Product Category
Cashew Nuts
Category: Nuts
Cashews are very tasty when lightly oven-roasted and salted. They combine well with raisins for a sweet after-meal snack.
Blend Cashews together with honey, cream and lemon juice for a delicious dressing.
Cashews are a good source of Magnesium. They also contain moderate amounts of Vitamins A, B1 and B2, plus Iron, Phosphorus, Niacin, Calcium, Zinc and Amino Acids.
More Info
Not as crunchy as almonds or as cheap as peanuts, but the delicately flavoured cashew nut is still one of the most popular of all the nuts. And it’s second to none when it comes to health benefits. It is very low in saturated fats and high in copper, magnesium, phosphorus, iron and zinc. Cashew nuts, whether used as a snack or an ingredient in your favourite recipe, are therefore good for the heart, the blood, bones and nerves, the immune system and general health. They also make a delicious and energy-packed snack, and are perfect if you’re careful about watching your weight.
Description and Origin
Cashew nuts are the seeds of a tree that is native to Brazil in South America, although they were later introduced into other tropical regions, such as certain African countries and India. Today, the leading commercial producers of cashews are India, Brazil, Mozambique, Tanzania and Nigeria.
There are some marginal (and humorous) differences in the way different authors describe the cashew. Everyone agrees that they’re kidney-shaped. Because, you know, they are! But where one expert says they grow ‘in a double shell at the top of small pear-shaped fruits’, another one will say they adhere ‘to the bottom of the cashew apple’. I guess it depends on your perspective. Cashews are always sold shelled, because their shells contain a caustic oil (the cashew is related to poison ivy); in fact, the nuts must be carefully extracted to avoid contamination with this oil, which is used in industry for the manufacture of varnishes and insecticides.
Uses of Cashews
In many countries, these delicately flavored nuts are more popular for snacking than for cooking, yet they make a particularly delicious nut butter. They are sold roasted or dry roasted, or you can buy them raw and roast them at home (at a low temperature of 160-170 degrees Fahrenheit to preserve essential nutrients and oils). They form part of many recipes, including salads, stir fry and stews. It even forms a key ingredient in a mock parmesan cheese!
Nutritional Content
A quarter cup of cashews contains about 38% of the recommended daily allowance of copper, 22% of magnesium, 21% of tryptophan and 17% of phosphorus. These nuts are also a good source of calcium, iron, zinc, potassium, biotin and folic acid. They even contain some (about 0,8 mg per 100 gram serving) manganese!
| Nutritional Info (per 100g) | |
| Calories | 584.5kcal |
| Carbohydrates | 18.8g |
| Protein | 15.7g |
| Fat | 48.9g |
| Fibre | 3.4g |
| Alcohol | 0 |
Health Benefits
Monounsaturated Fats for a Healthy Heart
Not only do cashews have a lower fat content than most other nuts, approximately 65% of their fat is unsaturated fatty acids, plus 90% of this unsaturated fatty acid content is oleic acid, the same heart-healthy monounsaturated fat found in olive oil. Studies show that oleic acid promotes good cardiovascular health, even in individuals with diabetes. Studies of diabetic patients show that monounsaturated fat, when added to a low-fat diet, can help to reduce high triglyceride levels. Triglycerides are a form in which fats are carried in the blood, and high triglyceride levels are associated with an increased risk for heart disease, so ensuring you have some monounsaturated fats in your diet by enjoying cashews is a good idea, especially for persons with diabetes. Just a quarter-cup of these delicious nuts supplies 37.4% of the daily value for monounsaturated fat.
Copper for Antioxidant Defenses, Energy Production, Bones and Blood Vessels
An essential component of many enzymes that are essential in human metabolism, copper plays a role in a wide range of physiological processes including iron utilization, elimination of free radicals, development of bone and connective tissue, and the production of the skin and hair pigment called melanin. For example, copper is an essential component of the enzyme, superoxide dismutase, which is important in energy production and antioxidant defenses. Copper is also necessary for the activity of lysyl oxidase, an enzyme involved in cross-linking collagen and elastin, both of which provide the ground substance and flexibility in blood vessels, bones and joints. Low dietary intake of copper may also be associated with increased fecal free radical production and fecal water alkaline phosphatase activity, risk factors for colon cancer.
Numerous health problems can develop when copper intake is inadequate, including iron deficiency anemia, ruptured blood vessels, osteoporosis, joint problems such as rheumatoid arthritis, brain disturbances, elevated LDL (bad) cholesterol and reduced HDL (good) cholesterol levels, irregular heartbeat, and increased susceptibility to infections.
Magnesium for Bones and Nerves
While calcium is necessary for strong bones, it’s not all we need. Magnesium is also vital for healthy bones. About two-thirds of the magnesium in the human body is found in our bones. Some of it helps give bones their physical structure, while the rest is found on the surface of the bone where it is stored for the body to draw upon as needed.
Magnesium also helps regulate nerve and muscle tone. In many nerve cells, magnesium serves to prevent calcium from rushing into the nerve cell and activating the nerve. By blocking calcium’s entry, magnesium keeps our nerves (and the blood vessels and muscles they ennervate) relaxed. If our diet provides us with too little magnesium, however, calcium can gain free entry, and the nerve cell can become overactivated, sending too many messages and causing excessive contraction.
Insufficient magnesium can thus contribute to high blood pressure, muscle spasms (including spasms of the heart muscle or the spasms of the airways symptomatic of asthma), and migraine headaches, as well as muscle cramps, tension, soreness and fatigue. Given these effects, it is not surprising that studies have shown magnesium helps reduce the frequency of migraine attacks, lowers blood pressure, helps prevent heart attacks, promotes normal sleep patterns in women suffering from menopausal sleep disturbances, and reduces the severity of asthma. Just a quarter-cup of cashews provides 22.3% of the daily value for magnesium.
Things to know about Calcium & Co.
According to The Doctor’s Book of Food Remedies, calcium needs buddies to get into your bones and do their work. The main one is vitamin D, but others include zinc, copper and manganese. They all help your body to absorb calcium.
Enemies of calcium, those substances that hinder or prevent the mineral from being absorbed in your body, include caffeine (found in coffee, colas, certain drugs, etc.), and salt. Substances such as these should be avoided altogether or used in moderation.
Other Health Benefits
Research is just beginning to discover the potential benefits of eating cashew nuts. The zinc it contains in such plentiful supply is important for maintaining the required levels of white blood cells, part of the body’s immune system that fights infections. Zinc also appears to improve male fertility. Another study has found that women who eat at least one ounce (28,35 grams) of nuts or nut butter each week have a 25% lower risk of developing gallstones. Who knows what other benefits may be discovered in the near or distant future?
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Sources Consulted
http://www.midvalleynut.com/store/nutrition.html
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=98
http://www.wholehealthmd.com/refshelf/foods_view/1,1523,84,00.html
http://www.worldpantry.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ExecMacro/nspired/maranatha/health.d2w/report
http://www.rawfood.com/cashews.html
The Doctor’s Book of Food Remedies, by Selene Yeager and the Editors of Prevention Health BooksTM, 1998, Rodale Inc.
