I don’t quite know why, but I have always thought of cashew nuts as rather sophisticated – perhaps it has something to do with the price! They are a delicious snack, a popular addition to many savoury dishes and unlike many other nuts they are less likely to damage your teeth as they are quite soft in texture.

The reason why they are always sold without their shells is because the shells contain an irritant poison that can cause skin problems – not surprising really as the cashew plant is related to poison ivy!

What is in a (dry roasted) Cashew?

Nutrients are based on 100 grams and a raw tomato

•    Calories: 579.41 kcal
•    Protein: 14.70 grams
•    Carbohydrates: 32.35 grams
•    Fibre: 2.94 grams
•    Fat: 47.06 grams
•    Calcium: 44.11 milligrams
•    Phosphorus: 494.11 milligrams
•    Potassium: 570.58 milligrams
•    Zinc: 5.58 milligrams
•    Iron: 6.17 milligrams
•    Magnesium: 261.76 milligrams
•    Vitamin A: 0 micrograms
•    Vitamin B1: 0.20 milligrams
•    Vitamin B2: 0.20 milligrams
•    Vitamin B3: 1.47 milligrams
•    Vitamin B6: 0.264 milligrams
•    Vitamin C: 0 milligrams
•    Vitamin E: 0.59 micrograms
•    Folate (folic acid): 70.59 micrograms

High in protein: Low in bad fats

Like all nuts they are a good source of protein and are cholesterol free. They also contain less fat than some other nuts and 75% of the fat content is unsaturated fatty acids, which is the healthy type of fat.

Antioxidants and Copper

They contain antioxidants that help protect against cancer and heart disease and have a high copper content which helps the body utilize iron which in turn helps promote the production of healthy red blood cells.

Phosphorus, Magnesium, Selenium and Zinc

They also contain phosphorus: good for bones and teeth; magnesium: also good for bones and insufficient magnesium can cause high blood pressure. Cashews contain selenium which has vital antioxidant properties and they also have plenty of zinc which helps with digestion, the metabolism and is also very important for healthy eyes.

Remember to eat the plain variety, not roasted or salted ones and unless you want to pile on the calories, make sure you don’t eat more that three servings a week (an ideal serving is 30 grammes which is approximately eighteen cashews.)

Too tempting?

If like me you find it impossible not to eat your way through a whole bag of nuts once you have started – make sure you buy them in small bags… it’s less tempting!

This entry was Posted on Tuesday, April 28th, 2009 at 5:21 pm and is filed under Diet, Nuts and Seeds. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.