Wellness Wednesday Tip #16: Keep Those Pumpkin Seeds & Reap Their Benefits!

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Happy Wellfie Wednesday Everyone!

     I hope you all are enjoying the fall season! For me, this is my first exposure to the leaves changing. As you would expect, some parts of the south are not known for having the four seasons, so it has been great to watch the foliage while currently living outside of Boston.

White mountains, New Hampshire, October 2016

White mountains, New Hampshire, October 2016

     So with fall in mind comes this week’s tip. Keep Those Pumpkin Seeds & Reap Their Benefits! With Halloween approaching, I’m sure most of you will spend some time carving pumpkins. My girlfriend and I carved one a few days ago, and by that I mean she carved it while I messed around with the seeds. A Google search gives you tons of different recipes and instructions on how to roast them, so it’s hard to say which is the best until you try them all. Here are a few links to check out.

AllRecipes

FoodNetwork

WholeFoods

     My biggest advice is to watch them carefully; I’ve learned that pumpkin seeds can burn rather easily.

     Why eat them you may ask. Here are some reasons:

     Roasted pumpkin seeds are a good source of protein, omega-3 and 6 fatty acids, magnesium, zinc, copper, potassium, manganese, iron, and antioxidants.(1) They are said to aid in heart and prostate health, provide immune system support, and reduce the risk of certain cancers. Keep in mind most of these claims are based on the nutritional components of pumpkin seeds; studies specifically looking at pumpkin seeds are limited.

     Keep those seeds and try them roasted! Let us know how it goes. And as always, thanks again for all of the #WellfieWednesday support, be sure to post your pictures again this week and tag Eric (@Eric_in_AmERICa) or myself (@PBernerSPT) and keep the wave of healthy change going!

-       Dr. Patrick Berner, PT, DPT

-       Dr. Eric Uveges, PT, DPT

 

1. http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3141/2

 

 

Wellness Wednesday Tip #12: Try a Handful of Almonds!

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Happy Wellness Wednesday!

     This week’s tip is to Try a Handful of Almonds! By far one of my favorite snack ideas and also one of the easiest. You can consume them alone or mix with other nuts or even some dried fruit. Almonds are sometimes on the pricier side of the nut family, but surely pack a nutritious punch that makes them worthy of the cost. A single serving of plain almonds, now that’s about a once or quarter of a cup, contains roughly 160 Calories. Including 14g of fat (represented almost entirely by your healthy unsaturated fats, poly and mono), 6g of carbs (3g being dietary fiber), about 6g of protein, and an excellent source of antioxidants, Manganese, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Copper, Vitamin E, Riboflavin, even some Calcium, Iron, and Potassium. (1) Now that’s a lot for just a handful of nuts!

     The latest research on almonds, concludes that nut consumption has an association with a lower risk of heart disease by showing improvement in cholesterol levels. (2) While also providing the numerous health benefits that stem from consumption of foods high in antioxidants. (3)

     Now remember, you can buy almonds in all sorts of varieties now. They are found salted, roasted, honey roasted, habanero, wasabi, BBQ, chocolate, and loads of other flavors. The only thing I have come to notice with the flavored kind are the differences in the level of saturated fat and sodium, usually a bit higher. So consider your overall dietary intake when deciding if you can add in those addition discretionary calories.

     Go ahead and try a handful of almonds today and let us know how it goes! Thanks again for all of the #WellfieWednesday support, be sure to post your pictures again this week and tag Eric (@Eric_in_AmERICa) or myself (@PBernerSPT) and keep the wave of healthy change going!

- Dr. Patrick Berner, PT, DPT

- Dr. Eric Uveges, PT, DPT

1.     http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3085/2

2. Musa-Veloso K, Paulionis L, Poon T, Lee HY. The effects of almond consumption on fasting blood lipid levels: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Journal of Nutritional Science. 2016;5.

3.     http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2012/fo/c2fo10152a