No matter who you are, nuts are one of the healthiest foods you can eat. Nuts are rich in beneficial fats, anti-inflammatory antioxidants, and plant-based proteins, making them an excellent choice for almost any diet plan, including the popular ketogenic diet. However, because nuts don’t break down macronutrients in the same way, some nuts are better suited to a ketogenic diet than others. In a nutshell, here are the six best options to help you stay in ketosis.
Nut and Ketogenic Diet
If you decide to adopt a ketogenic diet to lose weight or better control your blood sugar, you may be frustrated that you have to restrict foods to maintain macronutrients. But don’t panic – you can definitely prepare a bag of nuts for a simple snack and a snack with a meal.
Many nuts meet the high-fat macronutrient requirements of the ketogenic diet.
Nuts are an excellent addition to the ketogenic diet because they are low in carbs and high in healthy fats. Nuts are also rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber.
As if these benefits weren’t enough to put people down, nuts have also been well documented to help lower cholesterol and triglycerides, improve blood sugar, and reduce inflammation. These cardiometabolic benefits can be the icing on the cake for healthy weight loss during the ketogenic diet.
Of course, if you want to lose weight, you can’t eat nuts every day. But here’s some interesting (and frankly, fantastic) news: Studies have shown that eating nuts in moderation doesn’t lead to weight gain. In fact, according to USDA research, the human body usually doesn’t even absorb all the calories in nuts. If eaten whole, nuts such as almonds may have up to 32% fewer calories than listed on their nutrition labels because they differ in their bioavailability and the way the body absorbs nutrients.
Nuts That Are Best for a Ketogenic Diet
Ready to eat nuts to lose weight? Here are six nuts that are best for a ketogenic diet. Note: Generally, a serving of nuts is 1 ounce (or about 1/4 cup or a small handful).
1. Brazil Nuts
Brazil nuts are large, buttery nuts that you might recognize by their brown and creamy stripes. Brazil nuts are great for a ketogenic diet due to their balance of low carb and high fat.
Brazil nuts may have a special effect on ketogenic diets. The ketogenic diet may result in a decrease in serum selenium levels. Brazil nuts are an excellent source of selenium – just one Brazil nut will provide 100% of your day’s needs!
Bronstein added that selenium is an important micronutrient involved in many bodily processes, including reproduction, thyroid hormone metabolism, and DNA synthesis.
If you’ve never cooked with Brazil nuts before, now you’re in for a treat. Chop them up and make them into crunchy ice cream toppings, roll them into energy balls, or grate them to make your own Brazil nut butter.
2. Walnuts
You’d be hard-pressed to find healthier nuts than walnuts. Studies have shown that walnuts work wonders for brain health and can improve cognitive function. Eating just 1 to 2 ounces of walnuts a day can help reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
Walnuts are also preferred by ketogenic dieters, with 17 grams of fat per serving. We like to use them for dried tomatoes and walnut paste, or for “beef” minced with plants or plants.
3. Macadamia Nuts
Macadamias don’t just add a rich, crispy texture to white chocolate biscuits and tropical dried fruit mixes (although these are great places to start eating macadamias). They also happen to be associated with lowering cholesterol because they are rich in monounsaturated fats.
Since a long-term ketogenic diet can lead to high cholesterol, macadamias are an excellent choice for adding. Try adding them to a simple chocolate crust or low-carb macadamia crackers.
4. Pecans
Pecans are a great way to make desserts – they’re so rich and buttery that you can’t help but want to snack them. The buttery flavor of pecans makes them the perfect dessert and makes them ideal for a ketogenic diet. Pecans have a 5:1 ratio of fat to carbohydrates, making them ideal for people on a ketogenic diet.
When you make some chocolate pecan crackers or keto pecan fat bombs, you’ll not only keep ketosis at bay, but you’ll also get some health benefits.
Pecans are high in fiber and wholesome unsaturated fats. Fiber helps stabilize blood sugar levels and promotes weight loss by increasing feelings of fullness. A small randomized controlled trial in people aged 40 to 80 with stable coronary artery disease found that eating 30 grams (equivalent to 1 ounce) of pecans per day for 12 weeks reduced the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL (good) cholesterol.
5. Hazelnuts
When choosing nuts that are best suited for a ketogenic diet, it can be helpful to consider their net carbs (i.e., total carbs minus fiber). Hazelnuts, which are rich in earth, are very low in this regard. Hazelnuts contain less than 2 grams of net carbs per ounce, making them an excellent choice for a ketogenic diet. They are also one of the richest sources of nuts in monounsaturated fatty acids, which help keep your heart healthy.
There are many ways to incorporate hazelnuts into your ketogenic diet! Stir them into a muffin batter, make your own high-fat hazelnut granola bars with butter and coconut flakes, enjoy a delicate hazelnut crispy steak, or satisfy your sweet tooth with a no-baked hazelnut fudge brownie.
6. Pine nuts
Don’t forget the pine cone nuts. They are one of the fat-rich options, with 1 gram of fat per 19.4 ounces. This fat has many benefits in addition to promoting ketosis. Pine nuts are rich in terpineoleic acid (PNLA), a fatty acid that has many health benefits. Terpineoleic acid can lower cholesterol levels and even reduce inflammation in the body.
Try topping pine nuts on a Mediterranean salad, topping them in vanilla pesto, or sprinkling them on top of a bisque for a pleasantly crunchy texture.