Walnuts benefit out health on so many levels! These nuts are part of the tree nut family, along with Brazil nuts, hazelnuts (filberts), cashews, pine nuts, macadamia nuts, pistachios, and pecans. It would be difficult to overemphasize the potential health benefits related to this food family!
Walnuts are single-seeded stone fruits, which grow from the walnut tree. This tree is native to eastern North America but is now commonly grown in Iran, China, and within the United States in Arizona and California.
Walnuts benefits are really impressive! Just ¼ cup of walnuts, for example, provides up to 100% of the daily recommended value of plant-based omega-3 fats, together with high amounts of biotin, copper, molybdenum, and manganese. Some of the most exciting research about walnuts includes:
- Heart Health
Walnuts have the amino acid l-arginine that provides multiple vascular benefits to individuals with heart disease, or those who have a higher risk for heart disease as a result of multiple cardiac risk factors.
However, if you fight with herpes, you should limit or avoid walnuts, because the high levels of arginine could reduce the amino acid lysine that can activate herpes recurrences.
Walnut also contains alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), the plant-based omega-3 fat, that is anti-inflammatory and can prevent pathological blood clots formation. The study shows that individuals who eat a diet high in ALA are less prone to have a fatal heart attack and have an approximately 50% lower risk of sudden cardiac death.
Consuming just 4 walnuts per day has been found to significantly increase blood levels of heart-healthy ALA, and walnut intake supports “good” cholesterol levels.
Dispersed research proved that eating only 1 ounce of walnuts per day may reduce cardiovascular risk, and among those at high cardiovascular risk, improved frequency of nut intake significantly lowers the risk of mortality.
- Weight Control
Including walnuts in your well-balanced diet can help you to maintain ideal weight over time. In a review of thirty-one trials, people whose diets included substituted nuts for other foods or extra nuts lost around 1.4 extra pounds and ½-inch from their waists. Consuming walnuts is also linked with increased satiety after just 3 days.
- Brain Health
Walnut contains numerous neuroprotective compounds, including omega-3 fats, antioxidants, melatonin, vitamin E, and folate. Study shown walnut intake can support brain health, as well as increasing inferential reasoning in young adults.
A research also found that eating high-antioxidant food as walnut scan increase health span, reduce the higher liability to oxidative stress which occurs in aging, and also improve motor and cognitive function in aging.
- Improved Reproductive Health in Men
The positive impact of walnuts on male fertility and overall men health are one of the most incredible walnuts benefits that are lesser-known. Among men who eat a Western-style diet, consuming 75 grams of walnuts daily considerably improved sperm quality, as well as vitality, morphology, and motility.
- Unique and Powerful Antioxidants
Antioxidants are vital to our health, as they are thought to help control how fast you age by fighting free radicals that are at the heart of age-related deterioration.
Walnut contains several powerful and unique antioxidants, which are available in just a few commonly consumed foods. This includes the flavonol morin, the tannin tellimagrandin, and the quinone juglone.
Walnuts have antioxidants that are really powerful at free-radical scavenging that scientists called them “extraordinary,” and study has found that polyphenols in walnuts can help prevent liver damage.
- Cancer-Fighting Properties
Walnuts can help decrease not just the risk of prostate – but breast cancer, too. In one research, mice who ate the humanoid correspondent of 2.4 ounces of walnuts for 18 weeks had considerably smaller and slower-growing prostate cancer compared to the control group, which consumed the exact same amounts of fat thanfrom other sources.
Overall the whole walnut diet decreased prostate cancer development by 30 – 40%. According to another research on mice, the human correspondent of only 2 handfuls of walnuts per day cut breast cancer risk in 1/2, and slowed tumor development by 50%, too.
- Diabetes
The beneficial dietary fat in walnut has been proven to improve metabolic parameters in individuals with type 2 diabetes. Moreover, overweight people with type 2 diabetes who consumed 1/4 cup of walnuts a day had significant decreases in fasting insulin levels compared to individuals who didn’t, and this benefit was reached in the first 3 months.
” Eat Them Whole, Including The Skin”, Say Scientists
Experts are convinced – more than ever before – about the walnuts benefits when eaten in the whole form, including their skin. We now know that around 90 percent of the phenols in walnut are found in its skin, including phenolic acids, flavonoids, and tannins.
Certain websites will encourage you to eliminate the walnut skin – that whitish, sometimes flaky, sometimes waxy, farthest part of shelled walnut. There could be slight bitterness to this skin, and that is often the reason that some websites give for removing it.
Nevertheless, Your Health Tubers encourage you not to remove this phenol-rich portion.
Walnuts Nutrition Facts
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Nutrient Database, around one ounce of raw walnuts (28.35 grams) has:
- 185 calories
- 74 grams of sugar
- 89 grams of carbohydrate
- 32 grams of protein
- 9 grams of fiber
One ounce of walnuts also offers the following percentages of recommended daily intake:
- 48% manganese
- 22% copper
- 11% magnesium
- 10% phosphorus
- 8% Vitamin B6
- 5% iron
Walnuts are a great source of protein and high in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Nuts have a reputation for being a high-fat and high-calorie food. Though, they are full of nutrients and deliver heart-healthy fats.
The combination of protein, fiber, and healthy fats in walnuts increase fullness and satisfaction that makes them an ideal snack compared to simple carbohydrate foods like crackers and chips.
How Can You Include Walnuts Into Your Healthy Diet?
These nuts can be incorporated into your diet to gain from all the related health benefits. Here are a few ways to include walnuts to your meals:
- Ground walnuts and use the powder on salads, sandwiches, or some other dish.
- Add shredded walnuts to fish and chicken right before cooking them.
- Add shredded/chopped walnuts to berries and yogurt in order to make a healthy dessert.
- Add shredded/chopped walnuts to dessert to add a nutty flavor to it.
- For roasting – use a 70 to 75°c oven for around 15 to 20 minutes.
Conclusion:
The walnuts benefits include an improvement in metabolism and reproductive health in men, control of diabetes, and reduction of bad cholesterol in the body. Other significant health benefits of walnut stem from the fact that this nut possesses anti-inflammatory properties, helps as a mood booster and helps in weight management. They are also thought to slow down the spread of cancer.
References:
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=99
https://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/supplement/alphalinolenic-acid
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17008073