Oh, nuts!

Because Nana is often scared by my posts, I decided this would be a good time to post something of a more positive nature …

By now I think everybody has pretty much “got it” that almonds are good for you. What? A food that’s good for you AND tastes good? I know; hard to believe, right? It’s true – they’re always popping up on those “superfoods” lists, and with good reason.

Almonds have been shown to do all kinds of wonderful things, including stabilizing blood sugar, building muscle, lowering cholesterol, fighting off food cravings and helping with weight loss and maintenance. And when you put all those things together, they put up a pretty good fight against diabetes, obesity, heart disease and cancer.

Of course, I have to burst your bubble right off the bat and point out that you want to avoid almonds that are heavily salted or smoked – all that sodium isn’t too great for your blood pressure.

Many people shy away from eating nuts because of the high fat content. Guess what? You’re worrying for nothing. Sure, they have about 14 grams of fat per 1-ounce serving – but it’s monounsaturated fat. The good stuff. The fat that helps you to feel full and keeps your arteries clear.

Of course, you don’t want to go all crazy with the almonds. If you’re watching your weight, that one ounce of almonds will cost you about 164 calories. But it will also give you 6 grams of protein and 3 grams of fiber – and those are some good snacking numbers. And adding an apple or an orange to those almonds can get you through pretty much any afternoon.

Interesting scientific study: A 28-month study that involved 8,865 adult men and women, found that those who ate nuts at least two times per week were 31% less likely to gain weight than those who never ate nuts.

Ounce for ounce, almonds are the one of the most nutritionally dense nuts. Besides the protein, fiber and monounsaturated fats, they are also a great source of vitamin E, magnesium and phosphorus. And flavonoids. Okay, I had to look up flavonoids. Even though I didn’t want to. Turns out flavonoids are just a compound that gives fruits, vegetables and nuts their antioxidant properties.

Of course, walnuts, pecans and chestnuts have the highest antioxidant content of the tree nuts, and peanuts (a legume, technically speaking) are also holding their own with the antioxidants.

So how much should you eat? Just one handful of almonds (about 1-ounce) or one tablespoon of nut butter (and that includes natural peanut butter, my friends) four times per week will significantly lower your risk of cardiovascular disease – up to 37%.

Eating the almonds with the skins intact actually increases its vitamin E and antioxidant properties and has been shown to lower LDL (bad) cholesterol.

Oh, and good news for those of us with portion-control issues! Emerald Natural Almonds has recently introduced a 100-calorie pack. Finally! A 100-calorie pack I don’t have to hate.



And are you ready for this? Cocoa Almonds. Not your traditional chocolate-covered nut, but an almond lightly dusted in dark chocolate.
That should help with some of those nasty chocolate cravings. I have heard you can find these in Target, but I have not yet personally seen them.

And don’t forget – almonds are delicious sprinkled on salads or vegetables. And nut butters are good on toast and on celery sticks. Of course, I’m still a fan of the peanut butter and banana sandwich – but now I feel a little better about that.