Nuts driving me nuts

[Stavia]

I'm trying to get my head around exactly WHAT nuts I should be eating in my small handful most days.

I have one to two brazil nuts 4-5 days a week because my country's soil is deficient in selenium and I only eat locally grown food.
I have randomly chosen sunflower seeds for the vitamin E as I know through fitness pal that my diet isn't great in Vitamin E and I know supplementing Vitamin E in a tablet increases all cause mortality.
Walnuts and almonds seem to be a popular choice so I've added those, plus pecans and hazels for a reason I can't quite remember in the post denouement frantic search for information....

[pal]

I currently eat unsalted walnuts and pistachios (mostly because I like them). See G's post on the benefits of walnuts: https://www.apoe4.info/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=354 I haven't researched the benefits of various nuts and I'm sure others here have much more knowledge. I've avoided almonds for years and meant to post about that here. I read a long time ago that almonds can increase susceptibility to cold sores. I stopped eating almonds and I now rarely ever get a cold sore. There is one theory that HSV/herpes/cold sores could be at least one cause of AD: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/20 ... 134109.htm

[SpunkyPup]

macadamia nuts have the best profile, but it is best to eat a variety and crack them yourself as the shelled ones use processes that are not healthy.

[Gilgamesh]

Here's a classic CR Society discussion of nuts:

http://arc.crsociety.org/read.php?2,138 ... msg-155144

You can alter the criteria and get diff. results. (And there are other criteria -- for ex. I rank walnuts highly because of the abundance of polyphenols they contain.)

My approach:

- Cycle through most nuts (though I think I'm going to cut out peanuts -- not really nuts -- and possibly cashews) to avoid allergies.

- Avoid Brazil nuts because the levels of Se can vary radically! This is a big concern for me. I live in Se-pour Europe (most of the year), alas, but I just take a small amount of Se as a supplement. That way, I know how much I'm getting. Pubmed Brazil nuts and selenium. It's frightening. One could easily OD on Se by eating even a few Brazil nuts.

-Soak nuts overnight (usually -- if I forget or don't feel like it: no big deal) to reduce antinutrients and start the germination process. (Disclaimer: not well-researched yet. But google the topic and you'll get some half- and 3/4-baked ideas on this. I was convinced it can't hurt, and might help.)

Thanks to James (Cain) for getting me to reconsider nuts. I had mostly eliminated them from my diet because of the high levels of Manganese (1). Still a touch uncertain, given my berry and tea consumption.

GB

Re almonds: it's the arginine:lysine ratio, according to most scientists. I just up my lysine dose on my almond days. Disclaimer: haven't looked into intervention trials, but there's a very plausible mechanism behind it.

(1) http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/m ... manganese/

[Stavia]

thank you Gilgamesh for this useful information
Having answers from the community certainly makes this road less lonely

[LillyBritches]

I consume about six cashews, six walnuts, one brazil nut, and three almonds per day. I like to mix the walnuts and cashews into my goat/sheep yogurt and top it off with chia seeds.

Just my nutty two cents (groan)...

[Stavia]

Thank you Lilly, why the cashews?