Is Eating Raisins Healthy?
Raisins are dried grapes consumed worldwide that contain beneficial components for human health. They are rich in fiber and phytochemicals such as phenolic compounds. Despite a 60% sugar content, several studies have reported health-promoting properties for raisins and this review compiles the intervention studies, as well as the cell line and animal model studies carried […]
Bioactives and health benefits of nuts and dried fruits.
Nuts and dried fruits have been part of the human diet since prehistoric times. They are nutrient-rich foods and constitute an excellent means to deliver health-promoting bioactive compounds. As such, they serve as important healthful snack items, besides being part of many traditional and new recipes of gastronomy worldwide. Frequent consumption of nuts and/or dried […]
Health Benefits of Nut Consumption in Middle-Aged and Elderly Population.
Aging is considered the major risk factor for most chronic disorders. Oxidative stress and chronic inflammation are two major contributors for cellular senescence, downregulation of stress response pathways with a decrease of protective cellular activity and accumulation of cellular damage, leading in time to age-related diseases. This review investigated the most recent clinical trials and […]
Effect of Hazelnut Oil on Muscle Cell Signalling and Differentiation.
Nuts-enriched diets were shown to bear beneficial effects for human's health. Among nuts, hazelnut plays a major role in human nutrition and health because of its unique fatty acid composition (predominantly MUFA), fat soluble bioactives (tocopherols and phytosterols), vitamins (vitamin E), essential minerals (selenium), essential amino acids, antioxidant phenolics (caffeic acid), dietary fiber (soluble form), and bioactive […]
Beneficial effects of walnut consumption on human health: role of micronutrients.
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Nuts in general and walnuts in particular are in the limelight for the association of their consumption with improved health outcomes. Walnuts have an optimal composition in bioactive nutrients and recent clinical and experimental studies have uncovered a number of beneficial effects of walnut micronutrients, working in isolation or in concert, on […]
Anti-aging potential of tree nuts with a focus on phytochemical composition, molecular mechanisms and thermal stability of major bioactive compounds.
Tree nuts, complete functional foods, contain macro- and micronutrients of high biological value. These bioactive compounds have a synergistic effect in preventing and delaying many age-related pathologies (e.g. cardiovascular diseases, stroke, type 2 diabetes mellitus, certain types of cancer, and several neurodegenerative diseases). Tree nuts are low in carbohydrates, but they abound in healthy fatty […]
Health benefits of pistachios consumption.
The health benefits of nuts, mainly in relation to the improvement of dysmetabolic conditions such as obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus and the related cardiovascular diseases, have been widely demonstrated. Compared to other nuts, pistachios have a lower fat and caloric content, and contain the highest levels of unsaturated fatty acids, potassium, γ-tocopherol, phytosterols and […]
Nuts and Human Health Outcomes: A Systematic Review.
There has been increasing interest in nuts and their outcome regarding human health. The consumption of nuts is frequently associated with reduction in risk factors for chronic diseases. Although nuts are high calorie foods, several studies have reported beneficial effects after nut consumption, due to fatty acid profiles, vegetable proteins, fibers, vitamins, minerals, carotenoids, and […]
Potential health benefits and quality of dried fruits: goji fruits, cranberries and raisins.
Dried fruits are important snacks and additives to other foods due to their taste and nutritional advantages. Therefore there is an important goal to control the quality of the food on the market for consumer's safety. Antioxidant activity of goji fruits (Lycium barbarum), cranberries (Vaccinium macrocarpon and oxycoccus) and raisins (Vitis vinifera) were studied using […]
Effect of dried California Mission figs on mineral status and food replacement.
OBJECTIVE: Figs are a rich source of several different minerals and fibers. We studied the effect of the consumption of dried California Mission figs on mineral and nutrient levels, as well as the effect of the addition of figs to a self-selected habitual diet on dietary patterns. DESIGN: A crossover randomized controlled trial study design […]