No Ifs or Buts About Nuts

In 2000, while still living in the US my health started deteriorating. My migraines started recurring more frequently and sometimes they'd be so incapacitating that I'd have to rush to Emergency to get shots to give me some respite. At that time I wasn’t being conscientious about my diet and eat just about anything I'd fancy. You know the feeling of being young and eating anything yet staying slim and slender! For the want of a better phrase...I was going nuts :-). My health was really worrying me and I thought it was about time I did something about it. I changed my lifestyle to a healthy one and started with working out 4 to 5 times a week and a change in my diet, mostly vegan not much red meat, only fish and chicken if that. Like most people, I like to munch, so I started looking around in the grocery stores trying to find some healthy & yummy snacks. I discovered all kinds of healthy snacks from trail mix, granolas, bars, different nuts. I was in heaven, at least I found some snacks to support my healthy lifestyle. My lifestyle change continued when I moved back to the Philippines in 2010. Coming back was a big adjustment and at that time, finding healthy snacks in stores was hard and if you did, they don’t taste good, I was disappointed with the options. While traveling around Asia, I started looking for healthy snacks, finding different kinds of dried fruits and nuts was easy, but not the ready-made snacks. That was when I decided to buy some and started making my own mix, creating each recipe one at a time making sure that when I indulge in it, the mix has that savory taste and great texture. I started sharing it with my family and friends, when they tasted different versions of trail mix, they suggested that I should share it with the community. After few years of making healthy snack for the corporates, our creations started evolving to different varieties of healthy snacks like granolas, protein bars, energy bars and keto bars. Creating different products became a passion, and this year, we decided to share the creations with the community who is passionate about living a healthy lifestyle. We wanted to have a wide array of healthy snacks that the community can choose from, so we decided to put all our products online. Like the title of this article...there's truly No Ifs and Buts About Nuts. Here are some interesting facts and health benefits of different nuts that enrich our creations. Health Benefits of Different Nuts 1. Cashews (Cashews are seeds. Because they grow out of apples, they are technically a seed not a nut.) - research shows that eating more cashews can lower your risk for cardiovascular disease. This may occur by reducing blood pressure and bad cholesterol levels. Nuts in general are naturally cholesterol-free and contains good amounts of heart-healthy fats, fiber and protein. 2. Pili (Native to the volcanic soils of Philippines, pili nuts are one of the most nutritious amongst all nuts) - It is rich in heart healthy omega fatty acids. It is also an anti-oxidant, helps overcome insomnia, promotes skin and hair health. 3. Almonds (Almonds are actually in the rose family and are often called “the queen of the rose family.”) - rich in protein and vitamin E. It provides protection for cells against oxidative stress, making it part of a healthy diet for disease prevention. 4. Peanuts (Peanuts are not nuts they're in fact legumes!) - It grows underground as oppose to other nuts like walnuts, almonds etc that grows on trees. It is a good source if Vitamin E, niacin, folate, protein and manganese. In addition, peanuts provide resveratrol, the phenolic antioxidant also found in grapes and red wine that is thought to be responsible for the French paradox. That people in France diet are not low in fat but have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, compared to other countries. 5. Walnut (Walnuts are the oldest tree food known to man, dating back to 7,000 B.C.) - It contains a number of neuroprotective compounds, including Vitamin E, folate, melatonin, omega-3 fats, and anti-oxidants. It supports brain health. 6. Pistachios (a pistachio is known as the "smiling nut" in Iran and the "happy nut" in China.) - includes healthy heart, weight management, protection against diabetes, and hypertension and improve digestion. Low in calories yet high in protein. Overall, most nuts’ health benefits are healthy heart, lowers blood sugar, it’s an anti-oxidant, helps in digestive system and some may help you lose weight. Perfect inclusion to a healthy lifestyle, the benefits are endless. If there are some nuts that you will like to suggest to us to include in our future healthy snacks, please do let us know, we'll be glad to try and create products with it. If this blog brings value to you, please do share it with your friends and family. We at Lifestyle Gourmet Market always try to keep you updated. Sign up for our newsletter to get updates, new items and special promotions. We share your passion for a healthy lifestyle.