Almonds are both delicious, healthy, and received a ton of press recently: they were featured on Oprah and on The Top Ten Foods for a Trimmer Belly [via: Celeb Diet] list. However, what exactly makes Almonds healthy? What will they do for YOU?

A current proposal presented to the FDA is suggesting eating “one ounce of nuts per day will decrease the chance for heart disease.”

Almonds contain mono-unsaturated fat, vitamin E, folic acid, magnesium, copper, protein, fiber, and antioxidants.

Benefits of some of these nutrients…

• Vitamin E: “Vitamin E acts as a powerful antioxidant by neutralizing free radicals in the body that cause tissue and cellular damage. Vitamin E also contributes to a healthy circulatory system and aids in proper blood clotting and improves wound healing” [source]
• Folic Acid: There is research indicating folic acid helps prevent Fetal Abnormalities, Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease, Heart Attacks and Strokes, and cancer. [source]

In addition to all of the previous listed benefits, Almonds can play an important role in lowering LDL (bad cholesterol), raising HDL (good cholesterol), dilate blood vessels (help prevent hardening of arteries), decrease blood pressure, and assist in weight loss.

Have I convinced you to eating Almonds yet? If not, peruse some of these Almond Recipes that I have personally tried and prefer, but they are not necessarily the healthiest:

• Almond Amaretto Bars
• Almond Pistachio Saffron Curry Sauce

Also, I wouldn’t over indulge on almonds because although they are extremely healthy, 1 oz of Almonds is still 160-200 calories.

Is there anything else you would be interested in learning about on Almonds? Comment.