Crunchy yet butter textured, pleasantly sweet and delicious pine nuts are small edible seeds of the female cone in a pine tree. Pine kernels are, indeed, a splendid source of plant derived nutrients, essential minerals, vitamins and "heart friendly" monounsaturated fatty acids that help benefit in reducing cholesterol levels in the blood.

Pine nuts are one of the calorie-rich edible nuts. 100 g of dry kernels provide 673 calories. Additionally, they comprise of numerous health promoting phytochemicals, vitamins, antioxidants, and minerals.

One of the most controversial and beneficial aspects of Brazil nuts is their surprisingly high content of healthy unsaturated fats, commonly known as HDL or good forms of cholesterol or omega-3 fatty acids. This includes oleic acid and palmitoleic acid. These varieties of unsaturated fats have been connected with balancing the cholesterol profile of the body and improving heart health, mainly by eliminating dangerous omega-6 fatty acids from the body and cardiovascular system. Even though their ability to balance cholesterol levels can help prevent atherosclerosis, heart attacks, and strokes, we cant overlook the presence of high amounts of dangerous saturated fat in Brazil nuts. So, be careful and dont consume these nuts in excess, as they are also high in calories. The recommended serving size of this beneficial snack is about six average-sized nuts.

In a 100-gram amount, macadamia nuts provide 740 Calories and are a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of numerous essential nutrients, including thiamin (104% DV), vitamin B6 (21% DV), manganese (195% DV), iron (28% DV), magnesium (37% DV), and phosphorus (27% DV) (table). Macadamia nuts are 76% fat, 14% carbohydrates, including 9% dietary fiber, and 8% protein.

Compared with other common edible nuts, such as almonds and cashews, macadamias are high in total fat and relatively low in protein. They have a high amount of monounsaturated fats (59% of total content) and contain, as 17% of total fat, the monounsaturated fat, omega-7 palmitoleic acid.

The trees are also grown as ornamental plants in subtropical regions for their glossy foliage and attractive flowers. Macadamia species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species, including Batrachedra arenosella.

Macadamia seeds are often fed to hyacinth macaws in captivity. These large parrots are one of the few animals, aside from humans, capable of cracking the shell and removing the seed.