diarrhea for a week straight. It was awful!
As a kid my mom told me that bananas were good to eat when you have diarrhea/other stomach upset. And she wasn’t wrong. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, bananas are a huge source of potassium, an essential nutrient that maintains normal levels of fluid inside of your cells, helping to replace electrolytes lost from vomiting or diarrhea. Potassium also supports normal blood pressure*, making them a vital part of a heart healthy diet. I had my mom buy a bunch of bananas and ate them everyday during the duration of my stomach issues. Slowly but surely everything evened out and my gut was back to normal operations.
While experiencing these banana benefits firsthand, I learned some other interesting facts about this quirky yellow fruit. The American Medical Association personally endorsed bananas in the early 20th century for treatment in celiac disease*.
I don’t know anyone that has celiac disease personally, but if any of my readers that do, is there any stock to this? Do bananas actually help with celiac symptoms? Let me know!
I also learned that banana peels were used in traditional & folk medicine as an antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. Pressing the inside of a banana peel onto a wound for several minutes increases wound healing for bug bites, minor burns and sunburn*. Despite being over 50% Italian I am fair skinned, thus prone to sunburn. I’m curious if this would actually help.
(*)= Quoted/research provided from Harvard School of Public Health
The Garden Goddess 