Amazing Health Benefits of Tiger Nuts (Aya)
Tiger Nuts popularly known as Aya, Chufas or earth almonds, are not just nuts but rather edible tubers. They’re of chickpea size but wrinkly with a chewy texture and sweet nutty flavor similar to coconut.
Tiger Nuts are very healthy, known to be rich in variety of nutrients and have been linked to several health benefits ranging from better digestion to a reduced risk of heart disease.
Tiger nuts were one of the first plants cultivated in Egypt and traditionally used as both food and medicine.
Here are some amazing health benefits of Tiger Nuts:
- HELPS IMPROVE DIGESTION
Tiger nuts are a good source of insoluble fiber, which can help prevent constipation and also improve digestion. Insoluble fiber adds bulk to your stools and helps food move through your gut easily, reducing the likelihood of constipation.
Tiger nuts are also presumed to contain resistant starch, a type of fiber that can feed the friendly bacteria in your gut, helping your digestion run smoothly.
Tiger nuts also contain enzymes, such as catalases, lipases and amylases, which help break down foods in the gut, relieving gas, indigestion and diarrhea.
- GIVES MORE POTASSIUM THAN A BANANA
While banana is the most known source of potassium, multiple studies have confirmed that tiger nuts provide even higher level of this electrolyte. To be exact, eating 25 tiger nuts provide 139 milligrammes of potassium this being the same level as a potato or an avocado and exceeding the potassium levels of a banana.
This mineral helps the cells and organs to work correctly. It also regulates the muscle contractions, which helps your digestion. - HELPS TO CONTROL BLOOD PRESSURE
The high content of amino acid arginine found in Tiger Nuts helps the body make nitric oxide which maintain our blood vessels dilated and have a normal blood flow. - PREVENT CANCER AND HEART DISEASES
Tiger nuts is a source of Vitamin E that protects us from the creation of harmful free radicals which are responsible for the death of the body cells. This fact, combined with a high content of oleic acid, has demonstrated that it reduces the risk of heart diseases.
Due to the high contents of soluble glucose they prevent cancer and lately some investigators discovered that they reduce the risk of suffering colon cancer.
- TIGER NUTS MILK IS A PERFECT SUBSTITUTE OF ANIMAL MILK
It’s very easy to make your own Tiger nuts milk with cooking equipment that can be found in every kitchen. Together with a few Tiger Nuts we can prepare a vegetable milk, that is healthy, without lactose and rich in calcium, vitamin C and E.