Almonds: the eye shaped nut

Almonds are one of the most recommended nuts, undoubtedly and are available throughout the year. They are the seeds of Almond tree which is close relative of cherry tree and has beautiful light pink to white flowers.

Almonds are considerably rich in proteins but lack some of the essential aminoacids. But the almond proteins help repair the neurons of brains thus may improve memory. The fat content is pretty high. Almond oil extracted is used for both edible and application purposes. The carbohydrate content, which is very low, comprises of mostly fiber. So can be used for achieving low body weight or steady increase in the blood sugar level in diabetic patients. Almonds are Gluten free.

Almonds have a rich supply of vitamin E, the powerful antioxidant which is also good for your skin and prevents senile damage to the eyes, and Vitamin B2 or riboflavin, required for the basic metabolism of cellular respiration responsible for energy production and biotin. Besides the vitamins it has minerals in store including magnesium, copper (required by oxidation enzymes), manganese and iron.

A significant common word is around about soaking your almonds nightlong before eating. The scientific explanation is that presence of phytic acid in the nuts including almonds which interferes with the absorption of other minerals. Soaking the almonds gets rid of that phytic acid for you. Besides enzyme inhibitors are also present in nuts which can be avoided by soaking. You should also peel the almonds because the peels of most nuts is harder to digest but the peel has some high concentrations of antioxidants. So it is up to you to peel them or not.

A word of caution is necessary because bitter almonds contain a very toxic substance called amygdalin, a cyanogenic glycoside (cyanides are potentially the most powerful poisons), the toxic potential is so high that eating even only four to five bitter almonds can prove fatal.

Perhaps, from now on you should take your almonds more seriously or if you eat them regularly, consume them with more relish.