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| Nuts – much healthier than its reputation |
| Frequently,
nuts are not recommended as part of a diet due to their high
fat (approx. 60%) and therefore energy content. Recent studies
now show that the benefits of this aromatic food group outweigh
the disadvantages. They indicate that the risk of cardiovascular
disease is significantly reduced the more nuts are consumed. |
| Nuts reduce overall
cholesterol |
and LDL cholesterol.
The cause for these protective properties is still unknown.
The likely reason, however, is the beneficial amount of fatty
acids with several mono and poly unsaturated fatty acids. Nutrition
experts in the US therefore deviate from their previous warning
(calorie overload) and recommend the consumption
of nuts.
In the 70’s, a study conducted
on 30,000 Seventh Day Adventists unearthed surprisingly positive
results with regard to nut consumption. The Adventists recorded
their eating habits over a time period of several years and
observed their health status.
In comparison to the group who consumed nuts less than once
a week, the group eating nuts several times a week reduced
their risk of fatal heart attacks by 24%. |
 Those
who ate nuts five times a week showed a 48% reduction of
heart attack risk. The risk of fatal heart attacks could be
lowered by 59% by eating nuts. Men consuming a high quantity
of nuts could look forward to increasing their life expectancy
by 5.6 years; women by 4.7 years without cardiovascular diseases.
Eat 8-10
Walnuts every day with your meals! >>> |
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| Nuts
have a protective function |
| In the early 90’s,
the Iowa Women’s Health Study confirmed these results. The group
who ate nuts four times a week showed a 40% reduction of heart
attack risk. |
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The Nurse’s Health
Study (1998) produced similar encouraging results. When consuming
140 g of nuts per week, the risk of a fatal heart attack
was reduced by 39%.
An American study inspected the effect of different sources
of fat on the blood fats. For four weeks, three test groups
consumed a diet of the same fat content: in one group’s diet
the fat came predominantly from almonds, in the second from
olive oil and in the third from milk products. The almond fare
reduced the overall cholesterol and damaging LDL cholesterol
<<<Click the graphic to
enlarge it! |
| The olive diet
did not change the blood value at least not during the study
period. The dairy diet even increased overall cholesterol. Here
it can also be seen as in previous studies that the results
are independent of the type of nut (i.e. walnuts, macadamia
nuts, almonds). |
| Which
ingredients are responsible for the positive effect? Although
the individual types of nuts feature different amounts of fatty
acids (partially poly or mono unsaturated fatty acids), the
results can be repeated. |
| The
high portion of these valuable fatty acids are assumed to
be the cause. But also high vitamin and mineral contents (vitamin
E, folic acids, vitamin B 6, potassium, magnesium, selenium)
and the amount of secondary organic materials (e.g. flavorings
with health benefits) likely contribute to the protective effect
of this food group. |
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