Once in a while there’s some good news for people who want to eat right and keep their weight in check but are also tired of hearing about all the foods they can or should no longer enjoy because of health concerns. What’s the good news? Nuts! Consuming all sorts of nuts, including peanuts, which are actually legumes, is good for you, according to a study that was recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
For the study, scientists analyzed data from two big research projects, namely the Nurses’ Health Study, with120,000 participants, and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, involving more than 50,000. Both have been started decades ago and are still ongoing.
What the scientists found was that participants who ate nuts several times a week tended to be healthier, thinner and longer living. They were less likely to develop diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and certain forms of cancer. Even if taking into account other factors like diet and exercise, the nut-eaters seemed better off in almost every category.
It also didn’t seem to matter what kind of nuts people preferred. The benefits apparently spanned across all varieties. The most decisive factor was the frequency of nut consumption.
For full disclosure, it deserves to be mentioned that the study was sponsored in part by the International Tree Nut Council, a trade group that represents nut growers, but no undue influence was exerted, the scientists involved assured.
Somewhat counterintuitive is the notion that eating nuts could help with weight control. While nuts have many important nutrients and other biological benefits like anti-inflammatory effects, they are also rather caloric and contain substantial amounts of fat.
It’s not altogether clear yet what makes nuts so beneficial, said Dr. Charles Fuchs of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, one of the study leaders. The scientists are still trying to understand the bioactive compounds in nuts.
That is also the position of Dr. David L. Katz, the founding director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University who was not involved in the study. He cautioned that the study, which is only observational, meaning it cannot prove cause and effect, provides no proof that the consumption of nuts will keep people healthier or let them live longer. Still, he says, the findings are “healthy food for thought.”
“One potentially important reason why nuts reduce disease and death risk is what they add to the diet, another is what they remove from the diet. People who eat more nuts are likely eating them instead of other foods, perhaps snack foods apt to be far less nutritious,” he said to ABC News.
As for the downside of nuts, it is common knowledge that many varieties carry a substantial fat content. Granted that it is the heart-healthy mono- and polyunsaturated kinds, they still can add to your waistline if you don’t restrict portion sizes. Nuts range from 160 to 200 calories per ounce, depending on the variety of your choosing. Also, like most snack foods, nuts invite “mindless eating,” meaning they tend to disappear in your mouth without you noticing. So, overeating is a clear and present danger.
To avoid these pitfalls, I recommend that you take the exact amount you wish to eat out of the bag, jar or can and put it on a plate in front of you. This way, you can focus on your movie or whatever else you do while munching away – and you won’t exceed your limit.
Timi Gustafson R.D. is a registered dietitian, newspaper columnist, blogger and author of the book “The Healthy Diner – How to Eat Right and Still Have Fun”®, which is available on her blog and at amazon.com. For more articles on nutrition, health and lifestyle, visit her blog, “Food and Health with Timi Gustafson R.D.” (www.timigustafson.com).
