The Healthy Crunch of Almonds

Crunchy and satisfying, almonds are an amazing all-natural snack. The protein in almonds makes them a solution for satisfying your appetite until mealtime. But almonds are more than a delicious snack, they are packed with nutrition that can help reduce your waistline and improve your health. Studies indicate that almonds may provide important nutritional support to combat diabetes, high blood sugar, high cholesterol, inflammation and obesity.

Help Your Heart and Waist
Almonds are a source of nutrients that can facilitate weight loss and can help your heart. When overweight Americans
used about a 2/3 cup of almonds per day as part of a weight-loss diet, they increased weight loss by 62 percent more than when following a standard weight loss diet and had a 50 percent greater reduction in waist circumference. And almonds are a good source of the minerals calcium, magnesium and potassium. These benefits make almonds an excellent addition to a healthy lifestyle. That’s why we made sure to feature almonds in the recipes and healthy meal plans in our book, The Fat Resistance Diet.

Reduce High Blood Sugar

Exciting research shows that almonds may help to fight The Insulin Resistance Syndrome, also called the Metabolic Syndrome, which affects 40 percent of U.S. adults. It is characterized by an expanding waistline, insulin resistance and an increased risk of developing diabetes. Research done at the City of Hope National Medical Center in California found that incorporating almonds into a weight loss diet produced a decrease in insulin resistance that was twice as large as with a standard weight-loss diet. Diabetics showed almost twice the improvement in blood sugar control when they lost weight on an almond-enriched diet than a standard diabetic weight-loss diet.

Increase Intake of Magnesium and Vitamin E

When healthy American adults eating self-selected diets were asked to eat a 1/2 cup of almonds per day and were given no other dietary advice, terrific changes in their nutrient intake occurred:

• Consumption of dangerous trans-fats and cholesterol decreased while consumption of beneficial fats increased.
• Consumption of sugar significantly decreased while consumption of fiber increased.
• Intake of salt decreased by 21 percent while intake of magnesium increased by
  23 percent.
• Dietary level of vitamin E increased by 66 percent.

Reduce Cholesterol

A Canadian study found that a 2/3 cup of almonds each day, when added as a snack food to the diets of people with elevated cholesterol, significantly reduced the levels of total and LDL-cholesterol and especially reduced the dangerous oxidized LDL-cholesterol. When a lower dose of almonds of only 12 nuts per day was combined with a diet high in
soy protein and fiber, the effect on cholesterol was as great as using a statin drug. This diet also reduced the level of C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker of inflammation.

Sliced or slivered, raw or roasted, almonds delight in a variety of ways:

• Sprinkle almonds on cereal or oatmeal in the morning.
• Add a few almonds to salads.
• Pack up some almonds in little bags for on-the-go snacks.
• Combine sliced almonds with string beans.
• Toss almonds into stir-fries or casseroles.
• If you prefer toasted nuts, place the nuts in your toaster-oven tray and
  bake for about 4 minutes. You will have a treat for yourself, family and
  friends without the added oils used commercially.

Try this quick dessert from our book, The Fat Resistance Diet.

Start with a cup of yogurt, drizzle with pomegranate concentrate for an antioxidant boost. Then sprinkle a few almonds on top.

To get your free sample of all-natural recipes and one-day meal plan, visit www.fatresistance.com

Director of The Foundation For Integrated Medicine, Leo Galland M.D. is an award-winning lecturer and author of more than 30 scientific articles and three popular books, The Fat Resistance Diet, Power Healing and Superimmunity for Kids. Jonathan Galland is a health writer who is frequently interviewed as a weight loss and health expert on the radio. Their book, The Fat Resistance Diet has been featured on the cover of Fitness, Glamour and in The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal, and has been translated into Italian as La Dieta Galland and into Japanese as Dr. Galland’s Metabolic Diet.

This article is provided for general educational purposes only and is not intended to constitute medical advice or counseling, the practice of medicine or the provision of health care diagnosis or treatment, the creation of a physician-patient relationship, or an endorsement, recommendation or sponsorship of any third party product or service. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your doctor promptly.