Nuts are good for you but processed nuts are harmful....

Today's post: Monday, 3-23-2009

Most people aren’t allergic to nuts. (Unfortunately, some people are allergic to tree nuts.)

However, if you are in the majority and not allergic to them, eating raw nuts regularly is so good for you that people who eat a small amount daily have been found to live as much longer than people who don’t as people who avoid tobacco smoke are than smokers!

Nuts are a superfood that contain nutrients, particularly minerals and trace minerals that strongly enhance health. And, they make you enough less hungry that people who eat them very likely eat far less junky snacks that harm health. Lastly, nuts have heart OK or heart beneficial oils and people who eat them likely eat less butterfat and fatty meats as a result.

But I buy raw or dry roasted nuts in bulk at Whole Foods for two reasons. First, nuts cost a LOT less that way. Second, I’ve suspected the quality of the oils the oil roasted nuts are roasted in, plus those are harmful due to the excess added salt they usually have.

So, when I saw last Friday’s article on the subject, I thought I’d base today’s post on it.

Here it is.:

“This article appears courtesy of Early To Rise, a free newsletter dedicated to making money, improving health and secrets to success. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com .”

“Nuts: From Natural Treasure to Man-Made Trash

By Kelley Herring

Nuts are undoubtedly one of the healthiest foods you can eat. Research shows that nut noshers have the slimmest waistlines and a significantly lower risk of heart disease.

But the benefits don't end there. Nuts are packed with life-essential minerals, including magnesium and selenium. And they are a concentrated source of brain-nourishing and blood-sugar-balancing fats.

Still, manufacturers have found a way to meddle with the nut and muck up Mother Nature. In fact, the "Diamond" brand has been turning treasure into trash by adding genetically modified corn oil and BHT to its walnuts, hazelnuts, and other naturally pure tree nuts.

Protected by their shells, nuts are a relatively "clean" plant food - unadulterated by pesticide toxins - even when grown conventionally. But add corn oil - which is high in inflammatory omega-6 fats as well as being genetically modified almost 90 percent of the time - and you've completely changed their lipid profile and biochemical nature.

Corn oil itself is a preservative, but Diamond adds BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene) to ensure shelf stability. BHT prevents oxidation. It is used to preserve food odor, color, and flavor. It is banned in Australia, Japan, Romania, and Sweden due to its carcinogenic activity. In the United States, BHT is prohibited only in infant formula.

Avoid inflammatory corn oil and carcinogenic BHT by reading the labels before you buy. You'll be pleasantly surprised to find that many inexpensive brands of nuts are free of these unnecessary additives. They contain only one simple ingredient: "nuts."

Just take a few moments to pick the treasure... and leave the trash.

[Ed. Note: One of the best ways to stay healthy and live longer is to eat good foods. Nutrition expert Kelley Herring ....]”

She writes on food and nutrition for Early to Rise and for www.TotalHealthBreakthroughs.com where she also regularly provides health supporting recipes.

A healthy snack that helps you lose belly fat too...

Today's post: Tuesday, 12-9-2008

I once read that one study of people who ate nuts found that they lived more than five years longer than people who don’t.

(Clearly those people who are severely allergic to tree nuts were not in that group.)

However, that definitely got my attention because only quitting smoking or doing a first rate exercise program each week get comparable results in increased likely longevity.

And, I’ve known that nuts have natural vitamin E and magnesium that some people need but wouldn’t otherwise get. (Everyone needs these nutrients but not everyone gets them from their food or from supplements. So people who eat nuts tend to be healthier for that reason.)

I also have known that nuts contain sterols and fiber that help to lower LDL cholesterol without side effects.

Further, I’ve known that people who eat nuts as snacks do NOT tend to gain weight despite the high fat content of nuts. It seems the combination of fats, protein, nutrients, and fiber in nuts turns down your appetite well enough that you tend to eat less of other foods to compensate.

I’ve read that eating nuts tends to increase your levels of the desirable HDL cholesterol as well.

Lastly, the Prevention Magazine book the Flat Belly Diet states that people who eat mostly monosaturated oils such as those found in nuts, avocados, and extra virgin olive oil tend to have less belly fat.

Just recently, a study done in Spain was reported which found even more healthful effects from eating nuts, walnuts, almonds, and hazelnuts each day in addition to a Mediterranean diet.

The people who did that in this study actually lost belly fat even though they lost no weight; they improved their heart risk factors including getting lower triglycerides I think;
and those that had high blood pressure found they got lower readings.

One commentator pointed out that anyone who not only ate nuts; but who ate nuts instead of candy, or chips, or other packaged snacks or commercially baked dessert foods like cookies likely got a double benefit. Not only did eating the nuts help; but it turned off sources such as high fructose corn syrup, sugar, refined grains, salt, and Transfats that are known to have the reverse effects.

Since this study was done in a population that is less likely to eat such bad for you snacks than people in the United States, it’s my belief that having people here who eat these other kinds of snacks eat unsalted nuts instead would get even more dramatic benefits.

And, it may well be that the other nutrients in the nuts besides the monosaturated oils may have some extra benefits because the group that ate the nuts did even better on the health measures than the group who simply got extra olive oil each week.

In addition to vitamin E, magnesium, other minerals, and sterols – and the plant protein with no cholesterol and the fiber, nuts are high in potassium and the amino acid l-arginine. Both of those nutrients help to lower blood pressure when it’s high. For example, by eating unsalted nuts that are high in potassium, eating the nuts favorably improved the potassium-sodium balance which is known to help reduce high blood pressure.

Pecans also work as well as walnuts and almonds in my experience and are widely available in the United States.

It also helps that walnuts and dry roasted walnuts taste good. Dry roasted almonds taste good. And pecans, even untoasted, taste great.

That means they make a great snack.

A snack that both tastes great AND makes you healthier and likely to have a long healthy life, is a real asset to have.

I have excellent HDL, LDL, & triglyceride readings. And I think that one reason for this is that I eat nuts as part of my weekday lunches each day. And I do NOT eat the bad for you snack foods ever. (I do eat some dark chocolate each week or taste part of one serving of a treat I know I like if they show up at our office but less than five times a year. And that’s it.)