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Bananas in pancreatitis: you can or not

, medical expert
Last reviewed: 03.07.2025
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Correct changes in nutrition are the basis for the fastest cure of acute pancreatitis. In chronic pancreatitis, a properly composed diet allows you to minimize the likelihood of exacerbation of the disease. However, the stricter the diet, the more questions arise in the sick person. For example, is it possible to eat fruits - in particular, bananas with pancreatitis?

Can you eat bananas if you have pancreatitis?

The list of products to be excluded from the diet for pancreatitis includes many berries and fruits. For example, green apples, apricots, peaches, gooseberries, currants, grapes, plums, blackberries, cherries are prohibited. Bananas are considered a relative product - in some cases, their consumption is recommended to be limited, and in others - even advised to be consumed. To understand this issue and not harm your health, you first need to familiarize yourself with the following information:

  • Bananas are indeed included in the list of dietary fruits, as they are easily perceived and digested by a healthy human body. The only thing is that bananas are quite high in calories, so you need to be careful with them if you are obese or have a carbohydrate metabolism disorder.
  • Bananas are not recommended to be consumed in large quantities even by absolutely healthy people, especially at night. And with pancreatitis, the maximum allowed consumption is one or two fruits per day, no more.
  • The digestive system most easily accepts ripe bananas, with yellow skin and soft internal texture. In case of gastrointestinal diseases – and, in particular, pancreatitis – it is allowed to eat such bananas. Green and hard fruits, as well as darkened and rotten pulp should not be eaten – such bananas will definitely not bring benefits to pancreatitis.
  • In case of digestive diseases, including pancreatitis, it is better to eat bananas not raw, but thermally processed - for example, finely chopped fruits can be added to viscous porridges, casseroles, cottage cheese, etc. It is preferable to boil or bake the banana - this way its pulp is as easily digested as possible.

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Indications

Bananas have firmly established themselves on our tables, because they are affordable and sold throughout the year. This delicacy is not only extremely common, but also very healthy. Thus, fresh pulp of the fruit contains up to 75% moisture, up to 25% of various sugars, protein, starch, up to 0.6% essential oil, fiber, enzymes, pectin, malic acid, vitamins and microelements.

The numerous beneficial properties of banana fruits allow them to be used in dietary nutrition:

  • for inflammatory processes in the oral cavity;
  • in case of diapedetic bleeding;
  • for gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer;
  • in microbial dysentery;
  • for intestinal inflammation, enteritis, ulcerative colitis.

Bananas are allowed for cardiovascular diseases, atherosclerosis, hypertension, many liver and urinary tract diseases, and convulsions.

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Benefits

It is not necessary to exclude bananas from the diet for pancreatitis - the main thing is not to eat them during an exacerbation, and to observe moderation in other periods. In general, bananas contain a low level of saturated lipids, sodium salts and cholesterol. The pulp of the fruit is nutritious, rich in vitamins, potassium and manganese.

The potassium content in one banana can reach 300 mg. Many people know: potassium helps strengthen the myocardium and normalizes blood pressure. Potassium also takes part in the regulation of metabolic processes, eliminates the effects of stress - which is also important for pancreatitis.

A large number of vitamins and minerals help cleanse the blood and tissues of the body from toxic substances. And the iron present in bananas activates the production of hemoglobin and prevents anemia.

Dietary fiber normalizes intestinal motility. This allows bananas to be used not only for pancreatitis, but also for constipation. Banana pulp will eliminate heartburn because it has an antacid effect.

Many nutritionists recommend eating bananas if you are prone to depression: the fruit contains tryptophan, a precursor to serotonin, which is responsible for a person’s positive mood.

It is also important that banana pulp is a hypoallergenic product, so the fruit can be offered to children, the elderly, and pregnant women without any problems.

  • Bananas for chronic pancreatitis are allowed for consumption only between periods of exacerbation. When acute pain occurs, it is better to put bananas aside. But after the painful symptoms subside, bananas are allowed for consumption - one fruit per day, preferably baked or mashed. Before eating bananas for pancreatitis, you need to take into account the individual characteristics of the patient - if unpleasant symptoms from the digestive system appear after eating the fruit, it is better to replace bananas with some other product.
  • Bananas are also not prohibited for cholecystitis and pancreatitis, but during the period of pain it is advisable to choose other products from the list of permitted products for cholecystitis and pancreatitis. In general, bananas are allowed for pancreatitis and cholecystitis: this fruit does not irritate the mucous membrane of the digestive system, but it should be eaten in moderation and preferably in the first half of the day - about three times a week.
  • Bananas can be eaten with gastritis and pancreatitis, but either before meals or between meals, on an empty stomach. If you eat a banana with pancreatitis or gastritis together with food, you may experience bloating and abdominal pain. If the patient suffers from high acidity, then it is especially recommended to eat a banana before meals: the fruits contribute to the formation of a mucous film that protects the stomach from the aggressive effects of acid. With low acidity, you should select fruits of good ripeness and chew them well, generously moistening them with salivary fluid: in this case, the pulp will be absorbed quickly and completely.
  • It is not advisable to eat bananas during an exacerbation of pancreatitis for a week from the moment of exacerbation. As a rule, a strict diet is prescribed for this period of time - for example, therapeutic table No. 5. Sometimes it is allowed to prepare compotes, kissels, jelly based on banana pulp - however, it is better to discuss such nuances with the attending physician.

Baked bananas for pancreatitis

Baked bananas for pancreatitis are the best solution. The pulp, which has undergone heat treatment, becomes especially easily digestible and does not irritate the mucous tissues of the digestive system. Moreover, some scientists claim that a couple of baked bananas daily helps to avoid exacerbation of stomach ulcers or gastritis.

What are the benefits of baked bananas for pancreatitis?

The healing banana pulp stimulates the restoration of epithelial tissue, stimulates the secretion of mucus that protects the internal surfaces of the digestive tract. And Japanese oncology specialists claim that systematic consumption of bananas helps prevent cancer processes in the digestive system.

Bananas for pancreatitis can be baked in the oven, multicooker or microwave. Here is one recipe for making a banana healing dessert:

  • Take 2 bananas, peel, cut lengthwise, sprinkle with lemon juice and sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon and almond powder.
  • Wrap each half of the banana in a piece of foil and place in a mold.
  • Bake in a well-heated oven for ten to fifteen minutes.
  • After cooling, serve.

It is advisable to consume this dessert separately from other food – half an hour before or an hour and a half after the main meal.

Contraindications

Despite all the benefits of bananas, not everyone can eat these fruits and not always. Contraindications to eating bananas for pancreatitis are:

  • period of exacerbation of chronic pancreatitis, acute form of pancreatitis (3-7 days);
  • tendency to form blood clots, varicose veins with the risk of developing thrombophlebitis;
  • post-infarction condition.
  • individual intolerance.

It is also not recommended to eat bananas at the same time as other products. It is good to eat a banana before a meal, or 1.5 hours after a meal. This way the benefits of the banana will be maximal, and unpleasant consequences such as flatulence or fermentation will be avoided.

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Possible risks

Eating bananas with pancreatitis after the main heavy meal is not recommended. If the banana pulp mixes in the stomach cavity with meat or other protein food, which can be digested for about two to three hours, then the transportation of the banana mass to the intestines will slow down. This will lead to the fact that, instead of being properly absorbed, the pulp will begin to ferment. As a result - increased gas formation, impaired digestion and an increased risk of exacerbation of the inflammatory process.

Among other things, fermentation can release toxic substances that will worsen the course of pancreatitis. To avoid trouble, bananas for pancreatitis should be eaten half an hour before lunch, or one and a half to two hours after it. Many doctors say that it is best to eat bananas for pancreatitis in the morning.

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Complications

If after eating a banana with pancreatitis unpleasant symptoms appear - for example, increased gas formation, bloating, discomfort in the abdomen, then it is necessary to increase the period of the interval between eating a banana and eating any other food. If the troubles continue, then in this case bananas should be abandoned altogether.

It is also impossible to rule out the possibility of individual poor tolerance of banana fruits by the patient. If there is such intolerance, then the person will feel bad after eating bananas, regardless of whether he has pancreatitis or is completely healthy. The point is that if there is intolerance and pancreatitis at the same time, the patient's condition can greatly worsen. Therefore, when recommending bananas for pancreatitis, one must always take into account the individual characteristics of the patient's body.

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Reviews

Bananas are not included in the list of prohibited products for pancreatitis - the main thing is to eat them in moderation. The dietary nutrition described for tables No. 2, No. 4, No. 5 and No. 15 (nutrition for gastritis, diseases of the digestive system, liver) implies the presence of bananas in the diet of patients. If you include bananas in the menu wisely, you can get maximum benefit without negative side effects. The main condition is not to forget about moderation, as well as to follow other recommendations for the diet of patients suffering from pancreatitis. With a competent approach, many manage to cure pancreatitis, or achieve a stable period of remission in the chronic course of the disease.

Bananas are not taboo for pancreatitis, which cannot be said about store-bought juices with banana components. Such juices are absolutely forbidden to drink for pancreatitis, because, in addition to the fruit part, juices in packages contain a large number of harmful additives, which are especially forbidden for people with problems with the digestive organs.

Banana juice and bananas for pancreatitis can be included in the diet only if you are confident in the quality of these products. In this case, they will only bring benefits and help restore lost health.

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