Positive nutritional factor of the Mediterranean diet:
Snail meat is a special treat for gourmets, but it also has several nutritional advantages over other meats. It content low calorie and fat, and a high content of inorganic nutrients, important amino acids and beneficial fatty acids. Recent researches show snail meat as one of the positive nutritional factors of the Mediterranean diet.
Nutritional value:
Like many other creepy-crawlies, snails are actually very high in protein while being low in carbohydrates. A 100 g serving of snails will give you an impressive 16.5 g of protein (around 9 less compared with chicken) and only 90 calories (less than half the amount of chicken).
An average Snail is comprised of 80% water, 15% protein, and 2.4% of fat which is primarily healthy fat. Better yet, snails contain only two grams of carbohydrates. They are quite high in cholesterol, but remember that cholesterol isn’t actually bad for you per-say when consumed in the correct quantities.
As well as being high in protein, snails are also high in a number of vitamins and minerals.
Vitamins:
They are rich source of vitamins too and highly and incredibly packed with vitamins E, A, K and B12. Often cited as the ‘energy vitamin’, B12 is needed for making red blood cells, keeping the nervous system healthy, releasing energy from the food we eat and processing folic acid.
Minerals:
At 3.5 milligrams per 100g, snails are actually higher in iron than beef and provide nearly half of your RDA. Also like beef, snails are high in potassium (382 milligrams) and high in magnesium (250 milligrams) even when compared with chicken, pork, beef or fish.
A snail contains essential fatty acids, calcium, iron, selenium, and magnesium are also found in snails. Snails are an ideal weight watchers diet because they are good sources of proteins but low in calories and fat. Imagine for a 100-g serving of snail, you have about 90 calories.
Iron:
Hobson adds that snails are also a good source of iron, essential for building red blood cells and carrying energy around the body. A lack of iron can lead to extreme fatigue and anemia.
Magnesium:
Snails are also a good source of magnesium, which our bodies need to maintain a normal blood pressure, strengthen bones and also keep your heartbeat regular.
Selenium:
We don’t need much selenium in our bodies, but we do need some to keep a healthy immune system and to protect cells against damage. And yes, snails contain selenium.
In addition to all these health benefits, snails are tasty, juicy, delicious nutritious and cheaper than any red meat