The benefits of being “nutty”
I knew that almonds, walnuts and even pistachios were great “health’ foods, but I had no idea just how great until just recently.
I have written about the benefits of eating a handful of almonds and/or walnuts as a between meal snack, which included helping you get your daily requirement of certain vitamins and minerals as well as being great sources of helpful oils and even protein, but now I find out that they can actually help fight off cancer.
Wow!
As a nut lover this is great news, it’s similar to an ice cream lover finding out that eating a pint of Ben & Jerry’s can help you to lose weight. (My wife says,” if only.”)
It seems that almonds, walnuts and even pistachios contain a potent substance named inositol pentakisphosphate, which is easier to digest than to say, but this substance works like crazy to help protect you from certain forms of cancer.
Another great benefit from these three variations of the nut family is that a small handful about half an hour before dinner can help keep your appetite in check and help you not to eat too much. Talk about a triple threat.
So when you are figuring out your daily diet make sure to include a handful (not too many as they are a high calorie food) I would say about 15 to 18 of the little devils as a must have.
For those alergic to nuts there are ways for you to get similar benefits.
The same compound found in nuts is also found in wheat bran and most legumes. Whole grains such as quinoa (pronounced “keen-wa”) kasha, millet, chia and spelt go a long way towards reducing the risk of cancer of the small intestine. With our high meat diets here in North America adding some whole grains like these is definitely a must.
So now you know that there are some actual benefits to being just a little bit nutty.
