Food and Nutrient Displacement by Daily Consumption of One Avocado: An Ancillary Study of the Habitual Diet and Avocado Trial

Objectives: The study aim was to investigate the effect of consuming one avocado daily on food and nutrients displacement. Methods: Habitual Diet and Avocado Intake Trial (HAT) is a multicenter, randomized parallel design that recruited participants with abdominal obesity. Participants were randomized into the avocado-supplemented group (AVO) (n=436, 72% female, 57% obese, 1868 ± 742 kcal/day) or habitual diet group (HAB) (n=462, 74% female, 57% obese, 1847 ± 712 kcal/day). The AVO group was provided with and instructed to consume a large avocado daily for 6 months. The HAB group was asked to limit the consumption of avocados to <2 per month. Three dietary recalls were collected during the study and analyzed using the NDSR 2017 and 2018. Results: The AVO group reported consuming less red and processed meats, poultry and fish, starchy vegetables and fats and oils (p< 0.05) than the HAB group. The AVO group reported consuming higher energy, total fat, MUFA, PUFA, dietary fiber, plant protein, and lower animal protein than the HAB group. The incorporation of one avocado daily (AVO group) displaced total protein (233%), sodium (431%), calcium (164%), energy (43%), SFA (75%), carbohydrate (87%) and plant protein (33%), and none for fiber, compared to the HAB group. Conclusions: Inclusion of one avocado per day resulted in the displacement of red and processed meats, sodium and SFA and an increase in dietary fiber, potassium, MUFA and PUFA, and plant protein, all of which improved the quality of the diet which would be expected to benefit overall health when implemented long term.