Which Nuts Are Best?

Nuts can be a part of the Paleo Diet, when eaten in moderation.   Since all nuts are high in inflammatory Omega6s and low in anti inflammatory Omega 3s, they should be regarding more as a garnish than a regular, go-to source of dietary fat.

But are all nuts the same?

Not at all.

Surprisingly, almonds, which we see in abundance in many forms and varieties, have one of the worst Omega 3:6 ratios- with virtually no detectable Omega 3s!

Walnuts, Macadamias and Brazil Nuts, however, rank as the top three in their ratio which is more favorable, but still not ideal.  (As a reminder, the fats we should rely on regularly are raw avocados, coconut oil and extra virgin olive oil, as well as the fats we find with our protein sources, like wild salmon or the occasional fattier cut of grass fed meat, like a nice rib-eye!)

Raw is best, dry roasted sans salt would be the next runner up and those to avoid include anything cooked in peanut oil, glazed as well as most commercially available trail mixes which tend to contain all sorts of additives like corn syrup, soybean oil, sulfur dioxide or even candy!

Don’t make the common mistake of buying a huge vat of nuts and bringing them to the office to ‘snack on’ throughout the day’.   Far too often this ends in too many calories, unbalanced in macro nutrients, completely lacking in veggies and too much of an inflammatory food.

Easy to purchase or easy to eat does not necessarily mean it’s a good idea to eat in excess!