Anti-aging Properties of Walnuts and Almonds

Walnuts and almonds might not be the first thing that springs to mind when it comes to anti-aging supplements and foods, and yet the anti-aging properties of walnuts and almonds have been known to scientists, dieticians, and nutritionist for many years now.

What’s more, recent evidence seems to suggest that eating just a small handful of walnuts each and every day as a snack helps to regulate the hormone that triggers satiety and makes people feel full, making it easier to maintain a healthy weight late into life when weight gain often becomes hard to avoid.

Both walnuts and almonds are incredibly rich in omega fatty acids, a unique form of nutritional fat that is necessary to proper brain function, heart health, and optimal cellular activity. A quarter cup of walnuts contains all the omega fatty acids necessary in to a healthy daily diet without the danger of mercury contamination that accompanies eating too much cold water fish like salmon, tuna, or cod.

The anti-aging properties of almonds include high concentrations of omega fatty acids that are comparable to those found in walnuts, and also very high concentrations of the vitamin E compound alpha-tocopherol. A handful of almonds provide nearly half the daily adult requirement of vitamin E. Since only 50% of Americans get their minimum daily requirement of vitamin E, eating almonds is a quick and delicious fix. Vitamin E has been linked in study after study with the maintenance of skin elasticity, cartilage and joint health, and the prevention of cardiovascular disease; all problems that affect older people in greater numbers than younger ones.

Both walnuts and almonds also contain trace minerals that, when not consumed in sufficient quantities, wreak havoc with mood, sleep cycles, and attention span.

Today, an alarming number of people of all ages subsist almost entirely on processed foods comprised of mostly corn sugar, hydrogenated fats, refined wheat flour (which acts like refined sugar when it breaks down during digestion), preservatives, and salt. Such foods provide ample calories but are almost totally lacking in micronutrients and minerals such as magnesium, calcium, zinc, and potassium. In short, junk food not only makes you sick, it makes you get old faster.

Human beings do not need huge amounts of trace minerals, but if they do not include enough of them in their diet or do not get any at all, the result can be chronic depression or sleep issues (magnesium deficiency), chronic susceptibility to colds and viruses (zinc deficiency), inflammatory illnesses and joint disease (potassium deficiency), and poor bone strength and dental problems (calcium deficiency).

The anti-aging properties of walnuts and almonds include their ability to counteract or prevent all of these common maladies associated with age by providing maximum nutrition for minimal calories. A serving of walnuts or almonds (about a quarter cup or a medium handful) is 160 calories and provides better nutrition than almost any other comparable snack.

Regrettably, some low fat diets steer people away from almonds and walnuts because of their high fat content, missing the research that clearly shows that sufficient quantities of the right kinds of fat, especially the kind of fats found in nuts, are essential to health and have proven slimming and anti-aging effects.

Related links:

Top Ten Anti-Aging Foods

Anti Aging Foods: Look and Feel Younger with the Foods You Eat