Go Nuts!

I eat nuts every day, and I really mean EVERY day. Nuts are a protein/fat combination that is perfect for controlling hunger, aiding weight management, reducing your bad cholesterol while maintaining your levels of good cholesterol, and are a concentrated source of vitamins and minerals. While it is true that nuts have a high fat content (up to 80%), the fat is a monunsaturated fat full of essential fatty acids and vitamin E, which means that they are good for you inside (your heart) and outside (your skin) - in fact, nuts have the most concentrated form of natural vitamin E (the anti-wrinkle vitamin!!). In addition, they are a good source of protein, vitamin B, calcium, potassium and magnesium (brazil nuts are particularly high in selenium, but it's pretty easy to get that in other foods and who really likes those anyway??). You do want to be careful to limit yourself to a handful a day; if you have a large hand, count them out as follows so you can see what the proper serving should be: 28 peanuts, 22 almonds, 20 pecan halves, 18 cashews, FORTY-SEVEN pistachios (but only 7 of those yucky brazil nuts...), or two tablespoons of peanut butter. I know this sounds silly, but you can eat a lot of nuts if you're not paying attention - trust me on this one! Melissa