Macadamia - Myths and Science

Another great food gets a bad rap?

When most people think of macadamia nuts, they say, “Oh, but they are so fattening!”
This is simply untrue!  It is another belief based on misinformation. Similar to the bad rap coconut oil got and continues to get in many circles, processed macadamia nuts are confused with their raw counterparts.

Confusion also comes from the presence of saturated fats.  Macadamia nuts, however, contain a high level of monounsaturated fats. Just don’t eat them roasted and salted!

Saturated fats are highly misunderstood:  we need some saturated fats for cell health.  A poor diet - one high in animal fats and other acid causing practices, poor food combining, processed foods, a lack of vegetables, and a plethora of  low quality ingredients - nullifies any argument about good fats and bad fats, or the nature of saturated, polyunsaturated, and monounsaturated fats.  Good foods get vilified in the midst of an ill paradigm.

Macademia nuts are now being recognized as a healthy part of a good diet - especially concerning heart health.

See: http://live.psu.edu/story/30112

“The Healthy Heart diet with macadamia nuts did reduce total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride levels compared with the standard American diet. The researchers reported in the current issue of the Journal of Nutrition, that the macadamia nuts reduced total cholesterol by 9.4 percent and low-density lipoprotein by 8.9 percent.”

I usually order mine from Living Tree Community.

I found raw organic macadamia nuts  for a lower price here, which I haven’t yet tried. (Still working on my last 10lb order!)

It Doesn’t Get Any Greener

“It could be said that the secret of all life on earth depends on a special process that only the green plants possess. This process is called photosynthesis. All green plants absorb energy from the sun, take water and minerals through their roots and air through through leaves en route to maturity. Using the energy from the sun, plants utilize water, minerals and carbon dioxide to make starches, fats, proteins, vitamins and everything they require to grow.

It was little more than a century ago that chemists isolated a green pigment from the green leaves of plants that they called chlorophyll….The chlorophyll molecule bears a striking resemblance to hemoglobin, the red pigment in human blood. The red blood pigment is a web of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen atoms grouped around a single atom of iron. Nature’s green pigment is a similar web of the same atoms, except that its centerpiece is a single atom of magnesium.” (Read the entire article at: http://proliberty.com/observer/20011010.htm)

Chlorophyll is said to improve various anemic conditions, improve the action of the heart, reduce high blood pressure and improve overall health. The writer of the above mentioned article cites examples of chlorophyll normalizing blood count and platelet levels.

Further benefits attributed to chlorophyll include improvement or healing of:
Hepatitis and other liver diseases, asthma and hayfever, pyorrhea, varicose veins, hemorrhoids,
ulcers - internal and external, high and low blood sugar, offensive body odors, sore throat.

“While we always hear that eating more fruits and vegetables enhances our health, new research shows that eating green foods adds extra power to an anti-aging program.

Two experiments at the University of South Florida Center for Aging and Brain Repair, published in the Journal of Neurobiology (7/15/02), show that spirulina and other greens can help shield the brain from the antioxidant damage that accumulates as one ages and may help reverse declines in learning and memory.”

The green power of chlorophyll

Foods containing high concentrations of chlorophyll:

sprouts, asparagus, bell peppers, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, green cabbage, celery, collard greens, green beans, green peas, kale, leeks, green olives, parsley, romaine lettuce, sea vegetables, spinach, Swiss chard, and turnip greens are concentrated sources of chlorophyll.

Overcooking decreases the chlorophyll.

The moral of the story in Stefanie’s world. Protect plant life (that means ecosystems, growing practices, etc.).

What’s So(y) Great?

In doing some research on oxalic acid with regard to spinach (see blog) I found some information that was quite new to me.

Soy contains an “anti-nutrient” called oxalate that binds to calcium and prevents its absorption in the human body. Oxalates are common in many vegetable products, though play a much worse role in some. Soy, for example, has such a heavy oxalate content that it not only prevents calcium absorption from the soy itself, it seeks out calcium in the human cellular structure, binds to it and depletes the body of existing calcium reserves.

This depletion can cause many calcium deficiency diseases. Additionally the lumps of coagulated, oxalate-bound calcium are a common cause of kidney stones.

The growing presence of genetically modified soy, which most of us aren’t even aware we are eating, is a serious cause of concern. (Well the growing presence of genetically modified anything is cause for major concern in my book, but don’t get me started!)

Really! Should soy be considered a health food?

For vegans who depend on soy for their protein, consider eating more sprouts - not only alfalfa, but broccoli sprouts, mung bean sprouts, sunflower seed sprouts. http://www.sproutpeople.com/grow/sprouting.html