Nuts are a delicious, healthy, portable snack full of heart healthy fats but did you know that they even help you live longer? Research from the New England Journal of Medicine has shown that people who eat nuts five or more times per week have a 29% reduction in death from heart disease, 11% reduction in death from stroke, a 29% reduction in death from kidney disease and even an 11% reduction in death from cancer.
If that’s not enough to make you fall in love with nuts here are some more great reason to make them a part of your daily diet.
Nuts are perfect for everyone. Whether you follow a paleo, vegetarian, vegan, even a raw food diet nuts are a great choice. Since they’re so rich in protein and healthy oils they’re the perfect complement to any diet and a fabulous complement to a carbohydrate heavy diet.
They help beat sugar cravings. Since nuts have a low glycemic index they won’t overwhelm your body into trying to control a spike in blood sugar. Their high protein content will also help keep you full while keeping your sweet tooth in check. Some studies have even suggested that adding nuts to your diet can help you lose weight!
Nuts are high in magnesium and zinc, two minerals most people are deficient in. Zinc is important for a healthy immune system as well as reproductive function. Magnesium is known as one of the energy minerals since a deficiency first manifests as a lack of energy and irritability and can eventually lead to heart problems, diabetes or high blood pressure.
Vitamins and healthy fats help keep your skin beautiful. Nuts are rich in linoleic and alpha linoleic acid, two essential fatty acids that help reduce inflammation and keep skin looking beautiful. Deficiency in fatty acids can cause dry skin, inflammation, infertility, trouble concentrating, memory and mood problems as well as increasing the chance of heart disease. Vitamin E is also a critical antioxidant which helps reduce the signs of aging and can keep your skin looking supple.
Best of all they’re portable and versatile. They can be added to almost any dish, spread onto bread for a quick sandwich, used as a crust for gluten free breading or mixed into smoothies. And of course since they’re non-perishable you can always have them in your beach bag for a quick snack, so go nuts!
Jacqueline Banks, who grew up in Casa de Campo, is a certified holistic health counselor and busy mother.
Her focus is on helping other busy moms in all stages of motherhood keep themselves and families healthy and happy. She uses natural and organic solutions to solve individual health problems and promote clean living.
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