Pecan trees are found in the southwest region of United States, mostly in Georgia, Arizona, Texas, Arkansas, Alabama and Mississippi. Pecans are nuts that are enclosed by a solid shell just like walnut. It is said by archaeologists that pecans were stored by Indians and later American Indians followed the same trend.
Thomas Jefferson was the first to plant these trees in his orchard and he gifted the same to George Washington. They grew high and spread vastly in the air. They grow naturally all over America, mostly near lakes and rivers where water overflows periodically. It is difficult to determine its proper shape because they can be oval or long. Sometimes, shells drop from tree leaving the nut hanging due to the thinness of shell. Eve
n heavy rain and hurricane play a major role in their growth.
Pecans are frequently used in dessert recipes like pecan pie. Its taste is so good that people look for other recipes to use it in snacks. If they are fried with butter and some Cajun spices are added it makes good snacks in parties. They are also used as a covering for fish. Some use it in breakfast to prepare pancakes mixed with maple syrup.
Pecan has its own benefits that help in health, skin and hair –
Health Benefits
- Pecan has monounsaturated fat that is good for heart and cholesterol.
- It has fiber which helps in proper bowel movement and prevents constipation.
- Pecan increases metabolism rate which further helps in reducing weight.
- It contains oleic acid, which helps in minimizing the threat of breast cancer. Also, because of its anti proliferative property it reduces chances of any type of cancer.
- Pecans being rich in Magnesium reduce inflammatory property in the body, which controls arthritis, Alzheimer and other inflammatory disease.
- It also helps in increasing immunity because magnesium is strong element present in pecan that works as powerful anti oxidant.
Skin and Hair
- Pecan contains Vitamin E and A, zinc, phosphorous and folic acid that helps in removing dullness from skin. When your digestion is proper then your skin also looks bright.
- It helps in avoiding any kind of skin infection.
- Vitamin A and E help in fighting tissues that cause premature aging, which further helps in reducing wrinkles as well as pigmentation.
- L-arginine content in Pecan avoids blood clots in vessels which smoothes blood flow in entire body from hair root till feet. This increases the hair growth in scalp reducing baldness.
- Pecan is also good in iron, which also helps in hair growth and prevents hair loss.
Pecan helps in different ways and because of its taste you can enjoy it in any form. There are many recipes online that can give you an idea of how to introduce pecan in your life.