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SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article

Front. Nutr.
Sec. Nutritional Epidemiology
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1488907
This article is part of the Research Topic Fruits - Biochemistry and Nutritional Value View all 6 articles

Exploring Avocado Consumption and Health: A Scoping Review and Evidence Map

Provisionally accepted
  • 1 Traverse Science, Inc., Champaign, United States
  • 2 Department of Kinesiology, College of Science and Mathematics, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, California, United States
  • 3 Department of Health Sciences, College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Sargent College, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
  • 4 College of Health Solutions, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States
  • 5 Department of Food Science, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
  • 6 School of Psychology, Institute for Sustainable Food, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
  • 7 Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences & Department of Medicine, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, United States
  • 8 Avocado Nutrition Center, Hass Avocado Board, Mission Viejo, California, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Objective: This scoping review evaluates the breadth of research on avocado intake and health, considering all populations and health outcomes. Design: Any human intervention or observational study where effects could be isolated to consumption of avocado were included. A systematic literature search through April 2024 was conducted (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and CENTRAL) and supplemented by backwards citation screening. Dual screening, data extraction, and conflict resolution were performed by three reviewers and an interactive evidence map was created. Results: After deduplication, 8823 unique records were retrieved; 58 articles met inclusion criteria, comprising 45 unique studies (28 interventions, 17 observational studies). Studies were largely conducted in the United States or Latin America and generally included adults, with overweight/obesity, frequently with elevated lipid concentrations. Interventions assessed the impact of diets enriched in monounsaturated fatty acids, diets higher/lower in carbohydrates, or in free-feeding conditions. Larger amounts of avocados were used in interventions than commonly consumed in observational studies (60-300 vs. 0-10 g/d, respectively). Blood lipids, nutrient bioavailability, cardiovascular risk/risk, glycemia, and anthropometric variables were the most common outcomes reported across all studies. Conclusions: Future recommendations for novel research include the study of: European, Asian, adolescent or younger, and senior populations; dose-response designs and longer length interventions; dietary compensation; and the need for greater replication. The results have been made public and freely available, and a visual, interactive map was created to aid in science translation. This evidence map should enable future meta-analyses, enhance communication and transparency in avocado research, and serve as a resource for policy guidance.

    Keywords: Persea americana, Public Health, Obesity, Cardiovascular health, Dietary patterns

    Received: 30 Aug 2024; Accepted: 13 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Fleming, Paul, Fleming, Ventura, McCrory, Whisner, Spagnuolo, Dye, Kraft and Ford. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Stephen Andrew Fleming, Traverse Science, Inc., Champaign, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.