NUTS AS FOOD

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22008, 15 January 1935, Page 3

NUTS AS FOOD

SUPPLIER OF ENERGY With the exception of fats, nuts are the richest of all foods in their supply of energy. Most nut kernels give about 3000 calories to the pound. An ounce gives about 200 calories and is thus equivalent to about three eggs. This shows that one of the uses of nuts which is very common is also very unfortunate —namely, the serving of nuts at the end of a dinner. Many a man (and woman as well) has eaten an ounce of salted almonds when lie would have been completely overcome at the thought of three large, fried eggs. A half-pound of nuts on the bridge table could be replaced by a large steak and potatoes without any gain in calories. The result of considering nuts as of no consequence as a food is bad. More burden on the feet, more cloth in the suit, more indigestion from too much lood, all testify against the practice. Nuts are a food, and a good one. They should be classed with eggs, meat, cheese, beans and bread and the other staple proteins as rich foods —for nuts are rich in protein as well as in fat. if nuts were used as the only food, the protein furnished would be from three to four ounces per day, which is a good average amount for the population in general. When it comes to minerals, nuts are at a disadvantage because they contain such a concentration of fat and protein that there is not much room left for anything else. Of the three most important mineral elements, however, calcium, phosphorus and iron, a diet of nuts would supply about onethird of the requirement. When the small amount of weight involved is considered, this is remarkably high. But when nuts constitute the main energy food, milk, fruit and vegetables should be the supplementary foods. Nuts have also been found to contain iodine in comparatively large quantities. This is a feature that is not usually taken into account. Xuts arc a good source of vitamin -H, but are deficient in A and C. Here again they are reminiscent of meat. In fact, nuts lie closer to meat in composition and nutrient qualities than any other vegetable food. They contain less water and this, together with the high fat content, explains their high energy value. If nuts resemble meat so closely, why is it then that people will spend .'SO to 40 per cent of their food money for meat and less than 1 per cent for nuts? it is because meat is an old friend, a food well known. Many ways "of cooking it have heen devised, so that it comes to the. table in many tasty forms. Its flavour is liked by almost everybody.