Why are nuts a power food!

Walnut's Contain 

• Plant Derived Omega 3 Fatty acids
• Vitamin E
• Magnesium
• Protien
• Fiber
• Potassium
• Plant Sterots
• Vitamin b6
• arginine

______________________________________________________________________
SideKicks: Almonds, pistachio, sesame seeds, peanuts, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, macadamia nuts, pecans, hazelnuts, cashews

It is a simple fact:

People who eat nuts regularly can enjoy a significant reduction in their risk of developement coronary heart disease.  They will also reduce the risk of diabetes, cancer, and a host of other ailments. Why are we nuts for nuts?
First a simple fact: If you are overweight, smoke and eat 6 happy meals a day and never get off the sofa. There is one thing you could do to improve your health and reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease without even taking your right hand off the remote control.  EAT A HANDFULL OF NUTS ABOUT 5 TIMES A WEEK.  This simple act would reduce your chances of getting a heart attack by at least 15% and as probably as much as 51%.  Thats how powerful nuts are.


Which Nuts?
As you see I have made Walnuts the powerfood in this category.  I want to stress that all nuts and seeds are contributors. Walnuts are the headliner for this category of power nuts for a number of reasons.  They are one of the few rich sources of plant derived omega 3 fatty acids(called alpha linolenic acid , or ala) along with canola oil, ground flaxseed and flaxseed oil, soybean and soybean oil, wheat germ, spinach and purslane.  They are rich in plant sterols- plant sterols play a significant role in lowering serum cholesterol levels-good source of fiberand protein, they also provide magnesium, copper, folate and vitamin e.  Finally, they are the nut with the highest antioxidant activity.

Nutz go to your head!
In 2002, the journal of American Medical Association published a report that found that a high dietary (not from supplements) intake of vitamin C and E may lower risk of Alzheimer's disease.  In another study, Vitamin E consumption was linked to 70% reduction in risk of developing Alzheimer's over a 4 year period.  Nuts are one of the richest dietary sources of vitamin E. 

Here are a few ways to make your life a little nuttier:

• Use nuts ontop of frozen yogurts
• Toss some chopped nuts or seeds ontop of salads
• stir peanutbutter into stews and curries to enrich and add flavor
• use finely chopped nuts to coat fish or chicken cutlets
• try peanutbutter on pancakes with or without jelly
• gently saute chopped nuts in olive oil along with bread crumbs and chopped garlic and toss with fresh pasta
• Don't forget the easiest way american classic - peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole grain bread very nutritious
• toss sunflower seeds on your cereal.

Nut Calories:
For 1 ounce
Almonds ( 24 raw nuts) = 164 calories
Almonds (22 nuts dry roasted) = 169 calories 
English Walnuts (14 halves) = 185 Calories 
Hazlenuts ( 20 nuts raw) = 178 calories 
Peanuts (48, dry roasted, no added salt) = 166 calories 
Peanut Butter (2 tablespoons) = 190 calories
Pistachios (47 kernels dry roasted , no added salt) = 162 calories 
Pistachios (47 raw, no salt) = 158 calories 
Try to Eat: 1 ounce 5 times a WEEK!

So what I found very helpfull is to fill up 1 ounce baggie with my nuts and always carry them with me.  This way when I get hungry I can snack on them and believe it or not they help slow your hunger because you have to chew longer.  



Here is a Power Food Breakfast:
cook 1/2 cup oatmeal as directed on box add1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed meal, 2 tablespoons of toasted pecans, a handfull of rasberries and 1/2 cup of soy milk. 

Drink 1 cup of unsweetend grape juice.

Enjoy

Tomorrow we will talk about why berries and how they affect us? 

Click here for more nutritional recipes