Ten fantastic facts about bananas

If you thought that bananas were just for monkeys – think again! In addition to the many health benefits there are some other interesting uses and little-known facts about our super-hero of the fruit bowl:

• Run out of shoe polish? Rub the inside of a banana peel on your leather shoes or handbags for a sparkling shine!
  
  
• Trying to stop smoking? Due their high levels of potassium, magnesium and B-vitamins bananas can help speed-up recovery from the effects of nicotine withdrawal
  
  
• Bananas can help to overcome depression and seasonal affective disorder (SAD), due to their high levels of tryptophan, which your body turns into serotonin; the happy-mood brain neurotransmitter
  
  
• Warts can be removed by taping the inside of a piece of banana peel against the wart overnight
  
  
• If you rub some banana on an insect bite it will relieve any itching and irritation
  
  
• Bananas are great for relieving symptoms of morning sickness, including nausea and heartburn, so if you’re pregnant - keep one by your bed to eat as soon as you wake up!
  
  
• Eating a banana on a hot day will cool down your body temperature
  
  
• The correct name for a bunch of bananas is a hand and a single banana is a finger
  
  
• Canadians eat approximately 3 billion bananas a year (on average, that’s 83 bananas per person). 
  
  
• In Canadian supermarkets, bananas account for over 10% of total sales in the produce section and 1% of total sales.