8 Tree Nut Snacks and Their BRAIN HEALTH Benefits
Snacking while studying is beneficial when studying and working. There is a ton of benefits you can get from it. Eating the usual American snack packs that you can purchase anywhere can be harmful to your health. So, choosing an excellent bite to benefit from is more harmful than it seems.
Among the best study snack list, there are some tree nuts that you can benefit from the most. Most people think that eating nuts is unhealthy and avoid them all the time. That isn’t the truth. Eating packs of nuts is healthier than eating bags of American snacks.
Going Nuts for Brain Health
Eating tree nuts have a ton of benefits healthwise such as losing weight, and lowering the risk of getting heart disease, and diabetes. A study conducted by Harvard University proved that people who eat tree nuts daily had a 20% lower death rate.
But when we are looking at how eating tree nuts affect your brain health, all tree nuts cannot be treated equally. There are a few nuts that affect your brain health in a good way more than the others. Eating these nuts can help you study and work more effectively. Let’s dive in and find out what those are.
1. Almonds & Hazelnuts
Almonds & Hazelnuts contain a high level of vitamin E . Clinical studies have proved that vitamin E improves memory and verbal measures. Most importantly, hazelnuts are the most affordable tree nuts there are.
2. Walnuts
Walnuts are the most beneficial tree nuts for your brain health. They contain a high concentration of DHA, a type of Omega-3 fatty acid. The latest studies show that DHA has been shown to protect human brain health the most. One cup of walnuts provides the recommended daily intake of DHA.
3. Peanuts
Peanuts are the most common snack that everybody loves to eat. It can be so addictive because of its taste. Peanuts have abundant levels of niacin. Studies have shown that eating peanuts may help control Parkinson’s.
Safe Tree Nut Daily Intake Amounts
Healthy daily tree nuts intake is around 30 grams. Which is about 20 almonds, 15 cashews, 20 hazelnuts, You could eat about 43 grams of walnuts per day without having any problems.
Eating Tree Nuts as a snack Benefits and Downside
Like we said before not all nuts can be used as a snack. They have their good and bad side. Some have serious side effects while some help you to stay healthy. So, let’s find out what are the good ones that you can use as a snack and what are bad so that you can evade them.
1. Hazelnuts | Most affordable snack for brain health
Hazelnuts are incredibly useful for your health since they have rich levels of vitamin A, B, and E. Unlike some of the tree nuts you could use as a study/work snack hazelnuts may improve your bowel movements.
The Good
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Most affordable (0.9$ per pound)
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Reduces weight gain
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Improves brain health
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lowers bad cholesterol levels
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improves insulin sensitivity
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The Bad
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High calories may sometimes lead to weight gain (if not taken according to safe daily intake limits)
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As we mentioned above any student or office worker who doesn’t have a nut allergy can benefit from eating hazelnut as a snack. There are not many downsides to snacking hazelnuts if you are taking them within the daily intake limit.
2. Almonds | Most Popular Nut Snack
Almonds are one of the favorite tree nuts there is, due to their taste and their health benefits. They contain 13 nutritions which include high vitamin E (37% in an ounce) and high levels of calcium. The latest studies found that eating almonds help lower the risk of getting heart disease and diabetes.
The Good
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Reduces “bad” LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol levels, lowering the risk of getting heart disease
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Low calory diet may help you to lose weight ( 28grams = 161 calories)
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Eating a meal with one ounce of almonds enables you to lower your blood sugar level
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Improves your brain health
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The Bad
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Eating too many almonds can cause digestive problems
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Bitter Almonds can be TOXIC. (Evade eating bitter almonds)
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Can cause Vitamine E overdose.
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A bit expensive (14$ per pound)
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Eating almonds as a snack can be extremely helpful for students and office workers. But be sure to control the daily intake amount and evade eating bitter almonds because they can be more toxic than you think.
3. Peanuts | Most Common Snack
Peanuts are the most common study snack there is, and it improves your brain health. The incredible thing is, that the peanut is the only nut that doesn’t belong on the tree nuts list. Peanut belongs to the legume family. However, it does have the same benefits as tree nuts.
The Good
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improves brain health
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affordable
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lower the risk of getting diabetes
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reduces the risk of getting heart disease
- affordable (3$ a pound)
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The Bad
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addictive
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the high-calorie level can make you gain weight
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As we said, peanuts are the most common snack there. But, when you’re buying peanuts from various brands, they have already added salts and other ingredients which may not be healthy. So, It’s better to stick with peanut butter, which has more nutrition.
4. Pistachios | Rich Fiber Levels
Pistachios have rich levels of protein, healthy fat, fiber, and a proper level of antioxidants. Its nutrition can help you lose weight and lower the risks of heart disease and diabetes. Also, it improves eyesight and gut health.
The Good
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improves good HDL cholesterol
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lowers the risks of getting heart diseases
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reduces blood pressure
- reduces the blood sugar level
- affordable (2$ a pound)
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The Bad
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can lead to a bad stomach
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the high-calorie level can make you gain weight
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Pistachios are fun to eat and do have some excellent benefits as well. It is an affordable snack for students and office workers. However, snacking on pistachios has some harmful side effects such as giving you a bad stomach, and making you gain weight. So, that can be bad when you’re busy as hell studying or working.
5. Walnuts | Best Snack for Brain Health
Like we said before walnuts are the most effective tree nuts for your brain health because they have rich levels of omega-3-oils. They are vitamin E-rich and healthy fats which can lower your weight.
The Good
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improves brain health
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lowers the risks of getting heart diseases by 51%
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helps to ward off depression
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The Bad
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can lead to a bad stomach maybe even diarrhea
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the high-calorie level can make you gain weight
- a bit expensive (8.5$ per pound)
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Walnuts contain high levels of omega-3-oils which can improve your brain health. So that can reduce the stress and depression you get from working and studying for long hours. But as a study snack, it’s still a bit expensive.
6. Pecans | Boosts Immunity
Pecans are a bit expensive tree nut to use as a snack. However, does have some awesome benefits. Like some other tree nuts like macadamia nuts, pecans have anti-aging benefits and prevent skin problems.
The Good
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lowers bad cholesterol levels
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reduces the risks of getting heart diseases
- improves digestion
- prevents skin problems
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The Bad
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the high-calorie level can make you gain weight
- a bit expensive (7$ a pound)
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Like any other tree nut, pecans have a high level of antioxidants. So it’ll make a great snack to eat while working or studying. Just be careful because of the high-calorie level it contains.
7. Cashews | Most Tasties Snack
Cashews are a popular tree nut like almonds, and it’s filled with a lot of nutrients that any tree nut has. Cashews have high levels of iron and magnesium (more than almonds). But, getting a harvest is extremely toxic for the people who grow cashews mostly in India and Vietnam.
The Good
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improves blood lipid levels
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reduces blood pressure
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help to lose weight
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improves eyesight
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The Bad
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Raw cashews aren’t safe to eat; it can be toxic. (steam to remove the toxins)
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salted and roasted cashews contain high salt and fat level, which can cause health problems.
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Somewhat affordable (7$ per pound)
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Cashew is amongst the most popular tree nuts list, and it’s healthy to eat because of the rich levels of nutrition. But you should avoid eating raw cashews because they can be toxic and avoid salted cashews. As a solution you steam raw cashews to remove the toxins, then you’ll be able to use them as a study snack.
8. Macadamia Nuts | Best One For a Healthy Life
Any Tree nuts list without macadamia nuts is not a good tree nuts list. However, in the list of tree nuts as a snack list, it goes the final place. Because compared to other tree nuts you can use as a snack, macadamia nuts are really expensive.
The Good
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protects the brain
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manage weight gain
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they may prevent cancer
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The Bad
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the high-calorie level can make you gain weight
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too expensive (25$ per pound)
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Macadamia nuts do offer some excellent health benefits for everyone who doesn’t have allergies. But it does not make a great study snack due to its high price.
Evade Snacking Nuts if,
You are allergic to nuts
Tree nut allergies are common and eating tree nuts put themselves at the risk of getting life-threatening allergic reactions. Even kissing someone who has a nut allergy after eating tree nuts, they can still get allergic reactions. So, if you are allergic to tree nuts or you have a loved one who is, you should avoid eating tree nuts as a snack.
You are eating too many nuts
If you read the good and bad side of each tree’s nut, you must know this by now. You can get some health problems if you eat a lot of tree nuts in one day. Check the safe daily intake amounts of tree nuts we’ve posted above.
You can’t moderate snacks
You know by now that taking a lot of tree nuts as snacks can harm your health. Like that, sticking to only tree nuts can harm your health too. So, you must try to find at least two or three snacks that you would like to eat while studying and working. A few of the best study snacks are yogurt with blueberry, fruits, and veggies with dips.
Tree Nut Snack Alternatives
Due to those reasons above, you may have to avoid eating tree nuts as a snack. But there are tons of alternatives to the tree nuts you can take into consideration when choosing a snack. These are nut-free solutions so you can snack on them without worrying about getting
Seeds
Seeds are a great source of nutrition, and it does make a tasty snack. For those who have nut allergies, you can snack on seeds as an alternative snack for tree nuts. There are tons of seeds you can use as a snack out there. But, be careful because if you’re allergic to seeds, it can lead to those life-threatening allergic reactions.
Tree Nut Butters
For the people who love the taste of tree nuts but don’t love eating them always, you can use tree nut jars of butter such as peanut butter, and pistachios butter that you could purchase anywhere. You can use butter on other snacks if you like, such as mixing with greek yogurt or drizzling with popcorn.
Beans
Beans are an affordable healthy snack that can be an alternative snack for tree nuts and seeds. There are a lot of beans, such as navy beans, and soybeans. Most beans have low-calorie levels than tree nuts so you won’t have to worry about gaining weight.
Other Snacks
For those who don’t like to eat tree nuts or the alternatives above, there are tons of healthy snacks available to eat while studying or working. These best healthy snacks may be the ones that you’re looking for. These snacks also can be used in snack moderation, to benefit from snacking while studying.
In a Nutshell
As you know by now, tree nuts do make a great snack to take while studying or working without any doubt. Even if you are a vegan or someone who loves to eat organic food and snacks, tree nuts are an excellent choice.
Some human-made American snacks have some terrible side effects, such as increasing the risk of getting heart disease or weight gain. So as a replacement for those snack packs, you can use tree nuts. The best things are most tree nut packets are available everywhere, and they are affordable for everyone.
However, those who have allergic reactions to tree nuts should stay away from using tree nuts as a snack. There are tons of other healthy and affordable snacks and drinks that you can use while studying or working.
