If you’re crazy for nuts, then you’re going to want to keep reading today’s blog. Yes, nuts can be a tasty, nutritional contribution to your health, and walnuts are no exception. Although, you may be less familiar with walnuts when it comes to their health benefits than you are with their cousins. And by cousins, we’re referring to others in the nut family including almonds, cashews, pecans and peanuts, as examples.
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In this blog, we’re putting the walnut front and center for its health benefits. The who, what, where and why’s of this relatively mild-tasting, earthy, buttery-flavored kind of nut. If you were feeling sorry for this tree-nut that is often mistaken for a pecan because they share similarities looks-wise, you can stop worrying. In fact, according to this article, walnuts are actually the third most popular nut in the world, behind peanuts and almonds, and just ahead of cashews. Pecans are number seven, if you can believe that.
What are Walnuts and How are They Grown?
The two largest producers of walnuts are the United States and China, accounting for 42% and 29%, respectively, of production worldwide. China is where half of the walnuts produced are devoured, with the U.S. coming in as the second largest devotees of walnut consumption. Here’s one more fun fact: over 99% of walnuts grown in the U.S. come from California, mainly in the San Joaquin and Sacramento Valleys, thanks to the state’s fertile soil and temperate climate.
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Did you know that nuts are actually fruits, according to the U.S. Forest Service, a government agency under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)? If you’re talking botany, nuts are considered a particular kind of dry fruit, one that has a single seed, a hard shell and a protective husk. Walnuts, pecans, chestnuts and hazelnuts fit the definition of true nuts; whereas peanuts are technically legumes and almonds are drupes. But back to walnuts.
Walnuts grow on trees, thus they are categorized as tree nuts along with almonds, cashews, pecans and pistachios, whereas peanuts grow underground.
What Nutrients do Walnuts Contain?
There are two main types of walnuts—black walnuts and English walnuts, with the former looking slightly darker in color, although more brown than black. Black walnuts are said to have a stronger taste, a bit mustier and fruitier than English walnuts. Black walnuts are harder to find while English walnuts are more readily available in your basic supermarket.
This is where we get to the good stuff. Walnuts are mainly fat (about 65%) and protein (15%). This information from the American Black Walnut Marketing Board compares black walnuts to English walnuts, claiming black walnuts contain 57% more protein than their competitors and the highest level of protein among all tree nuts.
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As for the fat, walnuts are a good source of polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs), including omega-3s and omega-6s. Walnuts also contain a variety of vitamins and minerals, such as B vitamins, vitamin E, iron, phosphorous, copper, magnesium and potassium. This article advises that walnuts are rich in antioxidants, ranking 2nd in a study that examined the antioxidant content of over 1100 foods.
What are the Benefits of Walnuts?
The benefits of walnuts are plentiful, but despite how good they taste, you should eat them in moderation because of their high calorie content. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the government’s gold standard for nutrition recommendations, advises that on a 2,000 calorie diet daily, about 5 ounces of nuts, seeds and soy products per week are about right. One serving generally equals about 1ounce, but double check the nutrition info as serving sizes can vary.
This blog post buckets the health benefits of walnuts into four categories:
1) heart health—this recent post references a 2018 meta-analysis that combined data from 26 studies and also builds on earlier results from the same authors about the heart health benefits of walnuts. Both studies found that diets enriched with walnuts led to lower total and lower LDL cholesterol compared to other diets. The more recent meta-analysis added two more walnut-related heart health benefits to their findings: lower triglycerides and lower apolipoprotein B (apoB), which is a protein linked to cardiovascular disease.
2) brain health—it’s the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of walnuts that studies show may be responsible for improved brain function and slowing mental decline that occurs as we age.
3) gut health—this study showed that eating 43 grams of walnuts daily over an eight week period “significantly affected the gut microbiome by enhancing probiotic- and butyric acid-producing bacteria in healthy individuals.”
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Do Walnuts Contain Omega-3?
It seems we’ve answered that question already, and in a way, we have. But there’s more. Yes, walnuts contain omega-3 fatty acids. In fact, walnuts appear to be the richest nut for omega-3 fatty acids, containing 6,280 mg per 100 grams, according to this source. Compare that to pecans and pistachios, the next nuts in line, with 620 mg per 100 grams and 320 mg per 100 grams, respectively, and you realize that walnuts are far and away the best nut source for omega-3s.
And if you compare walnuts to other plant-based sources of omega-3s, walnuts are still impressively high on the list, according to this piece. You can fill your daily requirement of omega-3s with just one serving of walnuts, with a single ounce (28 grams) providing 2,570 mg of the nutrient. While not the gangbuster amount found in chia seeds—5,000 mg of omega-3 in the same serving size—walnuts still hold their own in the omega-3 plant category.
However, there’s more to this story. As it turns out, there are different types of omega-3s, and while all have benefits, not all are equal. What do we mean by that? Read on.
Is Consuming Walnuts for Their Omega-3s the Same as Consuming Fish or Fish Oil Supplements?
The answer is no. A definite no. And here’s why:
There are three main forms of omega-3s: 1) eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA); 2) docosahexaenoic acid (DHA); and 3) alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). Here’s where the differences begin.
Fish oil contains omega-3 EPA and DHA, and you can get these omega-3s from cold-water fatty fish, like salmon, mackerel, herring, sardines and others, or from dietary supplements labeled either as fish oil or omega-3 EPA and DHA.
Krill oil is another source that contains omega-3 EPA and DHA, but is not as well-known nor as well-researched as fish oil. Krill oil comes from krill, which are tiny shrimp-like crustaceans. Read more here.
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Fish oil is by far the most researched and the most popular way to get your omega-3s. That is unless you are a vegan or vegetarian—in which case you’ll want to get your omega-3 fatty acids from a plant-based source—and that’s where ALA comes in. (As an aside, algal oil is another plant-based source of omega-3, in this case EPA and DHA, but that’s for another blog on another day.)
ALA is a plant-based source of omega-3 fatty acids, making it suitable for those who choose a plant-based diet. Or, for someone who just really enjoys walnuts. Here are six fast facts about ALA.
- ALA is a precursor to EPA and DHA and as such when you consume omega-3 ALA, your body converts some of that ALA to EPA and DHA; however, be aware that the conversion is inefficient, so you’re not getting the full benefits of EPA and DHA. This article explains that only between 1-10% of ALA is converted into EPA, while about 0.5-5% of ALA turns into DHA.
- Although not as extensively researched as EPA and DHA, ALA is still considered to be a well-researched nutrient, especially when it comes to heart health benefits.
- ALA is found not only in nuts and seeds such as chia, flax, hemp, and of course walnuts, but also in leafy green vegetables like kale and spinach.
- Among omega-3 fatty acids, ALA is the only one for which the government has established average daily recommended amounts. The amount you need depends on your age and sex. You can find specifics here.
- In addition to food sources, you can also get omega-3 ALA from dietary supplements, however ALA may not be specifically mentioned on the label; instead, you may see flaxseed or walnut oil (both of which contain omega-3 ALA) listed as ingredients. These supplements may also include other omegas, like 6 or 9, in addition to omega-3s. Check to see if the supplement is labeled vegan or vegetarian if that matters to you. You can also get pure oils, including walnut, flaxseed, canola and others as another way to get your omega-3 ALA.
- Walnuts contain not only omega-3 ALA, but also another type of omega fatty acid known as omega-6. While omega-3s help reduce inflammation, omega-6s do they opposite—they promote inflammation, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing as your body needs some inflammation. If you’re getting both omega-3s and omega-6s (omega-6s are abundant in Western diets), you want the right balance—which is a whole other discussion. Briefly, there has been some concern that omega-6s interfere with ALA conversion to EPA and DHA. If you have that concern, rather than reducing your omega-6s, focus instead on increasing your omega-3s.
Bottom Line: Eating walnuts in moderation is a healthy snack and a great way to omega-3 ALA. However, experts agree that not all omega-3s are considered equal, and many, if not most, further agree that omega-3 EPA and DHA, also known as fish oil, are your best bet for obtaining health benefits from omega-3. It’s also important to test your blood levels against the Omega-3 Index (O3I) to ensure you’re achieving sufficient or optimal levels of omega-3 EPA and DHA. At OmegaQuant, our at-home tests measure only EPA and DHA, not ALA levels. The same is true for all blood tests that measure results against the Omega-3 Index, which is considered the gold standard for measuring EPA and DHA in red blood cells. Read more here.
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Related Posts:
- What Are Omega-9 Fatty Acids?
- What is Omega-3 ALA Good For?
- Omega-3 and Omega-6 Foods
- Is There Omega-3 in Chia Seeds?