Proven Benefits of Walnuts
Are walnuts the ultimate food for our daily life?
Hello everyone, hope you have gone through my last post about Jaggery. If not, you can have a look at it.
Today I want to share some interesting facts and the topmost benefits of another superfood — Walnuts. This article helps you to know few facts about walnuts and how this can be treated as a superfood that should be consumed daily. It is very good for our health, brain, etc. but how? So let's see.
We all know almonds and we consume 6 to 7 pieces daily. Walnuts are less popular and less consumed by people compared to Almonds. But once you know the benefits of walnuts, you will definitely add them to your daily diet.
Walnut trees are any species of tree in the plant genus juglans (Juglandaceae family), particularly Persian or English walnut. There are few edible walnut seeds. Now we are discussing common walnut also referred to as Persian walnut, which is grown worldwide.
Nutritional values per 1oog:
As you can see from the nutrition table, It has zero cholesterol. It has a good amount of fat, but most of it is poly-saturated fats, which are healthy. Also, It has Omega-3 fatty acids which are good for maintaining blood pressure and preventing heart risks.
Tiny Brain wonders
Walnuts are like the tiny brain, not only by their looks but also is the most powerful food to the brain. This is because of its amazing antioxidants like alpha-linolenic acid, plant-based omega-3 fatty acids, polyphenols, and vitamin E. These play a key role in removing free radicals and helps to promote good functioning of the brain. It also helps remove stress! In these busy working days, many people feel stress and restless. These symptoms are mainly due to the loaded burden on the brain. It also helps reduce oxidative damage and inflammation in your brain.
Many studies in older adults proved that eating 5 or 6 soaked walnuts daily results in better brain function, reduce in stress, better memory, reduce anxiety, mental flexibility.
Older people commonly get memory loss, dementia, etc. In 2014, Tufts University Boston, USA, conducted research on adults above 50 years of age and declared that eating walnuts daily in older people improves memory power, reduces anxiety, supports good brain function and they remain healthy and safe for longer times.
Control Weight Gain
Weight gain is the most common thing these days, this is mainly due to high appetite. Most people cant control their cravings over some junk foods. For them, this walnut can control their weight! There are many proven pieces of research. Among one, in 2018 Beth Israel Centre, Boston, U.S.A, a well-controlled study in obese people by eating 43grams of walnuts daily for five days, then they observe a decrease in appetite and hunger. This is due to the combination of omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins like vitamin A, D, antioxidants, plant sterols, manganese, and copper present in walnuts. These make you feel full with sufficient nutrition for your body. Also, this oily nut digest slowly. In addition to this, brain scans showed that the participants had increased activation in the brain, the right insula- a region in the brain- that regulates appetite and control food cravings. An antioxidant compound called ellagic acid reduces inflammation and keeps the gut healthy and running smoothly. Unlike other nuts, walnut contains high levels of polyunsaturated fats, which are healthy fats that keep cholesterol levels in check and promote the overall wellness of the body.
What if you are diabetic?
Walnuts play a key role in diabetic people. We all know that carbohydrates are the main reason to raise your sugar levels, doctors also suggest taking a low carbohydrate diet. Walnuts have very low carbs — 11g per 100grams. Also, walnut contains rich healthy fats that digest slowly. Consumption of 4 or 5 soaked walnuts daily in the morning along with a healthy breakfast can help you stimulate fat loss and promote healthy body weight without raising your sugar level.
The vegan source of Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3 fats have got attention in the past few decades because of their role in cardiovascular functioning. They also have numerous benefits — reduce free radicals damage, supports the immune system, removes bad cholesterol, removes triglycerides, keeps active, improves eyesight. Our body cannot synthesize Omega-3 fatty acids on its own, so we must get these healthy fats from our diet. We all know that the best sources of Omega-3 fats are fish, which makes it challenging for vegans to get enough. Walnuts are an excellent vegan source of Omega-3 fatty acids. The daily requirement of Omega-3 for our body is 1.1 grams. In 100 grams of walnuts, we get 9 grams of omega fats.
Proven Benefits
- Reduces risk of cancer — walnuts are rich in nutrients like Omega-3 fats, phytosterol, melatonin, Vit E, antioxidant polyphenols, gamma-tocopherol. These bioactive components may have anti-cancer properties, which not only prevent the growth of tumours but also reduce the risk of developing breast and prostate cancer.
- Glowing skin — Omega fats protect your skin by strengthening the skin cell membranes and also removes toxin cells. At the same time, it locks moisture and nutrients that keep your skin glowing.
- Helps in sun protection — Omega fats help in shutting down the inflammatory processes in the body and reducing the risk of sunburns, protects against UV rays.
- Slow down ageing — Vit-E in walnuts helps in the anti-ageing process by preventing free radicals.
- Healthy hair — walnuts are a great source of biotin, Vit E, omega fats which promote healthy and longer hair growth.
- Prevent chronic diseases — Several plant compounds and nutrients like melatonin, ellagic acid, catechin in walnuts may help decrease inflammation, which is a key point in many chronic diseases.
Isn’t it worthy for everyone to keep it on the dining table than those pickles and other foodstuffs? Thank you!
