5 Health Benefits of Cashew Nuts
#1. These nuts are packed with calories. About 50 grams of Cashew Nuts contain 275 calories. In addition, they are rich in vitamins, soluble dietary fiber, minerals and many phytochemicals that prevent diseases, including cancers.
#2. Cashews are also packed with monounsaturated fatty acids good for the heart health like palmitoleic and oleic acids. They belong to the group of essential fatty acids that can decrease the level of harmful LDL cholesterol and increase the level of good HDL cholesterol in our blood.
Scientific studies have shown that the so-called Mediterranean diet which is mostly based on monounsaturated fatty acids can help the system protect itself from strokes and coronary artery disease by supporting the blood lipid profile.
#3. These tasty nuts are rich in essential minerals too. Some of the most useful minerals found in cashew nuts are magnesium, potassium, manganese, copper, selenium, zinc and iron.
Only a handful of these nuts on a daily basis can provide the necessary amount of these minerals and protect you from deficiency-related diseases. Selenium is a very important micronutrient and it works as a co-factor for antioxidant enzymes like Glutathione peroxides known as one of the strongest antioxidants in human body. Copper acts as a co-factor for many important enzymes too like superoxide dismutase and cytochrome c-oxidase. Zinc plays the same role together with enzymes that are responsible for the regulation of the growth and progress of digestion, gonadal function and DNA synthesis.