Effects and Diseffects of Nuts

Health Benefits of Nuts

Nuts Are Delicious, Versatile and Widely Available and Nuts are undeniably tasty and satisfying also.

·         We can be enjoyed whole, as nut butters or chopped up and sprinkled on food.

·         It's actually quite easy to make your own homemade nut butter using whichever combination of nuts you like,At the end of the day, nuts are a highly nutritious and super tasty food that can fit into almost everyone's diet.

·         Eating nuts on a regular basis is a very enjoyable way to improve your health,Nuts are a very popular food.

·         They're tasty, convenient and can be enjoyed on all kinds of diets.

 

Despite being high in fat, it also have a number of impressive benefits for your health (and weight).

Nuts are technically considered a fruit. However, unlike most types of fruit, they aren't sweet and are high in fat.

It contain a hard, inedible outer shell that usually needs to be cracked open to release the fruit inside.

Here is a list of some of the most commonly consumed nuts:

·         Almonds

·         Brazil nuts

·         Cashews

·         Hazelnuts

·         Macadamia nuts

·         Pecans

·         Pine nuts

·         Pistachios

·         Walnuts

Although peanuts are technically legumes like peas and beans, they are often referred to as nuts because they have similar nutrition profiles and characteristics.

 

Now let's look at some health benefits of eating nuts.

 

1.      Nuts Are a Great Source of Many Nutrients

Nuts are highly nutritious. One ounce (28 grams) of mixed nuts contains:

Calories: 173

Protein: 5 grams

Fat: 16 grams, including 9 grams of monounsaturated fat

Carbs: 6 grams

Fiber: 3 grams

Vitamin E: 12% of the RDI

Magnesium: 16% of the RDI

Phosphorus: 13% of the RDI

Copper: 23% of the RDI

Manganese: 26% of the RDI

Selenium: 56% of the RDI

Some nuts have higher amounts of certain nutrients than others. For instance, just one Brazil nut provides more than 100% of the RDI for selenium.

 

The carb content of nuts is highly variable. Hazelnuts, macadamia nuts and Brazil nuts have less than 2 grams of digestible carbs per serving, while cashews have almost 8 digestible carbs per serving.

2.      Nuts Are Loaded With Antioxidants

·         Nuts are an antioxidant powerhouse., and Antioxidants help control free radicals, which are unstable molecules produced as a normal part of metabolism. Free radical production increases in response to heavy sun exposure, stress, pollution and other causes.

·         Although free radicals can play a beneficial role in immune response, having too many can lead to cell damage. When your level of free radicals is too high, your body is said to be in a state of oxidative stress, which increases disease risk.

·         The antioxidants in plant foods, including the polyphenols found in nuts, can combat oxidative stress by neutralizing free radicals so they can't harm your cells.

·         The ORAC is a test that measures a food's capacity to fight free radicals. One study found that the ORAC of walnuts was greater than that of fish .

·         Research has shown that the antioxidants in walnuts and almonds can protect the delicate fats in your cells from being damaged by oxidation .

However, studies in older people and individuals with metabolic syndrome found that walnuts and cashews didn't have a big impact on antioxidant capacity, although some other markers did improve .

 

3.      Nuts Are Beneficial for Type 2 Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome

·         Type 2 diabetes is a common disease that affects hundreds of millions of people.

·         Having a condition called metabolic syndrome is strongly associated with type 2 diabetes.Interestingly, nuts may be one of the best foods for people with metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes.

·         First off, they are low in carbs and don't raise blood sugar levels much. Substituting nuts for higher-carb foods should lead to reduced blood sugar levels.

·         Eating nuts may also lower oxidative stress, blood pressure and other health markers in people with diabetes and metabolic syndrome.

·         People with metabolic syndrome who ate 25 grams of pistachios twice per day experienced a 9% decrease in fasting blood sugar, on average .

·         In addition, compared to the control group, the pistachio group had greater reductions in blood pressure and C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker of inflammation linked to heart disease.

·         However, the evidence is mixed and not all studies have found a benefit from eating nuts in people with metabolic syndrome .

 

4.      Nuts Can Lower Cholesterol and Triglycerides

·         Nuts have impressive effects on cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

·         Almonds and hazelnuts appear to reduce total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol while increasing HDL ("good") cholesterol levels. One study found that ground, sliced or whole hazelnuts had similar beneficial effects on cholesterol .

·         Several studies have shown that macadamia nuts lower cholesterol levels. In one, a moderate-fat diet including macadamia nuts reduced cholesterol just as much as a lower-fat diet.

 

5.      Nuts Can Help You Lose Weight

·         Although they're considered a high-calorie food, research suggests that nuts may actually help you lose weight.

·         To eat nuts lost an average of 2 inches (5 cm) from their waists, which is significantly more than those assigned to eat olive oil .

·         Almonds have consistently been shown to promote weight loss rather than weight gain in controlled studies. One study found that pistachios may also be helpful for weight loss.

·         In one study of overweight women, those who consumed almonds lost nearly three times as much weight and experienced a significantly greater decrease in waist size compared to the control group .

·         What's more, even though the calorie counts listed for nuts are quite high, studies have shown that your body doesn't absorb all of them. This is because a portion of fat stays trapped within the nut's fibrous wall during digestion.

·         For instance, the nutrition facts on a package of almonds may indicate that a 1-oz (28-gram) serving has 160–170 calories, but your body only absorbs about 129 of those calories.

Similarly, recent studies have found that your body absorbs about 21% fewer calories from walnuts and 5% fewer calories from pistachios than had previously been reported (20, 21).

 

6.      Nuts Can Help Reduce Inflammation

·         Nuts have strong anti-inflammatory properties.

·         Inflammation is your body's way of defending itself from injury, as well as bacteria and other potentially harmful pathogens.

·         However, chronic (long-term) inflammation can cause damage to organs and increase disease risk. Research suggests that eating nuts may reduce inflammation and promote healthy aging.

·         Specific nuts have been found to fight inflammation in healthy people and those with serious diseases. These include pistachios, Brazil nuts, walnuts and almonds.

 

7.      Nuts Are High in Fiber

·         Fiber provides many health benefits. Although your body can't digest fiber, the bacteria that live in your colon can.

·         Many types of fiber function as prebiotics or "food" for your healthy gut bacteria.

·         Your gut bacteria then ferment the fiber and turn it into beneficial short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs).

·         These SCFAs have powerful benefits, including improving gut health and reducing your risk of diabetes and obesity.

·         Fiber helps you feel full and reduces the number of calories you absorb from meals.

·         Here are the nuts with the highest fiber content per 1-oz (28-gram) serving:

Almonds: 3.5 grams.

Pecans: 2.9 grams

Peanuts: 2.6 grams.

Macadamias: 2.4 grams

Brazil nuts: 2.1 grams

Pistachios: 2.9 grams

Hazelnuts: 2.9 grams

 

8.      Nuts Can Reduce Your Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke

·         Nuts are extremely good for your heart. Nuts help lower heart disease and stroke risk because of their benefits for cholesterol levels, LDL particle size, artery function and inflammation .

·         Small, dense LDL particles may increase heart disease risk more than larger LDL particles.

·         People with normal or high cholesterol were randomly assigned to consume either olive oil or nuts with a high-fat meal.

 

The Effects of Overeating Nuts

Nuts provide healthy fats to help fight high cholesterol and heart disease. Eating nuts several times a week can lower your risk of developing heart disease. Walnuts, macadamia nuts, almonds and peanuts are all healthy choices. But you can enjoy too much of a good thing. Overindulging in nuts also can have adverse affects.

 

·         Weight Gain

Nuts are high in fat. Though most of the fat is unsaturated and beneficial in lowering cholesterol, high fat means high calories. It’s good, but if you eat excise number of Nuts, it’s make u fatty like a Sack.

·         Gastrointestinal Problems

Nuts are high-fiber foods, another quality that makes them healthy. You need fiber to aid digestion. But if you aren't accustomed to eating a lot of fiber, consuming large quantities can lead to bloating, gas and diarrhea. Eating too many nuts in front of the television one evening could leave you in misery the next day. The National Institutes of Health reports that adults should consume between 20 and 35 grams of fiber per day.

·         Blood Pressure

Nuts are often served salted. This improves taste, but also adds salt to your diet. Too much salt can contribute to high blood pressure. Choose unsalted varieties, or try adding spices and herbs such as Italian seasoning or chili powder for a tasty, low-salt snack.