Best Nuts For Weight Loss: How Do Nuts Help In Losing Weight?

A healthy life is much more than just weight loss. However, maintaining a healthy weight is essential to a healthy life. While exercise and mindfulness are crucial in maintaining a steady weight, healthy nutrition is vital to weight loss.

Over the years, we have come across many articles detailing the benefits of various foods. One such category of foods that go a long way in constituting a healthy diet is nuts.

Benefits Of Eating Nuts

All over the world, people have been eating nuts since ancient times. Some of the most famous nuts that we consume in daily life are peanuts, almonds, walnuts, cashew nuts, pistachios, macadamia nuts, and coconuts (Yes, it is a nut, a fruit, and a seed. All in all, it is actually a drupe!), hazelnuts and many more.

Nuts contain a lot of essential minerals, vitamins, and healthy fats. Hence, in a nutritious diet, including a wide variety of nuts is always advisable. Nuts carry many benefits, including boosting immunity, hair health, skin health, heart, brain, eyes, and almost every inch of the human body. Nuts can be consumed raw or can be cooked into your meal. It is a staple in many dietary cuisines.

A handful of nuts is the healthiest snacking you can have. They’re also high in calories and leave you feeling full for a long time. Nuts contain unsaturated fats, omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, plant sterols, and L-arginine. While nuts taste best when roasted or cooked especially salted, this makes the nuts unhealthy. It’s always good to eat the nuts raw.

The benefits of nuts can even be obtained from nut oils. They can be consumed as salad dressings or applied externally to skin and hair. Either way, the benefits of nuts are simply endless.

Let us break down some of the benefits of nuts:

Great source of nutrients
Contains essential antioxidants
Boosts immunity
Helps fight inflammation
Must have for your fitness regime
Lowers cholesterol
Protects the heart
Great for amazing skin and hair
Boosts metabolism
Helps fight diabetes
It contains a lot of fiber

How Eating Healthy Nuts Aids In Weight Loss?

Nuts have been an essential part of all weight loss diets. They are excellent for weight loss due to the following reasons.

✅ High in calories and great snacks: Nuts are a great source of calories. They contain a lot of healthy fats, fiber, and protein. As a result, nuts are great snacks that keep you full for a long time. You don’t need to consume a lot of nuts; just a handful is enough to last a long time. It is also delicious and stops you from unhealthy snacking.

✅ Boosts digestion: Nuts are a good source of fiber. An adequate and controlled portion of nuts helps improve digestion and metabolism.

✅ You will feel full for a long time: Nuts keep you feeling full for longer, and thus you would not have the urge to indulge a lot.

✅ Easy to count calories: Nuts are easier to keep track of, and it is much easier to control your portion size when consuming nuts.

✅ Helps in a fitness regimen: Nuts are a boost of instant energy. A small quantity of nuts will give you enough energy to complete your fitness goals for the day without making you tired.

Top 5 Nuts For Weight Loss

1. Almonds

Almonds are nuts with a thin brown peel and a nutty white interior. They can be consumed raw, soaked, roasted, salted, cooked, or even sweetened. Almond oil has been used since ancient times for medicinal and cosmetic purposes. Besides having many other benefits, it is essential for eye, skin, and hair health. It is a superfood and contains essential fats, protein, and anti-oxidant.

Almond milk is extremely popular in vegan and plant-based diets and a staple even in cafes. Almonds have been known for their immunity and memory-boosting abilities since time immemorial. Almonds contain monounsaturated fats that prevent overeating and keep you full for a long time. Also, it is an excellent source of fiber and helps improve digestion and metabolism. The amino acids in almonds help to burn fats quickly.

2. Walnuts

Walnuts are single-seed nuts with a tough outer shell. It is wrinkly and brown and looks like the human brain. And guess what?! It is one of the best brain foods you can consume.

It is a staple in many cuisines and can be consumed anyway. Walnuts have a lot of heart-healthy fats that help boost immunity, raise metabolism, and improve digestion. Walnuts stimulate fat loss and help in controlling the appetite.

3. Cashews

Do you know cashews are the only nuts growing outside the fruit? This healthy nut shaped like a kidney is crunchy and creamy with a sweet, nutty taste. It is a favorite among people and is readily available.

Cashews are even ground and added to gravies and desserts to create a rich, creamy texture. It is a high source of magnesium and proteins that are essential in the weight loss journey. It regulates the metabolism of fats and carbohydrates. Cashews are best consumed in the morning.

4. Peanuts

Peanuts are a legume and not a nut. This popular food has a mildly hard shell broken to reveal the brown nut inside. Peanuts are then roasted over an open flame and are a popular snack worldwide.

Peanut oil is also commonly used in cuisines. It controls blood sugar levels and maintains the level of cholesterol. They are rich in plant protein, fats, vitamins, and folate and help you stay full for a long time. However, consuming a lot of peanuts may cause a bloaty and flatulent feeling; hence it is good to limit the servings.

5. Pistachios

Pistachios are a favorite in middle eastern cuisine. It is a popular nut with a thick outer shell that can be broken to reveal a greenish-brown nut. Pista is also made into smoothies and milkshakes.

It contains mono-saturated fats and proteins that help to boost metabolism and build muscles. It is also rich in antioxidants and helps reduce inflammation, blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases, and cholesterol.

Nuts And Weight Loss – In A Nutshell!

It is generally believed that since nuts are calorie dense and high in fats, it contributes to weight gain. This is far from true. Nuts are little powerhouses of fats, proteins, essential vitamins, minerals, and fiber. A healthy serving of nuts is the perfect way to kick-start your mornings.

Of course, it is not advisable for people with allergies. If you’re unsure, getting an allergy test before using nuts or nut oils is best. Nuts can be consumed internally, and nut oils such as almond oil can be used externally, also. Nuts help in easy weight loss as it helps to control the urge to binge.

FAQs

1. How many nuts should be consumed daily?

Consuming around a handful amount of nuts will be good.

2. What are the precautions to be taken before consuming nuts?

◾ Before consuming nuts, it is best to ensure you are not allergic.
◾ Consume only a handful, as nuts are high in fats and calories.
◾ Choose unsalted and unsweetened nuts.

3. Can we be allergic to only some nuts?

Yes, and if you are allergic to some, it is always best to be prudent about consuming other nuts. Nut allergies can be quite threatening; hence it is best to do an allergy test to confirm.

4. Are nuts an effective ingredient in weight loss?

Nuts are a fun and healthy way to lose weight. Many studies have proven the effect of nuts, such as almonds, walnuts etc, on weight loss.

5. What happens to the nutritional quality of nuts when roasted?

When nuts are roasted, it leads to a loss of vitamins and minerals and increased fats and calories. The nutritional quality is not destroyed or significantly altered on roasting. Many nuts taste delicious after being roasted.