Hazelnuts are packed with vitamins! Guide to nuts

Everyone knowshazelnuts, and although you probably don't eat them alone very often, they are actually a part of many desserts, chocolates and bars. The interesting thing about hazelnuts is that although they are primarily found in Europe, they have been used extensively in traditional Chinese medicine. But there are plenty of interesting things to find about them - and in today's article, we'll present you with several compelling reasons why you should include them in your diet from time to time.

Article content:

• What are hazelnuts?
• Why should you eat hazelnuts?
• How to use hazelnuts?
• What to take away from today's article?

What are hazelnuts?

Hazelnuts are the fruit of a tree called the hazelnut (Latin for corylus avellana, where the generic name refers to the Italian province where it is widely produced). Like many other nuts, hazelnuts are a great source of fat and protein. For example, those from LifeLike, which you can find in our range, contain in 100 grams:

You may notice that compared to other types of nuts, they contain quite a bit of fiber and also give a good amount of fat. In addition to macronutrients, they also contain a whole range of vitamins and minerals - we find mainly iron, phosphorus, zinc or these vitamins for example B group.

Hazelnuts can also be commonly encountered in our country.

Why should you eat hazelnuts?

If knowing that hazelnuts are nutritionally rich is not enough for you to include them in your diet, we have a whole range of benefits that have been discovered by scientific studies and available analyses:

They contain a good portion of antioxidants

As we mentioned in our separate article on antioxidants, it is impossible to avoid oxidative stress in this day and age, because it is caused by frequent stress, poor diet, and air pollution. And in order to eliminate the negative effects of oxidative stress on our body, it is important to have an optimal intake of antioxidants. And that's where nuts can help - hazelnuts in particular contain phenols, which scientists believe may have anti-inflammatory properties. However, the disadvantage is that roasting can reduce the content of these nutrients.

They may be associated with a reduction in LDL cholesterol

Today's human diet has a significant excess of saturated fatty acids. However, nuts (including hazelnuts) contain a large amount of unsaturated healthy fatty acids that have a positive effect on, for example, our cardiovascular health. So it is not surprising that studies that have investigated the effect of regular consumption of hazelnut leaves on health have shown a correlation with lower total and LDL cholesterol levels. It should be noted, however, that the aforementioned research works with subjects for whom hazelnuts represent 20% of their calorie intake.

Given their high content of unsaturated fatty acids, hazelnuts can be great for our cardiovascular health.

They are also suitable for the diet

Hazelnuts are of course very high in calories, but they are still much more suitable for the diet than, for example, various chips and many other snacks. Because, among other things, enough fat, fibre and protein, containing this combination can fill you up well. Having a few hazelnuts for a snack can thus be a very pleasant change to your existing foods. Not to mention that studies conducted on rats, for example, have shown a possible correlation with better memory.

How to use hazelnuts?

Hazelnuts are, of course, versatile in their use. You can eat them on their own or take them on a strenuous hiking trip, as they are high in calories and take up minimal space in your backpack. But you can also make homemade hazelnut butter and use it on baked goods or in a variety of no-bake desserts. Or you can buy hazelnut butter - Big Boy makes a great one, combining hazelnuts with milk chocolate and protein. But hazelnuts can also find their place in a variety of sweet and savoury recipes - for example, in salads, various biscuits, muffins or homemade pastries.

Hazelnuts can be added to a wide range of sweets - typically they come in handy for making biscuits, for example.

What to take away from today's article?

The main thing you should take away from today's article is that hazelnuts are a nutritionally very rich food, containing a very generous portion of protein, carbohydrates and fats, as well as many vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Related to this is the fact that they can be associated with lower cholesterol levels, for example, and because of their fibre content, they also fill you up well. What's more, they are very easy to incorporate into the diet - whether in the form of whole nuts or, for example, hazelnut butter. You can find more products like this directly in our shop in the Nuts / Seeds section.