The United States is the ninth-most overweight country in the world, at a 74.1 oveweight rate, according to the World Health Organization, and the country has taken a many faceted approach to lose weight. One step in this process was to eat more often while keeping the overall caloric intake down. One of the many options of healthy choices to eat for these meals is one of the various nuts. By adding nuts to the daily diet, many have seen a decrease in belly fat.
How Nuts Help
By eating more often, the body takes in the nutrients that it needs to maintain an inner homeostasis, or neutral environment. When this homeostasis is offset by not eating often enough, the hormone cortisol can be released, which stores excess fat, usually around the mid section. This leads to an increase in visceral or organ fat. This process can be ceased by eating more often, including small meals. One of those meals can be a serving or two of nuts, and fortunately there is a large variety of choices in nuts to choose from.
Pistachios
Pistachios contain the least amount of calories in nuts with 13 g of unsaturated fats and 3 g of fiber per serving. The unsaturated fat is necessary for proper protein metabolism and the extra fiber helps to maintain a satiated feeling. One serving size is 1 oz. or 49 nuts.
Almonds
Almonds contain 163 calories per serving, which is 23 nuts. There's 14 g of fat and 4 g of fiber, as well as more than half the daily recommended value of Vitamin E. Besides the many added benefits of eating almonds, they also pack 6 g of protein, which help to maintain muscle mass so that fat, and not muscle, is burned after workouts.
Walnuts
Walnuts are a bit higher in calories, at 185 per serving of 14 halves. However, they do contain the highest amount of Omega 3 fatty acids as well as ellagic acid, the immune system boosting antioxidant. This addition of Omega 3 fatty acids is important because, as shown by the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic in Prague, and Pronova BioPharma of Norway, these acids help the body burn fat.
Considerations
Though nuts are a quick and convenient snack to add to a diet, many people have unknown nut allergies. It is then necessary to take precaution when eating nuts that are not normally consumed. Also, overeating any food will add excess calories that will lead to an increase in body weight, which many times can be fat. Approach nuts as a snack; though they have many positive qualities, overconsumption of nuts will not aid in lowering belly fat.
References
- Most Overweight Countries in the World: Ranking
- "Ultrametabolism: The Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss"; Mark Hyman; 2008
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