Avocado is in everything nowadays. You can't order a salad at a nice restaurant without there being sliced avocado on top, and you can't scroll through the 92 million posts of #foodporn on Instagram without seeing tons of guacamole or other forms of the green mushy fruit (yes, it's a fruit). But why is it so popular?

Many people strongly dislike avocados and guacamole. Often, those who would turn down an avocado dish would also reject a banana, but some do prefer one over the other. They are both mushy fruits, and that texture and the avocados' bright green color can be serious turn-offs for people. Despite this, I have personally found more people to enjoy avocados than not.

Avocados used to be pretty rare in the country, only being sold where they were locally grown on the west coast. They have been incredibly popular for centuries in the area, as well as South America. Today, every chain restaurant is advertising them to attract more customers, and it really works. This rising tide of green creaminess can be attributed to a few different causes. One is the loosened import limitations, which had previously forbidden the transportation of avocados from Mexico, which is the world's largest producer of them. Since the '90s, the number of avocados imported have increased exponentially.

Also, the production and transportation of the avocados have improved significantly. As all avocado lovers (and some haters) know, these fruits will stay unripened and hard for a while, then be perfectly ripe for a day or two, then start to over ripen and brown. This made shipping them quite challenging. It was common for the avocados to ripen and then go bad as they were being shipped to grocery stores. This is where the Hass avocado comes in. It has a thicker skin and ripens slowly, so they could be shipped to grocery stores nation-wide without a problem.

Now, that's all cool, but avocados are ALL OVER! WHY??

One word. Guacamole. Thanks to the Mexican food chain Chipotle, guacamole has become a very mainstream dip. They charge extra for a little baggie of chips and a small cup of guac, but it is some freaking good guac. The creamy, citrus-enhanced, spiced dip is delicious and (arguably) worth the extra cash. I have personally only liked guacamole for a year. I thought I would hate it, so I never tried it. My friend who is obsessed with the stuff made me try some, and I've never looked back. Now, as I attempt to make up for lost time and guac-eating opportunities, I have been investigating the other uses for avocados.

Avocados are some of the most versatile fruits out there. The natural healthy fats are highly beneficial for your body. Its oils will nourish and moisturize the skin, act as a natural sunscreen, and condition your hair. It is used as a butter, oil, or shortening substitute in cooking, which is quite helpful for those who follow a vegan lifestyle, or just choose to incorporate more healthy fats into their diet. They are high in essential vitamins and minerals, have twice the amount of potassium as a banana, and also are very low in sodium. Also, they can be incredibly aesthetically pleasing. The concentric rings of skin, green, yellow, and pit are beautiful, and perfect avocado slices are definitely picture-worthy.

So that is why avocados are so popular and mainstream today. If you are someone who dislikes the taste and/or texture of avocados, if you have read this far, I hope you can at least come to respect the fruit for all of its benefits, and maybe you can use them for their many other uses.