I used to LOATHE bananas (don't ask why, I don't get it either). Now, I have grown to enjoy them. I still prefer them in an altered state though be it cooked or frozen, with peanut butter or chocolate.
Banana Fun Facts
In 2001, there were more than 300 banana-related accidents in Britain, most involving people slipping on skins.
Bananas are America's #1 fruit and the average American consumes over 28 pounds of bananas each year.
There is no such thing as a banana tree. Bananas grow on plants.
Banana plants are the largest plants on earth without a woody stem. They are actually giant herbs of the same family as lilies, orchids and palms.
Bananas are not grown commercially in the continental United States. They are grown in Latin and South America from countries like Costa Rica, Ecuador, Colombia, Honduras, Panama and Guatemala.
The word 'banan' is Arabic for finger.
History
Some horticulturists suspect that the banana was the earth's first fruit. Banana plants have been in cultivation since the time of recorded history. One of the first records of bananas dates back to Alexander the Great's conquest of India where he first discovered bananas in 327 B.C.
When Spanish explorers came to the New World, so did the banana. According to Spanish history, Friar Tomas de Berlanga brought the first banana root stocks to the Western Hemisphere.
Bananas were officially introduced to the American public at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition. Each banana was wrapped in foil and sold for 10 cents. Before that time, bananas came to America on the decks of sailing ships as sailors took a few stems home after traveling in the Caribbean.
Get Healthy! Eat a Banana. You know what they say "A banana a day keeps the doctor away"
My two favorite facts from the above article are :
1) One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.
2) PMS: Forget the pills eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.
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