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of potassium-rich foods (an average of nine servings a day) had a risk of stroke 38 percent
lower than that of men who consumed fewer than four servings a day. In 2008, a similar
survey at the Queen’s Medical Center (Honolulu) showed a similar protective effect among
men and women using diuretic drugs (medicines that increase urination and thus the loss
of potassium).
Improved mood. Bananas and plantains are both rich in serotonin, dopamine, and other
natural mood-elevating neurotransmitters—natural chemicals that facilitate the transmis-
sion of impulses among nerve cells.
Adverse Effects Associated with This Food
Digestive problems. Unripe plantains, like unripe bananas, contain proteins that inhibit the
actions of amylase, an enzyme required to digest starch and other complex carbohydrates.
Food/Drug Interactions
False-positive test for carcinoid tumors. Carcinoid tumors, which may arise from tissues of
the endocrine system, the intestines, or the lungs, secrete serotonin, a natural chemical that
makes blood vessels expand or contract. Because serotonin is excreted in urine, these tumors
are diagnosed by measuring the levels of serotonin by-products in the urine. Plantains con-
tain large amounts of serotonin; eating them in the three days before a test for an endocrine
tumor might produce a false positive result, suggesting that you have the tumor when in fact
you don’t. Other foods high in serotonin are avocados, bananas, eggplant, pineapple, plums,
tomatoes, and walnuts.
Plantain