ANTI-CANCER BANANAS: But Not the Smooth-Skin Ones. Here's Why

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Ripe bananas with some black and light brown spots on the peel--this is what you should choose when buying bananas. Tell you later. We Filipinos love bananas and folks anywhere in the world love it, too. It's a global fruit available for all seasons.

And it's super nutritious. Experts say it's more nutritious than apples so that a banana a day helps keep ailments away--especially cancer. If you choose fully ripe bananas with some black and light brown spots on the peel, the more nutrition and anti-cancer properties they have. Ripe bananas are rich in TNF or Tumor Necrosis Factor (or apoptosis).

Necrosis means death of defective cells. In the case of TNF in bananas, it's death of cancerous cells.

TNF Power

TNF power helps your immune system resist cancer by fighting the abnormal cells that mutate and turn into cancer or tumors. TNF also helps prevent other deadly diseases due to harmful cell mutations. In Japan, researches found that the riper bananas are, the more TNF they have and the more antioxidants they give you. They're sweeter and tastier, too, and this means their starch has turned into simple sugars that are easier to digest.

In a gist, eating fully ripe bananas with full nutrition:

1. Triggers more white blood cell production. 
2. Boosts your immune system to fight diseases and infections.
3. Gives you more TNF.

Eating a banana a day is strongly recommended. It's not just a dessert--it's like taking power-packed natural vitamins and minerals daily. And mind you, eat bananas before meals so your body can absorb its nutrients better and easier. I eat about 2 to 3 bananas a day. Just don't eat more than 5 a day to prevent potassium poisoning. And yes, bananas are good for the heart due to its potassium content.

Smooth Peels Versus Spotted

Smooth bananas may look better and more attractive, but bananas with black spots on the peel are 8 times more nutritious, say experts. I like eating latundan bananas (the smaller variety) because they are sweeter, have more black spots, and my grandma said it has more nutrition. It's cheaper, too, compared to lakatan, the bigger variety popular in Manila.

Bananas are sometimes likened to Lentinan which is an immuno-stimulant given intravenously to cancer patients as an anti-cancer. Thus, ripe bananas powerfully help fight cancers by triggering more white blood cell production which fights cell mutation.

But keep away from over-ripe bananas, though, especially those with breaks on the skin.