Delicious Walnut Health Benefits: Advantages for
Brain, Heart, Fertility
By Jobee Knight
Walnuts are perhaps the most famous tree nut
of all and have been named the "Healthiest of all Nuts". They are
rich in plant-based fats and are a good source of the B-vitamins and many
minerals. Even though walnuts are one of the easiest foods to eat, they are
also a powerful weapon against chronic diseases. Walnuts can be eaten by the
handful as a snack, or in salads, soups, vegetable dishes, baked goods or
smoothies.
Due to their uniquely high amounts of healthy
fats and potent plant chemicals, recent studies are publishing evidence that
walnuts can reduce brain stress, lower cholesterol, increase fertility in men,
reduce inflammation, lower the risk of diabetes, strengthen the immune system,
and help with insomnia because of the natural melatonin they contain.
Supporting the claim that walnuts are the
healthiest nut is a recent study from the journal "Food and
Function". The researchers evaluated nine types of raw and roasted nuts
and they found walnuts to contain the highest levels and quality of antioxidants.
An "antioxidant" is a substance in food or vitamins that neutralizes
the harmful effects of oxygen in the body. These "oxidative" effects
contribute to aging and disease.
English walnuts offer powerful benefits to
brain health. A study called "Role of Walnuts in Maintaining Brain Health
with Age" was published in the Journal of Nutrition. The researchers wrote
that walnuts not only reduce the inflammatory load on brain cells, but they
also improve communication and connection between the brain cells themselves -
helping to maintain good brain health with increasing age.
For a healthy heart and long life, walnuts
have been shown to decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease and also extend
life spans in general. Walnuts contain the amino acid l-arginine, which offers
protective benefits for the heart. A quarter cup of walnuts contains about
1,130 milligrams of l-arginine. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
reviewed 13 heart studies and found that the people eating walnuts benefited
from a significant decrease in overall cholesterol and had major benefits in
the quantity of antioxidants available to them.
Walnuts have been proven to improve fertility
and reproductive health. The medical journal "Biology of
Reproduction" conducted a study of 117 healthy men and found that eating
around a half-cup of walnuts each day produced an increase in healthy fats in
the bloodstream and greatly improved the health and vitality of sperm.
Walnuts can be a good sleep inducing food.
Russel Reiter, Ph.D., a professor of cellular biology at the University of
Texas says, "Relatively few foods have been examined for their melatonin
content. Our studies demonstrate that walnuts contain melatonin, that it is
absorbed when it is eaten, and that it improves our ability to resist oxidative
stress caused by toxic molecules."
Eating walnuts regularly can be a delicious
and simple way to prevent disease and take advantage of their many health
benefits.
Jobee Knight is President of Nutrition
Breakthroughs. She has written nutrition articles and provided effective
natural remedies since 2001. These remedies include the natural sleep aids and joint and pain relief products made by
Nutrition Breakthroughs
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Jobee_Knight/90117
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