Walnuts ‘are healthiest nut’

US scientists have proclaimed the walnut as the healthiest nut, which should be eaten as part of a healthy diet.

The findings, published in the American Chemical Society, state that walnuts contain the highest level of antioxidants, which are known to help protect the body against the disease, when compared to other nuts.

The scientists analysed the antioxidant levels of nine different types of nuts and discovered that a handful of walnuts contained twice as many antioxidants as a handful of any other commonly eaten nut.

The antioxidants found in walnuts were also two to 15 times as powerful as vitamin E, which is known to protect the body against damaging natural chemicals involved in causing disease, the study says.

Nuts are healthy and nutritious, containing high-quality protein, lots of vitamins and minerals as well as dietary fibre and have the added benefits of being dairy and gluten-free.

Previous research has shown that regular consumption of small amounts of nuts can reduce the risk of heart disease, some types of cancer, type two diabetes and other health problems.

And whilst many nuts are roasted, the fact that walnuts are seldom prepared in this way but are often eaten raw, adds to their advantage over other types of nut.

Dr Joe Vinson from the University of Scranton advised: “The heat from roasting nuts generally reduces the quality of the antioxidants. People usually eat walnuts raw or unroasted, and get the full effectiveness of those antioxidants."

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