The amount of Brazil nuts you can have before it becomes toxic

[Kickylol]

Recently read a reddit post that eating too much Brazil nuts can led to selenium toxicity, which can be fatal like heart attack, stroke, kideny failure etc. As most people here are on lchf, eating nuts is a healthy way and low carb, so it's easy to eat way too much than the safety amount, so I thought I'll share this here.

The Maximum Amount Of Brazil Nuts You Can Safely Eat Each Day - Tasting Table

Did you know that the seemingly harmless and unassuming Brazil nuts can actually jeopardize your health?

www.tastingtable.com

 

[Bcgirl]

I’ve always stuck to three a day

 

[Robbity]

I've seen similar warnings about brazil nuts, and tend not to eat them at all now, but mainly because I find them harder than most other nuts and I'm ancient and currently a bit lacking in the tooth department. But they used to be a regular Christmas treat purchase years ago.

(And slightly off topic and because it still makes me smile: they are apparently OK for dogs, and one of my little devils used to climb up onto the table where we kept our Christmas nuts bowl and steal the brazils... )

 

[KennyA]

No, I happily eat a lot more than that on a regular basis. I'm a bit sceptical about the social media source, too.

 

[catinahat]

Recently read a reddit post that eating too much Brazil nuts can led to selenium toxicity, which can be fatal like heart attack, stroke, kideny failure etc. As most people here are on lchf, eating nuts is a healthy way and low carb, so it's easy to eat way too much than the safety amount, so I thought I'll share this here.

The Maximum Amount Of Brazil Nuts You Can Safely Eat Each Day - Tasting Table

Did you know that the seemingly harmless and unassuming Brazil nuts can actually jeopardize your health?

www.tastingtable.com

Here's a positive article about Brazil nuts and the benefits of selenium
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/brazil-nuts-benefits#selenium

I have no idea which one is the most believable but I don't think I've seen any news reports of people dropping dead because they ate 6 Brazil nuts.

In the link I provided it does mention that an overdose of selenium can be toxic and lead to a condition called selenosis. However they put the the amount of selenium at 5,000 mcg, which is the amount in approximately 50 average-sized Brazil nuts.

I think I will continue to enjoy my handful of Brazil nuts, it seems to me I am in more danger of choking on one than suffering from selenosis.

 

[Robbity]

Having looked at that Healthline report, it made me wonder why selenium supplements are OK but a few brazil nuts are dangerous.

 

[Lobsang Tsultim]

As a child, at Christmas, I would eat all the Brazil nuts I could get hold of, fighting off my sister and brother! Cracking the shell and trying to get them out whole was half the fun. I would have so many I'd start to get sore fingers from trying to pull the shell apart. Can't say I managed 50 in one sitting but 20 was not unheard of

 

[Blueduck]

So much we cannot eat. Brazils are a good snack choice with a piece of cheese, dont effect my bs levels better than going for cake, I eat them every day. Another choice, but that’s life people

 

[DEBBIESCOTT]

I eat a couple of handfuls every day & i’m still here

 

[Diablo T2]

I eat a couple of handfuls every day & i’m still here

Me too....not had any symptoms of selenosis so far...

 

[Deleted member 475901]

The various papers say anything from 3 a day, and only some days, to less than 50.
The more reputable sources point out that the amount of selenium varies wildly depending on where the tree is grown, ie local soil, etc.