8 Walnut Nutrients for Your Body and Brain
3. B Vitamins in Walnuts
Vitamin E is the real standout vitamin in walnut nutrition but they also have a variety of B vitamins, with the exception of B12. Of these B vitamins, they are highest in B6 which is necessary for protein, fat, and carbohydrate metabolism, as well as folate, needed for DNA and red blood cell synthesis and critical for healthy brain function.
Combining walnuts with other nuts and seeds like extremely healthy almonds is a good way to cover a lot of nutritional bases and makes for an easy and filling snack.
4. Broad Spectrum Antioxidants
Of all the nuts, walnuts are one of, if not the most potent in terms of the antioxidant content. Aside from the high levels of alpha linolenic acid and gamma tocopherol already mentioned, walnuts contain a broad array of flavonoids, phenolic acids and beneficial tannins.
Some, like gallic and ellagic acid, have been heavily studied and are known to be powerful antioxidants for cancer prevention. Others like morin, recently shown to be a powerful free radical scavenger, tellimagrandin demonstrated to protect DNA strands from breakdown and juglone with its potential anti-cancer properties, are much rarer and a bag of fresh walnuts are one of the best sources.It is believed that this spectrum of unusual antioxidants, rather than one particular nutrient, is why a decrease in the risk of life-threatening illnesses like heart disease and diabetes is observed in people who eat walnuts regularly.
Importantly, many of these antioxidant phytonutrients are found in the flaky brown skins on the nut, so make sure you get your walnuts with the skins on and eat them that way.
5. Walnut Minerals
Walnuts are particularly rich in the minerals manganese for healthy bone structure and copper for energy production, enzyme creation and healthy hair and skin. Walnut kernels are contain magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, iron, potassium, calcium, molybdenum and selenium.
Let’s dive in: 🙂
- The 8 Walnut nutrients for your body and brain (#3)
- Use Walnut to kill hunger and lose weight
- Walnut vs Human Brain – an interesting correlation between foods and the organ they treate
