Why does everyone swear by soaked nuts and seeds?

[cobalamin]

Many people swear by soaked nuts and seeds however I can't digest them. Unsoaked nuts digest fine if they aren't rancid.

I even tried feeding soaked almonds to squirrels and they won't eat them. Squirrels will not eat flaxseeds, chia seeds and hulled or whole sesame seeds after smelling them.

[Iguana]

I never had any problem neither with unsoaked nuts nor with soaked ones. Now, following Tyler's advice I soak them when they are not fresh enough and I found out it refreshes them, so they taste better.

[raw-al]

My understanding is that you are sprouting them so the enzymes in them are converted to nutrition. I see tiny sprouts on almonds when I soak them.

Also the skin can come off so they taste better.

[cobalamin]

How long should they typically be soaked for?

I think I over soaked the almonds for 24 hours. They didn't taste fatty. They tasted high in protein/fiber.

[Alive]

Seeds and nuts have enzyme inhibitors to keep them in suspended animation, once they are soaked then they become alive and turn the enzymes on, so they may become easier to digest.

Personally I find it best to limit seed and nut consumption, and then there's no need to soak anyway. Growing the seeds in the ground / potting mix to small edible plants works better for me, rather than soaking or sprouting

[jessica]

I still can only tolerate certain kinds of seeds, mainly anything in the cucurbit family...i.e. Pumpkin seeds but find it best if I eat them soaked and then dehydrated or roasted or just lightly/slowly roasted.  Hey digest less well if soaked or raw and tend to give indigestion and Gallbladde/liver symptoms.  My guess is that soaking re and de activates certain enzymes and bind and in binds certain proteins but the act of then again dehydrating makes sure any anti nutrients provoked by a seed soaking and swelling and protecting its potential of fully germinating are then also deactivated by dehydrating or roasting making the seed as pleasant and full of absorbable nutrients as possible for a compromised system. 

[cobalamin]

I did another experiment by soaking the almonds for 8 hours. The skins came off slightly and again the fatty acids were converted into amino acids. All the fatty calories are lost when they are soaked. I have no problem digesting them if I chew them very well and mix them with my saliva. There is probably something in saliva that deactivates the anti nutrients.

I can't eat pumpkin seeds. They inflame my gums however I haven't experimented much with them. I'm going to buy some and see if the squirrels will eat them.

I can't limit them since they keep my brain and hand writing sharp.