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Nuts: A Condiment, Not a Snack

Nuts seem like the perfect snack: they're portable, they keep well, they don't need to be cooked, and they're tasty. Problem: I don't feel good when I eat too many of them. Recently, I started snacking on macadamia nuts, which are high-fat, so I thought they wouldn't be a problem. But my stomach was upset, I got a bit of acid reflux and nosebleeds, and generally didn't feel up to par.

Nuts have phytates, which bind to zinc and other minerals. This might have caused my nosebleeds. And I don't know what it is about macadamia nuts, but they don't seem to digest well for me; they felt like they were sitting in my stomach causing bloating. I've felt pretty much the same way eating more than a little bit of nuts or goodies made with nut flour.

It could be that nuts are seeds and don't "want" to be eaten. Like grass seeds, they defend themselves by sickening those who ingest them. 
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Comments

Almond said…
I find that soaking the nuts beforehand reduces the stomach trouble. Raw nuts are the most problematic for me.
May 18, 2014
Lori Miller said…
I used to do that, too, but the nuts didn't dry out afterward and it's too much trouble for me.
May 18, 2014
Lowcarb team member said…
I'm ok with macadamia nuts, although I know some do find they can give problems. My one problem with them is they taste so good, it's easy to eat too many ....so I make sure I only have a handful.

All the best Jan,
May 18, 2014
Lori Miller said…
At $13.99 a pound, they make an expensive meal.
May 18, 2014
Galina L. said…
Somehow my inability to stop eating nuts is the thing of the past. Macadamias are so expensive, I don't remember when I bought it last time, may be a year ago.
May 18, 2014
Lori Miller said…
I have a new saying: if you can't stop, then don't start.
May 19, 2014
Lowcarb team member said…
Yes, they are not cheap. But they are not a meal just a snack and I have no more than five/six at a time and not three times a day..... just once in a while.

I know many cannot do this but I keep them in an air tight jar .... it works for me.

But we all have to do what's best for us.....and as they are so delicious perhaps it's better not to start eating macadamias. How about almonds?

All the best Jan
May 20, 2014
Lori Miller said…
Agreed--if a person ate more than a handful, it would be an expensive meal.

Thinking about it, almonds don't seem to give me any problem; neither to hazelnuts or pistachios. But macadamias and walnuts give me a stomach ache.
May 20, 2014
Galina L. said…
Hazelnuts are my favorite. Almonds leave a mild burning sensation in my mouth, but I regularly buy a thinly sliced type, sometimes I eat it with a yogurt, if I need an almond meal, I grind shivered almonds - it is twice less expensive than buying an almond flour. I keep all my nuts in a freazer to prevent unsaturated fats getting rancid.
May 20, 2014
Lori Miller said…
I never had a burning sensation with almonds, but if I eat more than one or two almond flour goodies (it's easy to do with something like Dr. Davis's wonderful pumpkin muffins), I'll get a stomach ache.
May 20, 2014
Galina L. said…
Nothing causes me GI pains.
May 20, 2014
Lori Miller said…
The good thing about GI pains is that it keeps you from eating a lot of junk. Distress within minutes or, at most, days is a better motivator than thinking about glycated proteins or hyperinsulemia and its effects 20 years away.
May 20, 2014
Galina L. said…
Yes,it is convenient, my problems with wrong food are allergies, rasocea (the fastest reaction) and joint pain are more delayed.
May 20, 2014
Lori Miller said…
I had some joint pain when I started LC, and within a month or so I didn't have to see a chiropractor anymore; in about six months I was able to carry a handbag again. My best friend's rheumatoid arthritis dissipated in three days after she start wheat-free.
May 21, 2014
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