Oftentimes, the simplest foods are best for your health, and this is
certainly the case for nuts, in which Mother Nature has crafted a nearly
perfect package of protein, healthy fats, fiber, plant sterols, antioxidants,
and many vitamins and minerals. Among nuts, the case may be made that walnuts
are king, as research shows they may boost your health in a number of ways at
very easy-to-achieve "doses." Eating just one ounce of walnuts a day
(that's about seven shelled walnuts) may be all it takes to take advantage of
their beneficial properties.
Walnuts belong to the tree nut family, along with Brazil nuts, cashews,
hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, pine nuts, and pistachios. Each has its own
unique nutritional profile. One-quarter cup of walnuts, for instance, provides
more than 100 percent of the daily recommended value of plant-based omega-3
fats, along with high amounts of copper, manganese, molybdenum, and biotin.
Some of the most exciting researches about walnuts go a long way to show how
beneficial this gift of nature is to humanity.
Walnuts may help reduce not only the risk of prostate cancer, but breast
cancer as well. In one study, mice that ate the human equivalent of 2.4 ounces of whole
walnuts for 18 weeks had significantly smaller and slower-growing prostate
tumors compared to the control group that consumed the same amount of fat but
from other sources. Overall the
whole
walnut diet reduced prostate cancer growth by 30 to 40 percent. According
to another study on mice, the human equivalent of just two handfuls of walnuts
a day cut breast cancer risk in half, and slowed tumor growth by 50 percent as
well.
Walnuts contain the
amino
acid l-arginine, which offers multiple vascular benefits to people with heart
disease, or those who have increased risk of heart disease due to multiple
cardiac risk factors. If you struggle with herpes, you may want to avoid or
limit walnuts, as high levels of arginine can deplete the amino acid lysine,
which can trigger herpes recurrences.
Walnuts also contain the plant-based omega-3 fat alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), which is
anti-inflammatory and may prevent the formation of pathological blood clots.
Research shows that people who eat a diet high in ALA are less likely to have a fatal heart
attack and have a nearly 50 percent lower risk of sudden cardiac death. Eating
just four walnuts a day has been shown to significantly raise blood levels of
heart-healthy ALA,
and walnut consumption
supports healthful cholesterol levels.
Antioxidants are crucial to your health, as they are believed to help
control how fast you age by combating free radicals, which are at the heart of
age-related deterioration. Walnuts contain several unique and powerful
antioxidants that are available in only a few commonly eaten foods. This
includes the quinone juglone, the tannin tellimagrandin, and the flavonol
morin. Walnuts contain antioxidants that are so powerful at free-radical
scavenging that researchers called them "remarkable,"
and research has shown that walnut polyphenols
may help prevent chemically-induced liver damage.
Adding healthful amounts of nuts such as walnuts to your diet can help
you to maintain your ideal weight over time. In one review of 31 trials, those
whose diets included extra nuts or nuts substituted for other foods lost about
1.4 extra pounds and half an inch from their waists.
Eating walnuts is
also associated with increased satiety after just three days.
One of the less-known benefits of walnuts is their impact on male
fertility. Among men who consume a Western-style diet, adding 75 grams (a bit over
one-half cup) of walnuts daily significantly improved sperm quality, including
vitality, motility, and morphology. Walnuts contain a number of neuroprotective
compounds, including vitamin E, folate,
melatonin,
omega-3 fats, and
antioxidants. Research shows walnut consumption may support brain health,
including increasing inferential reasoning in young adults.
One study also found that consuming high-antioxidant foods like walnuts
"can decrease the enhanced vulnerability to oxidative stress that occurs
in aging," "increase health span," and also "enhance
cognitive and motor function in aging." The beneficial dietary fat in
walnuts has been shown to improve metabolic parameters in people with type 2
diabetes. Overweight adults with type 2 diabetes who ate one-quarter cup of
walnuts daily had significant reductions in fasting insulin levels compared to
those who did not, and the benefit was achieved in the first three months.
The outermost layer of a shelled walnut – the whitish, flaky (or
sometimes waxy) part – has a bitter flavor, but resists the urge to remove it.
It's thought that up to 90 percent of the antioxidants in walnuts are found in
the skin, making it one of the healthiest parts to consume. To increase the
positive impacts on your health, look for nuts that are
organic and raw,
not irradiated or pasteurized.
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