How to Promote Health and Extend Lifespan with Daily Consumption of Nuts & Seeds
What you will learn
The health promoting, life extending benefit of eating nuts or seeds every day. This is HealthScore Recommendation #18 of 31.
Description
Did you know that eating 1 serving of nuts or seeds daily lowers risk of premature death by 20%?
There are many delicious options for getting in your nuts and seeds. There’s walnuts on oats, chia seed in overnight oats, to name a few.
The value of nuts and seeds comes from their fat and their antioxidants. Nuts and seeds reduce risk of heart attack by lowering LDL cholesterol, improving endothelial function, and reducing lipid peroxidation, a crucial step in plaque formation. Nuts and seeds help prevent weight gain and diabetes by reversing insulin resistance. And nuts and seeds lower the risk of cancer by reducing oxidative DNA damage, reducing cell proliferation, and lower inflammation.
Despite the incredible health benefits of nuts and seeds, the average American falls short of the recommended 7 servings per week. U.S. adults consume an average of only 2 servings of nuts or seeds per week.
But eating 1 serving of nuts or seeds daily sounds like a lot to ask. That is more than 3x more nuts and seeds than the average consumption by U.S. adults. Americans have shifted to a diet of prepared food, and processed food, and have moved away from a diet rich in whole plant foods like nuts and seeds. Is there a way to reach the 7 servings per week recommendation in the modern food environment?
There most certainly is! in this course, Dr. Cohen, a primary care doctor in San Francisco, shares with you effective and delicious strategies for eating 7 servings of nuts or seeds per week.
The course begins with an introduction to nutrition. Dr. Cohen explains how our food environment has made it increasingly difficult to eat healthy. He proposes a shift back to preparing our own food, from fresh ingredients we buy, including lots of nuts and seeds. Next, he’ll share with you the medical research that shows the benefits of diets rich in nuts and seeds. You’ll learn about the role of antioxidants and fat in nuts and seeds for promoting health. Next, he’ll share with you tips for meal planning, grocery shopping, and food preparation, to make consuming 7 servings of nuts or seeds per week easy and delicious. Finally, you’ll hear the answers to frequently asked questions, followed by a summary of the information presented.