I know it may not seem like nuts are healthy if the only person
you ever saw eating them was that chubby guy at the end of the
bar at Happy Hour, but trust me nuts are good for you. Some are
better than others though so let's take a look.
According to leading nutritionists today, you can eat almonds,
peanuts, walnuts, and even Brazil Nuts without increasing your
risk of a heart attack from clogging your arteries. The truth is
that eating nuts will actually make you healthier and unless you
just eat them by the bowlful they will not make you overweight.
According to studies at Penn State, it seems the more nuts you
eat the lower the risk of heart disease.
The difference is the type of fats that are in nuts.
Polyunsaturates and monounsaturates which are found in nuts are
good for you plus nuts are high in protein, vitamins,
phytonutrients, and fiber. Eating nuts as a regular part of your
diet will help to lower bad cholesterol and blood fats while
keeping good cholesterol high and cutting the risk of heart
attacks.
In the average nuts one ounce has 4 to 8 grams of protein with
14 grams of fat, the majority of which is unsaturated. This is
about the same amount of protein is about 8 grams. Nuts are also
digested very slowly which helps keep you from being hungry and
helps control blood sugar.
A tablespoon of peanut butter or an ounce of nuts five days a
week reduced the risk of developing adult-onset diabetes by 20
to 30 percent in a 2002 study by Dr. Frank Hu of Harvard. A
recent Australian study suggested walnuts can lower diabetes
risk. Another Harvard study showed that men who ate nuts five
times a week were significantly less prone to gallstones. And,
several studies have shown that people who eat nuts tend to be
slimmer, not fatter, and that eating nuts helps people stick to
their diets and lose more weight, according to a letter from Hu
to the Food and Drug Administration.
The FDA has even allowed the companies packaging nuts place
heart healthy labels on peanuts, almonds, walnuts, pecans, and
hazelnuts. Nuts like cashews, macadamias, Brazil nuts, and some
others are not given the same treatment due to what the FDA
considers too much saturated fat.
Another great thing about nuts is that they are easy to add them
into your diet. You can put them on salads, in stir-fry, or just
eat them raw. They are great for parties and football game get
togethers. You just have to eat them in moderation if you are
watching calories since one ounce of almonds for example, can
have 180 calories. You only need one ounce a day, five days a
week to get the health benefits so the idea is to replace
another food with the nuts.
So, what are you waiting for go buy a variety of nuts and get a
great platter to put them on for your next party.
About the author:
Gregg Hall is a business consultant and author for many online
and offline businesses and lives in Navarre Florida. Get a great
selection of
snack
nuts at
http://www.favoritesnacknuts.com
