Health benefits of almonds

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Almonds deserve a blue-ribbon award for being a perfect snack. Besides being delicious, they are loaded with essential minerals and vitamins.

What makes almonds healthy?

Almonds contain vitamin E, magnesium, omega-3 fatty acids and calcium.

1. Almonds are good for your heart

2. Almonds improve natural energy levels

3. Almonds help to lower cholesterol

4. Almonds improve brain health

5. Almonds strengthen teeth and bones

6. Almonds regulate blood pressure

7. Almonds help to reduce the risk of colon cancer

Should you soak almonds and other nuts before eating them?

Mother Nature put a lock on the healthy ingredients in almonds.

If we don't know how to best extract all of their goodness, a lot of their beneficial nutrients will pass through our digestive system without being absorbed.

The secret is to soak them in water overnight. Almonds gladly release their nutritional magic when you do so.

Eating pre-soaked almonds makes them much easier for our bodies to digest. We obtain these valuable nutrients through proper digestion.

Actually, this soaking method should be used with most seeds and nuts like walnuts.

Health benefits of almonds

1. Almonds are good for your heart

The vitamin E within these tasty almonds reduces the risk of heart disease. Magnesium works to prevent heart attacks at the same time.

Mono-unsaturated fats, protein and potassium are other ingredients in almonds that support heart health.

2. Almonds improve natural energy levels

Snacking on soaked almonds daily can boost your energy levels. This is because almonds can speed up your metabolism. Hats off to the minerals on parade: manganese, copper and riboflavin.

Read more - What happens if you eat 4 almonds every day?

3. Almonds help to lower cholesterol

Almonds have calcium and vitamin E. They work together to lower your cholesterol.

Avoid calorie dense food (fast food and processed food) and choose nutrient dense food (fruit and vegetables and nuts and seeds) to help lower your cholesterol even more.

4. Almonds improve brain health

The rich nutrients that we get by eating soaked almonds will nourish the brain. These powerful properties can increase our brain’s functionality.

Riboflavin and L-carnitine work together to increase brain activity. This collaboration generates new neural pathways, which can lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

5. Almonds strengthen teeth and bones

Our bones depend on a constant supply of vitamins, minerals and phosphorus.

This trio functions seamlessly to strengthen our teeth and bones. Almonds and other nutrient dense foods can keep us protected from conditions like osteoporosis.

6. Almonds regulate blood pressure

We need to stabilize our blood pressure by balancing the mineral content of the food that we eat. The typical western diet is high in sodium and low in potassium.

Sodium raises blood pressure while potassium helps to decrease it.

Almonds are low in sodium and high in potassium. This makes almonds one of the foods that we need to eat to keep our blood pressure within a healthy range.

Add them to other unprocessed plant based foods in your diet to regulate blood pressure.

7. Almonds help to reduce the risk of colon cancer

Research indicates that almonds can improve the progressive movement of food through the colon.

This lowers the risk of buildup and therefore, can keep us safe from colon cancer.

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Disadvantages of a keto diet

The ketogenic diet

A ketogenic diet (or keto diet) is a diet with very low or no carbohydrates that keeps your body in a state of ketosis. Ketosis is a state where the body converts fats into energy instead of sugar. Nowadays, everyone wants to lose weight. Many people are promoting and using the keto diet for rapid weight loss - especially in the United States. The reason it has become so popular is because the keto diet helps you to lose quite a lot of weight in a minimum amount of time. The keto diet, though, might be an unhealthy way to lose weight. Let's look into how keto diet could be unsafe for us.

Types of keto diets

There are several types of a keto diets. Some of those are as follows:

High-protein keto diet

It is rich in proteins. It contains 60% fats, 5% carbs, and 35% proteins.

Standard keto diet

This one is low in carbs and high in fats. It contains 75% fats, 5% carbs, and 20% proteins.

Targeted keto diet

This one allows you to add carbs in workouts.

Disadvantages of a keto diet

Negative impact on the heart

Many people are happily adopting a keto diet because it allows foods like burgers, pizzas, and meat. The meat-heavy nature of this diet increases cholesterol levels in the body. It is also high in fats, so it harms your blood cholesterol level.

When the amount of LDL (low-density lipoprotein) increases in the body, it causes slow blood flow to the heart muscles. Arteries become narrow, and this condition can lead to heart disease.

Deficiency of essential nutrients

Our body needs many essential nutrients to work properly. These nutrients include proteins, minerals, fats, vitamins, and carbohydrates. To remain healthy, we need a healthy diet that contains all these nutrients. Keto diets don’t allow whole grains and fruits. The keto diet can therefore lead to a shortage of essential nutrients. You lose weight through this diet, but your body loses nutrients that are needed to perform important cellular tasks. So if you are planning to follow a keto diet, always consult a registered dietitian first.

Keto flu

The deficiency of carbs in the body causes keto flu during a keto diet. Keto flu is a condition where you feel

• Headache

• Nausea

• Fatigue

• Hunger

• Irritability

• Constipation

Sleep and hydration will help but you will still feel weak throughout the day. It is because our body gets most of our energy from carbohydrates. With a low intake of carbohydrates, your body doesn’t get much power and you can feel sick as a result.

Can make you feel thirsty

Your body converts carbohydrates into glucose, and glucose stimulates the pancreas to produce insulin. Insulin carries glucose to cells of the body for energy and saves the rest of glucose as glycogen. Between meals, our body takes energy from these glycogen stores.

During a keto diet, there is a deficiency of carbohydrates in the body and it doesn’t produce sufficient amounts of insulin. Instead, ketones interrupt overall electrolyte levels. This causes the kidney to release water. It leads to frequent urination. Your mouth remains dry throughout the day and you feel thirsty.

Causes bad breath

You may have lousy breath if you have recently started a keto diet. Our liver uses fat cells to produce organic compounds called ketones during a keto diet. It includes acetoacetic acid and acetone. These byproducts show up in your breath. When your body starts to break down fats for energy, gases are produced. These gases are released through urination and exhalation. So people often complain about bad breath during a keto diet. Bad breath is actually a good sign too that your body has started burning fats for fuel.

Sugar deficiency

We know that too much sugar can damage the body, but our body needs enough sugar to work optimally. Sugars travel through the bloodstream to the cells. There, they provide energy for the cells. Carbohydrates and sugar break down into glucose. The brain cells and red blood cells use glucose for energy.

During a keto diet, our body doesn’t get enough carbs and sugars. Glucose doesn’t travel through the bloodstream, and you feel low in energy.

Regaining the weight

You may lose weight in a short period of time through a keto diet, but as soon as you introduce carbs again, your body starts to gain the weight back.  It is because keto diet relies on ketosis for a particular process and once the body is no longer in that state, you begin to gain the weight back. If you want to avoid this situation, consult a dietitian so he/she can guide you through a balanced diet.

Causes diarrhea

If you are going to the bathroom again and again during the keto diet, you are not alone. Many people face this problem during a keto diet. It can be due to a lack of fiber. When you cut off carbohydrate-rich foods like vegetables and whole grains, diarrhea can occur. This is common when you switch to a low carbohydrate and high-fat diet. Diarrhea can also happen due to an increase in dairy and artificial sweeteners.

Conclusion

The keto diet is missing some essential nutrients and some primary food groups. Keto diet can be beneficial for some people for a short period. But people who have a higher risk of heart disease should avoid a keto diet. If you want to lose weight, shift to a healthy diet. It will help you to lose weight and support a healthy lifestyle. But if you're going to use a keto diet, it is better to consult your dietitian for the right food choices.

Saad Shah

My name is Saad Shah. I am an avid food lover and food nutrition blogger. I'm a firm believer in the transforming powers of food. I run a nutrition blog on my website nutrition to encourage conscious food choices, with knowledge of their nutritional value.

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The Egg White Versus The Whole Egg

Eggs are a great and cheap source of protein. Most people swear that you should only use the egg whites and chuck the yolks away because the yolk is bad for you. Are these people barking mad or is there some truth to this? Let's find out...

Macro Nutrients

The average sized (whole) egg has 5.6 grams of protein, 4.05 grams of fat and 65 calories.

The egg white has 3.2 grams of protein, 0.05 grams of fat and 15 calories.

The egg yolk has 2.4 grams of protein, 4 grams of fat and 50 calories. 

Therefore, by excluding the yolk, you are losing 43% of the protein, 98% of the fat and 77% of the calories.

Micro Nutrients

The calcium is 2.3 milligrams in the egg white and 21.9 milligrams in the yolk

The magnesium is 3.6 milligrams in the egg white and 0.85 milligrams in the yolk

The iron is 0.03 milligrams in the egg white and 0.4 milligrams in the yolk

The phosphorus is 5 milligrams in the egg yolk and 66.3 milligrams in the yolk

The potassium is 53.8 milligrams in the egg white and 18.5 milligrams in the yolk

The sodium is 54.8 milligrams in the egg white and 8.2 milligrams in the yolk

The zinc is 0.01 milligrams in the egg white and 0.4 milligrams in the yolk

The copper is 0.008 milligrams in the egg white and 0.013 milligrams in the yolk

The manganese is 0.004 milligrams in the egg white and 0.009 milligrams in the yolk

The selenium is 6.6 micrograms in the egg white and 9.5 micrograms in the yolk

The riboflavin is 0.145 milligrams in the egg white and 0.09 milligrams in the yolk

The niacin is 0.035 milligrams in the egg white and 0.004 milligrams in the yolk

The vitamin B 6 is 0.002 milligrams in the egg white and 0.059 milligrams in the yolk

The vitamin B12 is 0.03 micrograms in the egg white and 0.331 micrograms in the yolk

The vitamin A is 0 international units (IU) and 245 international units in the yolk

The vitamin E is 0 milligrams in the egg white and 0.684 milligrams in the yolk

The vitamin D is 0 international units and 18.3 milligrams in the yolk

The vitamin K is 0 international units in the egg white and 0.119 international units in the yolk

Therefore, by excluding the yolk, you are losing 90.5% of the calcium, 19.2% of the magnesium, 93.8% of the iron, 93% of the phosphorus, 25.6% of the potassium, 13% of the sodium, 99.8% of the zinc, 62% of the copper, 69.2% of the manganese, 59% of the selenium, 48.3% of the riboflavin, 9.3% of the niacin, 96.7% of the vitamin B 6, 91.7% of the vitamin B12, 100% of the vitamin A, 100% of the vitamin E, 100% of the vitamin D, and 100% of the vitamin K, 

Cholesterol

The yolk of the egg has the cholesterol and fat of the egg. An average egg yolk has around 209 milligrams of cholesterol. 

Is the cholesterol of the egg yolk such a bad thing? New studies have shown that consuming two full eggs a day did not negatively affect cholesterol levels in the body. It is still recommended, though, that people with heart problems stay away from foods that have cholesterol. 

Final Word of the Day

Although the yolk is the part of the egg that has the fat and cholesterol, it generally as a lot more micronutrients than the egg white. People who are currently limiting their fat and calorie intake have reason to eliminate egg yolks, because they contain 98% of the fat and 77% of the calories of the egg. Having the egg whites alone still give you 57% of the protein found in the egg. However, people who are not currently trying to limit their fat or calorie intakes can have the yolks of the eggs as well since they contain so many other key nutrients. If you are consuming more than two eggs a day, have a maximum of two yolks, the rest being egg whites, per day. Stay Strong!

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