In Brazil, they are more commonly called castanha-do-Pará (meaning chestnuts from Pará in Portuguese), and other names are also used. In Brazil, these nuts are called castanhas-do-Pará (literally chestnuts from Pará), but the people of Acre call them castanhas-do-acre instead. Indigenous names include juvia in the Orinoco area. In Cuba, walnut is also called Coquito de Santiago, literally Santa Bertholletia excelsa belongs to a family of pantropical trees (Lecythidaceae) that includes approximately 200 species in the Neotropics, distributed from southern Mexico to southern Brazil (Mori and Prance, 1990a; Prance and Mori, 1977. The Brazilian nut represents a single species of the well-defined genus Bertholletia Letia.
Although there is considerable variation in the size and shape of the fruits and in the number of seeds per fruit, there is no justification for recognizing more than one species of Bertholletia.
Brazil nuts
are nuts native to the Amazon rainforest in Brazil, Bolivia and Peru. Its soft, buttery texture and nutty flavor are usually enjoyed raw or blanched. Brazil nuts contain several antioxidants, such as selenium, vitamin E and phenols such as gallic acid and ellagic acid (.In fact, a study of 59 people found that eating two Brazil nuts a day was as effective as taking a selenium supplement in increasing selenium levels (. He found that eating Brazil nuts containing 290 mcg of selenium daily for 8 weeks significantly increased HDL cholesterol levels. Brazil nuts are some of the most valuable non-wood products in the Amazon, but they are extremely sensitive to deforestation due to their complex ecological requirements. The harvesting of nuts and rubber in Brazil has relatively little impact on the ecology of the Amazon forests.
Limiting your intake to one or three Brazil nuts a day is a smart way to avoid consuming too much selenium (2). The original intention of Fazenda Aruanà was to plant walnuts from Brazil in 20 by 20 meter grids and allow cattle to graze among the trees. Brazil nuts are energy dense and rich in healthy fats, selenium, magnesium, copper, phosphorus, manganese, thiamine and vitamin E. The flowers of the Brazil nut are zygomorphic, with an androce that extends on one side to form a hood that arches and adheres firmly to the top of the ovary.
Eating Brazil nuts can reduce inflammation, support brain function, and improve thyroid function and heart health. In this chapter, I review natural history, the value of Brazil's walnut harvest, plantation cultivation possibilities, and the future of Brazil's walnut industry. A Brazil nut contains enough selenium to support the production of thyroid hormones and proteins that protect the thyroid. Brazil nuts are commonly eaten raw or blanched and are high in protein, dietary fiber, thiamine, selenium, copper, and magnesium.
A typical 15 cm (6 in) pod can weigh up to 2.3 kg (5 pounds) and contains 12 to 24 nuts or seeds that are arranged like sections of an orange. Another study looked at the effects of eating Brazil nuts on obese people with selenium deficiency who were undergoing treatment for kidney disease. This shows that long-term dietary changes are needed to take advantage of the benefits of Brazil nuts (27, 2).
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