What is a Banana?

![image140.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/ebingo/23x1YRutj5Zp93c8uWHHEUizDScEpCuu9WuweFqnjooNfnnrVTkEgPS5V2FBfC5HWSbrX.png)
[Source](https://unsplash.com/photos/sf_1ZDA1YFw)


The banana in its simplest form is a **cylinder, long, and curved**…sort of like the human male sex organ. But let's not dwell on that. It is classified as a **berry** which is weird given that it looks nothing like its cousins that are pink and have dots all over them.

Banana is involved in some controversy where people are not sure what exactly it is, some think it better to call it **plantain** (which is also a long cylindrical male penis fruit but bigger). If you are reading this from America then you probably think the difference is stupid, at least that’s what my cousin who lived in America says, but if you are Nigerian then you know that Plantains are slightly bigger and they “slap”(because of the **starch**). 


But for those who have never seen a banana before I’ll continue down the path of describing this mythical creature. It is finger-like, and it is firm especially when it's not overripe. It can be **green, yellow or brown** (don’t be racist). Some people have seen **purple and red** coloured bananas, but I don’t want to know what those taste like.

The genus of this pole-like fruit is known as **Musa**. Not **Musa** your Hausa friend I mean **Musa** the fruit.


![image140;.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/ebingo/23wzxnYS8cD21L17btaEgSiwQZ1HVQR2udwJ7jcVBPFrqmMs5M7RDPAacWeoVEDC6KZLP.png)
[Source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Musa#/media/File:Ahmed_Musa_20180625.jpg)

So far it is believed that **Musa** has travelled the world and is currently in 135 countries…I am jealous (I literally have not been to any country-- Because Nigeria doesn’t count). **India and China** are one of the world's most successful in growing bananas. In **2017 close to 40% of every banana consumed in the world** was made by these banana enthusiasts.



**Musa** is loved and respected everywhere it finds itself, but what if I told you that **Musa** had superpowers?


# Musa and Sarah
Yes that's right our super here Mighty M has a girlfriend and she has superpowers too, she wants everyone to be in a good mood.


**Here are the Facts**
Her name is not Sarah first of all… it's Serotonin (Yes, I know that is a long reach from Sarah to Sssserotonin) but bare with me while I give you this information I have to give you barely...fruit (get it!?).

So **Musa’s** girlfriend is a chemical, but not just any chemical, she is a chemical produced in the brain. What kind of chemical is produced in the brain you might ask. Well, let me explain. This chemical is one of many chemicals known as Neurotransmitters. Bare with me, don’t leave my post just yet.

So Sarah is a neurotransmitter okay? She makes people feel better, well how you might ask, Well I’ll tell you. In the most basic way possible…and don’t quote me anywhere but she sends happy signals. She does this through the tiny wires of the brain called neurones.

Many research works have linked low moods to low levels of Sarah. But some studies have also proved this to not be the case and believe that we are all stupid, but you know what? That’s a topic for another day. So we stick with the fact that serotonin makes for good moods.

Now from what we know about banana, it has been known to contain serotonin.

Remember it this way, **Musa** has Serah at heart…Awwn…


![image140;xas.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/ebingo/23wgDKmGchwQiPQF584yLJQQvn4HQhxxxa4B2Q4Qa8e2DBZMvi7uXxpGwudWsruaSmrk7.png)

[Source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Paulson#/media/File:Sarah_Paulson_(42754338105)_(cropped).jpg
)

# Without Sarah
Even though, our brains need this chemical or else we feel sad (more than sad…depressed). The way people behave when they are depressed is that they stop liking things they usually like. They keep a sad look, they have difficulty sleeping, they lose their appetite, and they lose weight. 


In case you are wondering, these are very terrible features but that’s not all. People who are depressed are more likely to consider killing themselves (more than half of those who are depressed have these thoughts).

These are horrible things but if you are thinking about **Musa** and Sarah to treat this, well…unfortunately you’d be wrong to think that you could just eat a few fingers of banana and you’d treat this condition because when it goes into the stomach, it can not make it to the brain. The brain has a filter known as the **Blood Brain Barrier** that acts as a bouncer at the club.


# But here is the good news
How can there be good news from this? Well, there is. Well, **Musa** has some extra stuff up his sleeves…**Vitamine B6**!!

**So what does Vitamin B6 do?** Vitamin B6 like most vitamins is involved in processes in the cell called **metabolism**. Metabolism is just a fancy term for **building and breaking down things**.

**So what does Vitamin 6 build or break down?**
Vitamin B6 builds Serotonin, which is incredible as the one that was found in bananas naturally can not cross the **blood-brain barrier**.

![image913.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/ebingo/23vsLbxrdCpeQCoCLgFtN4fzZji1VfbSYFZwoxTgXBfFiG1ZGNYREMh5e6d4fustSiARg.png)
[Source](https://unsplash.com/photos/HeKAtfot-Dc)


# problem solved?
Well not exactly…you see if the serotonin was going straight into the brain, it would probably not be enough, now vitamin B6 provides a small part of what is usually needed to treat the condition that is being made out of this whole process…so…sadly, banana can’t cure depression, but is sure does help.

# In addition
Banana is not all just vitamin B, serotonin and vibes. Banana has other vitamins like Vitamin C. Banana also has fibres that help with bowel movement, and then there are micronutrients like potassium, magnesium and manganese.


# Reference
- [Very Well Mind](https://www.verywellmind.com/bananas-increase-serotonin-fact-or-fiction-1066923
)
- [Harvard Edu](https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/food-features/bananas/#:~:text=One%20serving%2C%20or%20one%20medium,fiber%2C%20and%20450%20mg%20potassium.)