Brazil nuts grow on trees in many parts of the Amazon, not just in Brazil as the name of this nut might suggest. Brazil nuts are much larger than hazelnuts and almonds, and they are chock full of nutrients. In fact, a one-ounce serving of Brazil nuts provides 4% of your daily recommended dose of iron and 5% of your daily dose of calcium.
Brazil nuts contain many other health benefits, including:
Good fats. Like most nuts, Brazil nuts contain beneficial fats. Our bodies need fat, and we should get that fat from sources like fish, avocados, and nuts.
Protein. Nuts are known for being a good source of protein and Brazil nuts are no exception. Brazil nuts give us all those essential amino acids required by our bodies for muscle tissue repair and overall growth and development.
Methionine. Brazil nuts contain rather high levels of an amino acid by the name of methionine. This little guy wards off chronic illness and signs of aging. Bring on the methionine!
Thiamin, magnesium, and phosphorus (oh my!). The nervous system of the human body requires thiamin in order to be healthy. Thiamin is also essential in energy metabolism. Brazil nuts are high in this mineral and a couple of others that are pretty important: phosphorus and magnesium. Brazil nuts provide lots of trace minerals, too, including copper, calcium, zinc, iron, and selenium.
Selenium. Brazil nuts are the best source of selenium. Period. One Brazil nut provides you with all of the selenium you need for the day. As many of you know, I have Hashimotos, autoimmune thyroid disease and I eat one Brazil nut every day to help me out with that. There’s anywhere from 50mcg to 90mcg of selenium in each nut. Selenium boosts antioxidant activity and is believed to prevent cancer and lower your risk of joint inflammation. To give you an idea of just how rich these nuts are in selenium, 3 ounces of the next food on the “good sources of selenium list”—tuna—contains 68 mcg.
Now, please stick to one Brazil nut per day and DO NOT go filling up on them. They contain so much selenium that eating too many can lead to poisoning, for lack of a better word. If you overdose on selenium (ingest more than 1000 mcg of the mineral in one day . . . which is only 11-12 nuts believe it or not!), you will probably get very nauseated and you’ll start vomiting. Your fingernails and hair may also start turning brittle and flaking/falling off.
Don’t quote me, but I’m pretty sure Brazil nut toxicity was actually a diagnosis once on that medical drama, House.
Don’t let this selenium information stop you from eating them though. It’s an important mineral and Brazil nuts are a great way to get in a lot with a few calories. Just don’t overdo it!
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9 Responses
Also, note that Brazil nuts are fairly high in Omega-6 fats. 7.2 g per quarter cup.
Thanks Craig!
ive eaten packets of brazil nuts in one go with no side effects at all in fact ive never heard of selenium until now how come there is no warning on the packaging if its so toxic
The only thing that is recommended is to slow your roll if you DO notice a metal taste in your mouth, hair loss, brittle nails etc… Let’s remember that each person is different and that includes their respective tolerances Brazil nuts are great! Mind your body and have a blast!
I eat alot of Brazil nuts a day and my fingernails are still intact
I’ve eaten 250g of brazil nuts all in one go plenty of times (or more often over the space of two days). All of what they say about the “tolerable upper limit” of something in a food you like is rubbish. Humans naturally want to eat them and feel good doing it, so why stop them? My fingernails are perfect, don’t be ridiculous. Actually sadly there is one real reason not to go crazy on Brazil nuts and that’s the amount of cancer-causing aflatoxins in them. It’s regulated, but not if you’re going to eat that much of them. I think I’m going to have to give up Brazil nuts because I can’t eat just ONE or a few of them, I tend to go to extremes (errr, not that I’m fat, I’m slightly underweight).
Okay, but just be wary of and very careful about the unnaturally high levels of aflatoxins that can cause cancer. Nothing natural that an animal likes to eat and feels good eating can be bad, however you may have to worry about contaminants and pesticides you have to worry about.
That isn’t true. Deadly nightshade berries are natural and I here that they are delicious. Some of the tastiest berries out there perhaps. but ten of them can kill you. So just because something is natural and it feels good to eat it doesn’t mean it can’t kill you or mess up your day
Very true, Jamison.