Health Benefits of Walnuts

Walnuts are small, singular-seeded fruits that grow from the walnut tree. They are an excellent source of fats, calcium, and nutrients. Among many other benefits, they can improve heart and bone health and aid in weight loss.

This article offers a dietary overview of walnuts, their potential therapeutic advantages, how more walnuts can be integrated into the diet, and any possible health hazards associated with walnut consumption.

Health Benefits of Walnuts

Walnuts are brimming with beneficial substances that offer significant health advantages that have been mentioned below:

• Enhanced Cardiovascular Well-Being

Walnuts are very useful to the circulatory system, owing to the high levels of omega-3 fatty acids. Consuming a few walnuts will help lower blood pressure one day too. They also tend to minimize swelling and improve the integrity of the blood vessels. As a result, walnuts have the ability to enhance adequate protection.

• Decreased Likelihood of Cancer

Walnuts are abundant in substances of plants such as omega 3-fatty acids, polyphenols, and urolithins. These biologically active materials are capable of possessing anticancer effects. Walnuts can decrease the likelihood of certain forms of cancer, including breast, colon, and ovarian cancer.

• Improved Cognitive Function

In walnuts, the omega-3 fatty acids are healthy for the brain too. Getting diets that are high in essential fatty acids (such as omega-3 fatty acids) can hold off cognitive deterioration. In one experiment on elderly people, frequent walnut intake had indicated progress in cognitive performance.

• Reduction in Inflammatory Response

Given the availability of essential fatty acids, people with debilitating conditions such as asthma, hypertension, and eczema may profit from walnuts. Walnuts can suppress inflammatory response and lower the likelihood of cardiovascular disease. The polyphenols in walnuts may also help to combat pain and swelling.

• Immunity Booster

Walnuts are packed with antioxidants that maintain a healthy immune response and prevent the disease from the beginning. Incorporate a few walnuts regularly to your diet. Walnuts are high in essential vitamins and minerals such as copper and vitamin B6, which can improve the body's immune system.

• Increased Bone Health

Walnuts have an essential fatty acid known as alpha-linolenic acid. This acid has been linked with tougher and healthy muscles and its metabolites. It can also help with the omega-3 fatty acids in walnuts. They help combat inflammatory response and lower human resorption of the resulting bones.

• Improved Sleep

Walnuts consist of melatonin. This substance has stronger sleep quality. Furthermore, omega-3 fatty acids can help keep the blood pressure stable and help reduce tension. There is, therefore, a need for further studies in this respect.

• Improved Reproductive Health

Common western diets are rich in packaged meats, starch, and refined grains — related to a decreased output of semen. Consuming walnuts can help encourage healthy sperm and male fertility.

Data shows that consuming walnuts in their membranes will help preserve sperm by decreasing oxidative harm. Further tests are required to validate these advantages, so eating walnuts is a fairly easy thing to do if you're a man worried about fertility.

• Enhanced Maternal Health

Walnuts contain safe classes of B-complex vitamins, such as folates, riboflavin, and thiamine. This will support wellbeing throughout pregnancy. There is, therefore, a need for further studies in this aspect. For a pregnant woman and the baby, the folic acid in walnuts is especially important. Folic acid has numerous positive biochemical properties during breastfeeding and can be of benefit.

• Increased Gastrointestinal Health

The walnuts are fiber-rich. The carbohydrate helps ensure the proper functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. To retain their gut health, all of humanity needs fiber on a regular basis. Daily eating walnuts will help relieve digestion issues and keep the intestines running properly.

• Heals Fungal Infections

According to anecdotal reports, black walnuts can help cure fungal infections. The development of candida may be particularly exasperating either in the digestive tract or on the skin. These diseases cause an assortment of painful symptoms like scratching and other allergic reactions. Black walnuts may be as efficient against fungal infections as other therapies.

• Improved Skin Health

Walnuts can be healthy for the skin since they have the B-vitamins ready. These vitamins can help ameliorate stress and, therefore, mood. Reduced levels of stress will cultivate healthier skin. Enhanced levels of stress can lead to an earlier start of wrinkles and other symptoms of aging. In walnuts, vitamin E can help fend off the free radicals brought on by stress.

• Improved Hair Strength

Walnuts are excellent sources of fatty acids. Both are capable of enhancing hair follicles. In experiments on mice, those fed with walnut oil demonstrated changes in the color and texture of their fur. The mice had decreased hair loss, too. To detect comparable effects in humans, further investigations are necessary.

• Helps in Treating Dandruff

For its moisturizing qualities, walnut oil is commonly used. It can help to activate natural oils in the hair and to cure dandruff. Extracts of ethanol from walnut leaves have demonstrated anti-inflammatory efficacy. Even the leaves can be used for treating dandruff. In this respect, nevertheless, more data is necessary about walnuts in this regard.

Nutritional Value of Walnuts (1 cup)

Calories in Walnuts and their Recommended Daily Intake

One cup of walnuts contains 200 calories, which makes it a highly nutritious nut to snack on. You should savor an ounce of walnuts a day. An ounce will have about twelve to fourteen halves of walnut.

Ways to Consume Walnuts

You will reap the advantages of walnuts by either munching directly on them or adding them to your diet. Here are some beautiful recipes for using those nuts:

• Incorporate two or three walnuts to a balanced smoothie, together with a banana and some milk.
• Turn walnuts by cooking into a tasty spread, and then ground them into a powder—mix walnuts with garlic, cinnamon, lime juice, balsamic vinegar, and a sprig of pepper.
• Combine walnuts, sliced apples, red and green bell peppers, and red onion to make a tasty salad. Add a dressing made of low-fat herb vinaigrette.
• Plan a tasty dish made of canned tuna, pineapple, sweet potatoes, and apples for a casein-packed dinner. Toss in chopped walnuts and add fresh lime juice to taste the meal.
• Toss in the butter-free, sugar-free, whole grain, hazelnut-oats cookie into a bowl of roasted, chopped walnuts.

Side Effects of Walnut Intake

Bearing in mind, the adverse effects of walnuts is significant. Excess intake can cause reactions and drug problems in some individuals. Walnuts may also, in some cases, significantly increase the risk of cancer.

• Triggers Allergic Reactions

Studies suggest that individuals who are allergic to nuts (especially pecans) should minimize black walnut intake.   That is because of the related allergic reactions. Allergic symptoms may involve tightness in the mouth or abdomen, hives, and respiratory problems.

Walnuts can induce allergies of both primary and secondary types. The main reactions include the active consumption of walnuts or their derivatives, and this may lead to anaphylaxis. Immediate allergies include pollen, which is caused by cross-reactivity with walnuts and induces scratching or swelling of the lips.

• Contribution to Skin Cancer

Often people use the black walnut paste to cure small cuttings and eczema on their hands. Yet black walnuts include juglone, which is a chemical substance with some poisonous effects. While juglone is known for its anticancer effects, its pro-oxidant function can also enhance cancer risk. An exploratory study is, however, minimal.

• Modification of Genetic Makeup

Juglone in black walnuts can negatively impact fibroblasts (cells that contain collagen proteins), as per a report.  The experiments were performed only in rats.

• Triggers Inflammatory Response

The black walnut extract has been found to be harmful to horses. It has developed an infectious disorder called laminitis on the equine. The disease has caused the buildup of white blood cells in the horse's hooves, contributing to discomfort and lameness. Related inflammatory disorders in humans have also not been identified.

• Potential Liver Damage

Overconsumption of black walnuts can cause kidney damage. In this respect, the juglone in the walnuts may even have a part to play, but research remains uncertain.

• Causes Dehydration

Black walnuts will dry out like mucous body fluids. Their disease can also lead to dehydration. Experimentation in this region is, however, restricted.

• Could Result in Skin Rashes

The black walnuts can lead to skin sores after topical application. The inorganic chemicals present in the nut's hull can aggravate the skin and cause contact dermatitis.

• Reaction with Other Medications

Black walnuts might interfere with other drugs you may be using. If you are on drugs, contact the doctor before eating the black walnuts or their substitutes. The tannins found in the hull can decrease drug absorption. There is, therefore, a requirement for further studies to support this argument. Walnuts can cause detrimental reactions if ingested improperly. It is also critical that the right walnuts are selected from the market.

Final Word

Walnuts are nutritious, rich. They are full of antioxidants, which add to many nutritional benefits. Walnuts can encourage good wellbeing, lower the risk of cancer, and boost bone health. Surplus ingestion of these nuts can, nevertheless, result in adverse effects. Consuming an ounce of walnuts, for most people a day is healthy. Begin to incorporate these nuts into your diet today and gain their beneficial effects.

References:

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/benefits-of-walnuts

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30199393/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24500933/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5852820/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6163338/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3652880/