| Nutrition / Plants and plant products |
Nuts
Studies conducted to investigate the effects of nut consumption on human health found that eating about 50-100 grams of nuts at least five times a week as part of a heart-healthy diet with a moderate total fat content can significantly decrease total cholesterol and low-density cholesterol in both normal and hyperlipidemic individuals.
Nuts are rich in various nutrients, including vitamin E, magnesium, folate, β-carotene, phytochemicals, including phytosterols, phenolic acids, flavonoids, stilbenes, and carotenoids.
They contribute to the total antioxidant capacity of nuts, which is comparable to other healthy foods like broccoli and tomatoes.
Walnuts stand out among nuts due to their high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids. They also contain various health-beneficial components, such as arginine, folate, fiber, tannins, and polyphenols.
Controlled clinical walnut intervention trials consistently showed that walnut consumption as part of a heart-healthy diet led to lower blood cholesterol concentrations.
Observational studies also indicated an inverse association between the risk of coronary heart disease and regular walnut consumption.
Nuts also contain several compounds called “anti-nutrients”1 that are essentially self-defense mechanisms of plants. They reduce the body's ability to absorb essential nutrients.
Anti-nutrients may also exert health benefits. Phytates, for example, have been found to have antioxidant properties, protect against DNA damage and cancer cell growth, lower cholesterol, slow digestion, and prevent sharp rises in blood sugar. Many anti-nutrients have antioxidant and anticancer actions, so avoiding them entirely is not recommended.
Phytic acid or phytate is found in hulls of nuts, seeds, and grains, where it functions as the main storage form of phosphorus. When seeds sprout, phytate is broken down and the phosphorus is released and used by the young plant.
Even at low concentrations phytic acid binds minerals like zinc, iron, magnesium, calcium, chromium, manganese, and can inhibit the absorption of these minerals, this being the reason why is also referred to as an “anti-nutrient.”
Many traditional methods of food preparation such as soaking, germination, cooking, fermentation, and malting increase the nutritive quality of plant foods through reducing certain antinutrients such as phytic acid, polyphenols, and oxalic acid.
Table 1. Nutrient content in 50g of several types of nuts and seeds. (Source: USDA)
| Nutrient | Pecans | Walnuts | Brazilnuts | Pistachio | Pine nuts | Macadamia | Almonds | Pumpkin | Hemp seeds | Flaxseeds |
| Alpha carotene (µg) | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 5.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.50 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Beta carotene (µg) | 14.50 | 6.00 | 0.00 | 152.50 | 8.50 | 0.00 | 0.50 | 4.50 | 3.50 | 0.00 |
| Beta cryptoxanthin (µg) | 4.50 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.50 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Calcium (mg) | 35.00 | 49.00 | 80.00 | 52.50 | 8.00 | 42.50 | 134.50 | 23.00 | 35.00 | 127.50 |
| Carbohydrate (g) | 6.93 | 6.86 | 5.87 | 13.59 | 6.54 | 6.91 | 10.78 | 5.36 | 4.34 | 14.44 |
| Cholesterol (mg) | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Choline total (mg) | 20.25 | 19.60 | 14.40 | 0.00 | 27.90 | 0.00 | 26.05 | 31.50 | 0.00 | 39.35 |
| Copper (mg) | 0.60 | 0.79 | 0.87 | 0.65 | 0.66 | 0.38 | 0.52 | 0.67 | 0.80 | 0.61 |
| Energy (Kcal) | 345.50 | 327.00 | 329.50 | 280.00 | 336.50 | 359.00 | 289.50 | 279.50 | 276.50 | 267.00 |
| Fatty acids mono (g) | 20.40 | 4.47 | 11.94 | 11.63 | 9.38 | 29.44 | 15.78 | 8.12 | 2.70 | 3.76 |
| Fatty acids poly (g) | 10.81 | 23.59 | 12.20 | 7.19 | 17.04 | 0.75 | 6.16 | 10.49 | 19.05 | 14.37 |
| Fatty acids sat (g) | 3.09 | 3.06 | 8.07 | 2.95 | 2.45 | 6.03 | 1.90 | 4.33 | 2.30 | 1.83 |
| Fiber total dietary (g) | 4.80 | 3.35 | 3.75 | 5.30 | 1.85 | 4.30 | 6.25 | 3.00 | 2.00 | 13.65 |
| Folate total (µg) | 11.00 | 49.00 | 11.00 | 25.50 | 17.00 | 5.50 | 22.00 | 29.00 | 55.00 | 43.50 |
| Folic acid (µg) | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Iron (mg) | 1.27 | 1.46 | 1.22 | 1.96 | 2.77 | 1.85 | 1.86 | 4.41 | 3.98 | 2.87 |
| Lipid total (g) | 35.99 | 32.61 | 33.55 | 22.66 | 34.19 | 37.89 | 24.97 | 24.53 | 24.38 | 21.08 |
| Lutein+zeazanthin (µg) | 8.50 | 4.50 | 0.00 | 1451.50 | 4.50 | 0.00 | 0.50 | 37.00 | 0.00 | 325.50 |
| Lycopene (µg) | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Magnesium (mg) | 60.50 | 79.00 | 188.00 | 60.50 | 125.50 | 65.00 | 135.00 | 296.00 | 350.00 | 196.00 |
| Manganese (mg) | 2.25 | 1.71 | 0.61 | 0.60 | 4.40 | 2.07 | 1.09 | 2.27 | 3.80 | 1.24 |
| Niacin (mg) | 0.58 | 0.56 | 0.15 | 0.65 | 2.19 | 1.24 | 1.81 | 2.49 | 4.60 | 1.54 |
| Pantothenic acid (mg) | 0.43 | 0.29 | 0.09 | 0.26 | 0.16 | 0.38 | 0.24 | 0.38 | 0.00 | 0.49 |
| Phosphorus (mg) | 138.50 | 173.00 | 362.50 | 245.00 | 287.50 | 94.00 | 240.50 | 616.50 | 825.00 | 321.00 |
| Potassium (mg) | 205.00 | 220.50 | 329.50 | 512.50 | 298.50 | 184.00 | 366.50 | 404.50 | 600.00 | 406.50 |
| Protein (g) | 4.59 | 7.62 | 7.16 | 10.08 | 6.85 | 3.96 | 10.58 | 15.12 | 15.78 | 9.15 |
| Retinol (µg) | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Riboflavin (mg) | 0.07 | 0.08 | 0.02 | 0.08 | 0.11 | 0.08 | 0.57 | 0.08 | 0.14 | 0.08 |
| Selenium (µg) | 1.90 | 2.45 | 958.50 | 3.50 | 0.35 | 1.80 | 2.05 | 4.70 | 0.00 | 12.70 |
| Sodium (mg) | 0.00 | 1.00 | 1.50 | 0.50 | 1.00 | 2.50 | 0.50 | 3.50 | 2.50 | 15.00 |
| Sugar total (g) | 1.99 | 1.31 | 1.17 | 3.83 | 1.80 | 2.29 | 2.18 | 0.70 | 0.75 | 0.78 |
| Thiamin (mg) | 0.33 | 0.17 | 0.31 | 0.44 | 0.18 | 0.60 | 0.10 | 0.14 | 0.64 | 0.82 |
| Vitamin A (IU) | 28.00 | 10.00 | 0.00 | 258.00 | 14.50 | 0.00 | 1.00 | 8.00 | 5.50 | 0.00 |
| Vitamin B12 (µg) | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Vitamin B6 (mg) | 0.11 | 0.27 | 0.05 | 0.85 | 0.05 | 0.14 | 0.07 | 0.07 | 0.30 | 0.24 |
| Vitamin C (mg) | 0.55 | 0.65 | 0.35 | 2.80 | 0.40 | 0.60 | 0.00 | 0.95 | 0.25 | 0.30 |
| Vitamin D (IU) | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Vitamin E (mg) | 0.70 | 0.35 | 2.83 | 1.43 | 4.67 | 0.27 | 12.82 | 1.09 | 0.40 | 0.16 |
| Vitamin K (µg) | 1.75 | 1.35 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 26.95 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 3.65 | 0.00 | 2.15 |
| Water (g) | 1.76 | 2.04 | 1.71 | 2.19 | 1.14 | 0.68 | 2.21 | 2.62 | 2.48 | 3.48 |
| Zinc (mg) | 2.27 | 1.55 | 2.03 | 1.10 | 3.23 | 0.65 | 1.56 | 3.91 | 4.95 | 2.17 |
Sources
• nutrition.org
• wikipedia.org
Footnotes
1. 8226; Phytic acid (phytates): found in the seeds of plants, phytic acid reduces the absorption of iron, zinc, magnesium, copper, and calcium.
• Saponins: found in legumes and grains, saponins bind to nutrients and inhibit digestive enzymes.
• Glucosinalates: found in cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and kale, glucosinolates can prevent the absorption of iodine.
• Enzyme inhibitors: found in legumes, seeds, and cereal grains, enzyme inhibitors block the actions of digestive enzymes.
• Phytoestrogens: found in soy, other legumes, sprouted foods, nuts and seeds, whole grains, and as lignans in some fruits and vegetables, phytoestrogens bind to estrogen receptors in the body.
• Lectins: are a family of carbohydrate-binding proteins. They occur in nearly all foods, but the highest amounts are found in legumes and grains.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
