Nuts in the West often get a bad rap because everyone is trying
desperately to avoid excess fat in their daily food choices. Fats are a
big no no. If they are given any credit at all, it is understood to be
virtually impossible to avoid them altogether.
Yet fat is
absolutely essential, no matter what our public media would like you to
believe. And saturated fats, the great fat villains, are no less
important. The real dispute is over how much is too much. The neat
things about most nuts is that they have both saturated and unsaturated
fats, with the unsaturated and the monosaturated predominating.
So
the way to deal with nuts is simply to recognize their high fat content
and go easy on the portions you allow yourself per day. The terrific
health benefits of nuts need to be heralded and honored.
Nuts are
nature's storehouse of great nutrients. Think of nuts as trees in
making. What does a baby tree need to get a healthy start to life?
Well, a lot of things that a baby animal needs and for the same
reasons. Loads of vitamins, omega 3 fatty acids, fat and calories. A
handful of nuts should be a welcome addition to the healthy human diet,
for all the nutrients they contain, plus for their ability to lower
excessive cholesterol.
As anyone who uses them knows, nuts are yummy and give pleasure like any other good food.