Water Chestnuts Can Improve Weight Administration, Immunity & Digestion

Often featured in stir-fries and steamed vegetable medleys — together with bamboo shoots — most individuals have tried water chestnuts at one level or one other, whether or not they realize it or not. This starchy aquatic veggie affords a singular style and texture, plus an unbelievable array of advantages.

Excessive in antioxidants, fiber and a wealth of micronutrients, including this versatile vegetable to your weight loss plan might be incredible in your well being.

So what precisely is a water chestnut, and are canned water chestnuts wholesome? Plus, how are you going to begin including this flavorful veggie to your each day weight loss plan?

Let’s take a better look.

What Are Water Chestnuts?

What’s a water chestnut? Identified by its scientific identify Eleocharis dulcis, the Chinese language water chestnut is a grass-like plant that’s native to sure areas in Asia, Australia and Africa — in addition to a number of islands within the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

Opposite to what its identify suggests, it’s not really a nut in any respect. It’s a sort of aquatic vegetable that grows underground in marshes.

Are water chestnuts associated to chestnuts? No, the water chestnut shouldn’t be confused with the water caltrop or candy chestnut, each of that are unrelated and belong to thoroughly totally different households of crops.

The water chestnut plant has lengthy, stem-like leaves and grows a small, spherical, edible corm underground. That is the a part of the plant that’s generally consumed. It’s loved for its crisp texture that it manages to retain even after cooking.

It may be generally present in vegetable medleys and in an assortment of Asian dishes and cuisines.

Along with its distinct style and texture, the water chestnut can also be revered for its spectacular nutrient profile. The intensive water chestnuts advantages additionally make it a preferred selection. In actual fact, some analysis means that including this aquatic veggie to your weight loss plan might assist optimize coronary heart well being, improve digestion and help weight reduction as nicely.

Water Chestnut Diet Details

Check out the water chestnuts vitamin profile, and it’s straightforward to grasp why this aquatic vegetable is so nice in your well being. Every serving supplies quantity of water chestnuts carbs and fiber, plus micronutrients like manganese, potassium, copper and vitamin B6.

What’s the dietary worth of water chestnuts? A 3.5-ounce serving of uncooked water chestnuts (about 100 grams) comprises roughly:

• Energy: 97
• Whole Carbohydrates: 23.9 g
• Whole Fats: 0.1 g
  • Saturated Fats: 0.03 g
  • Polyunsaturated Fats: 0.04 g
• Protein: 1.4 g
• Sodium: 14 mg
• Manganese: 0.3 mg (17% DV)
• Potassium: 584 mg (17% DV)
• Copper: 0.3 mg (16% DV)
• Vitamin B6: 0.3 mg (16% DV)
• Riboflavin: 0.2 mg (12% DV)
• Thiamine: 0.1 mg (9% DV)
• Vitamin C: 4 mg (7% DV)
• Vitamin E: 1.2 mg (6% DV)
• Phosphorus: 63 mg (6% DV)
• Niacin: 1 mg (5% DV)
• Magnesium: 22 mg (5% DV)
• Pantothenic Acid: 0.5 mg (5% DV)

*Each day Worth: Percentages are primarily based on a weight loss plan of two,000 energy a day.

Along with the vitamins listed above, water chestnut vitamin additionally comprises a small quantity of folate, zinc, selenium and calcium.

Water Chestnuts vs. Jicama

Jicama is a root vegetable that’s usually in comparison with the water chestnut given their similarities in style and texture. In actual fact, jicama is typically known as “Mexican water chestnut.” It’s mentioned to have a style that’s described as a cross between a water chestnut and an apple.

Regardless of their similarities, these two greens are literally unrelated and native to thoroughly totally different components of the world. Whereas water chestnuts are indigenous to Asia, Australia, Africa and sure islands within the Pacific, jicama initially hails from Mexico.

Jicama has a yellow, papery exterior that covers the crisp white flesh inside. It has a singular candy and starchy taste.

Gram for gram, jicama is decrease in energy and carbs however greater in fiber and vitamin C in comparison with water chestnuts. Water chestnuts, then again, include the next quantity of key vitamins, like potassium, manganese, copper and vitamin B6.

That mentioned, each are extremely nutritious and might be loved sparsely as a part of a balanced weight loss plan.

Well being Advantages

1. Promote Weight Loss

Water chestnuts are low in energy but excessive in vitamins. This makes them an awesome addition to a wholesome weight reduction weight loss plan. Plus, quantity of the carbs in water chestnuts are literally within the type of fiber, which strikes by means of the physique undigested to help satiety and maintain you feeling fuller for longer.

Not solely that, however water chestnuts have a excessive water content material. In actual fact, they’re made up of about 74 p.c water.

Research present that consuming extra meals with a low power density, reminiscent of water chestnuts, can lower caloric consumption to advertise weight reduction.

2. Loaded with Antioxidants

Water chestnuts are an awesome supply of antioxidants. Antioxidants are health-promoting compounds that assist battle free radical formation and stop cell injury.

Along with reducing oxidative stress within the physique, antioxidants additionally play a central position in well being and illness. They might assist defend towards continual circumstances like most cancers and coronary heart illness.

Particularly, water chestnuts are supply of a number of key antioxidants, together with ferulic acid, gallocatechin gallate, epicatechin gallate and catechin gallate. Moreover, an in vitro examine printed within the Journal of Meals Science confirmed that the antioxidants present in water chestnuts may help successfully neutralize disease-causing free radicals to help higher well being.

3. Improve Coronary heart Well being

Packing 17 p.c of the potassium you want per day into every serving, together with water chestnuts in your each day weight loss plan can have a huge impact on coronary heart well being. Growing your consumption of potassium is significant to coronary heart well being. It’s particularly essential in terms of reducing blood stress and stopping hypertension.

Along with conserving blood stress in verify, getting extra potassium in your weight loss plan may cut back the danger of coronary heart illness. One giant overview carried out by the College of Naples Medical Middle confirmed {that a} greater consumption of potassium was related to a decrease danger of stroke, coronary coronary heart illness and heart problems.

4. Might Have Anti-Most cancers Properties

Because of their wealthy content material of antioxidants, water chestnuts could possess potent anti-cancer properties. Though present analysis is proscribed to in vitro research, sure compounds present in water chestnuts have been proven to lower the expansion of most cancers cells.

Particularly, ferulic acid is an antioxidant that may assist block the event and unfold of tumor cells. Particularly, in vitro research present that this highly effective compound might be efficient towards the formation of thyroid, breast and lung most cancers cells.

5. Assist Wholesome Digestion

Water chestnuts are an awesome supply of fiber. Fiber strikes by means of the physique undigested, including bulk to the stool to advertise regularity and optimize digestive well being.

Research present that upping your consumption of fiber can include a large number of well being advantages. In actual fact, getting just a few further servings of fiber in your weight loss plan could support within the therapy of digestive circumstances like hemorrhoids, intestinal ulcers, diverticulitis and gastroesophageal reflux illness.

Fiber additionally has been proven to advertise regularity by growing stool frequency in these with constipation.

Makes use of in Conventional Medication

Water chestnuts are excessive in important vitamins and filled with medicinal properties. For that reason, water chestnuts are thought-about a staple in lots of branches of conventional drugs.

In Ayurvedic drugs, water chestnuts are used to calm the pitta dosha and act as a pure diuretic to advertise urine manufacturing. They’re additionally thought to help correct blood clotting and wholesome libido and maintain your bones sturdy.

In Conventional Chinese language Medication, this aquatic vegetable is used to handle blood stress, stabilize blood sugar, and deal with illnesses like hemorrhoids and diarrhea. Moreover, water chestnuts are believed to naturally soothe sore throats and optimize liver well being as nicely.

The best way to Add to Food regimen (Recipes)

Water chestnuts are native to Asia and a typical ingredient in many alternative Chinese language dishes. In China, they’re usually eaten uncooked as a snack or loved barely sweetened for a tasty deal with.

They’re additionally present in steamed or sautéed vegetable medleys. These veggies are floor right into a superb flour as nicely and used to make water chestnut cake, which is a sort of Cantonese dim sum dish.

Water chestnuts are utilized in many different forms of delicacies as nicely. For instance, in Thailand, they’re used to make thapthim krop, a well-known dessert that’s made up of cubes of water chestnuts in syrup. In the meantime, in Vietnam they are often present in Nước Sâm, an natural tea that comprises roasted water chestnuts plus dried longan and the flower of the sawtooth herb.

Not like different greens, water chestnuts are distinctive as a result of they’re able to retain their distinct crunchiness even after being cooked or canned. This is because of their chemical construction. The cell partitions of the vegetable are cross-linked, and compounds like ferulic acid assist present energy to maintain them from changing into too smooth throughout the cooking course of.

Questioning the place to purchase water chestnuts? Whereas recent water chestnuts could also be tough to search out exterior of specialty Asian markets, jarred or canned water chestnuts can be found in most main grocery shops.

When you get your arms on this crunchy vegetable, you could marvel: Do water chestnuts must be cooked? Contemporary water chestnuts might be peeled and loved as is, whereas canned varieties needs to be rinsed or soaked in water to boost the flavour.

Each sorts might be loved uncooked or cooked and added to essential programs and facet dishes alike.

There are many strategies for methods to prepare dinner water chestnuts to get pleasure from them in your favourite water chestnut recipes. A number of of the preferred methods contain boiling them, roasting them on a baking sheet or sautéing them as a part of a flavorful stir-fry. You can too grate them and add them to curries, salads and casseroles or use dried and floor water chestnuts as a substitute for common flour.

When cooking them with different elements, nevertheless, be sure you add them close to the tip of the cooking course of to make sure they preserve their signature crunch and crispness.

Recipes

There are various other ways to benefit from the multitude of well being advantages that this aquatic vegetable has to supply. Listed here are just a few straightforward water chestnuts recipes to strive at residence to assist get you began:

You can too throw them in a Thai Hen Stir Fry, Turkey Stir Fry or Salmon Stir Fry.

Dangers and Facet Results

Water chestnuts is usually a wholesome and nutritious addition to a well-rounded weight loss plan when loved sparsely. That mentioned, they will not be for everybody.

There are a number of issues to bear in mind earlier than including them to your each day routine.

Initially, remember the fact that water chestnuts are thought-about a starchy vegetable, very like different elements, reminiscent of inexperienced peas, corn and potatoes. Starchy greens are comparatively excessive in carbohydrates, so it’s essential to maintain your consumption sparsely to keep away from undesirable spikes in blood sugar ranges, particularly if in case you have diabetes.

Moreover, be aware that water chestnuts are unrelated to candy chestnuts and never thought-about a tree nut in any respect. Thus, they are often safely consumed by these with an allergy to different tree nuts, reminiscent of almonds, walnuts and pistachios.

Nevertheless, some folks could also be allergic to water chestnuts, which might trigger meals allergy signs like hives, itching, swelling and redness. For those who discover these or every other antagonistic unwanted effects after consuming water chestnuts, discontinue use instantly and discuss to your physician.

Last Ideas

• What are water chestnuts? The water chestnut is a sort of aquatic plant that produces an edible corm that grows underground. It has a crisp, starchy white inside that stands out from different greens as a result of it retains its signature crunch even after cooking.
• Every serving supplies quantity of carbohydrates and fiber, plus micronutrients reminiscent of manganese, potassium, copper and vitamin B6.
• Water chestnuts are excessive in antioxidants and cancer-fighting properties. They might assist promote weight reduction, improve coronary heart well being and help wholesome digestion.
• Better of all, water chestnuts are extremely versatile. They are often integrated into quite a lot of totally different recipes as a part of a well-rounded, therapeutic weight loss plan.