Eating a Handful of Nuts Reduces Disease Risk

It's no secret that nuts are a delicious and nutritious snack. Whether it's peanuts, almonds, pistachios, walnuts, hazelnuts, etc., they are loaded in protein, fiber and healthy fats. Most people are well aware of this fact, but you might be surprised to learn just how beneficial they truly are.

Recent research has shown that eating just a handful of nuts (about 20 grams) can cut your risk of developing many diseases, including heart disease. For the study, a consortium of researchers from the Imperial College of London and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology analyzed 29 existing studies involving the nutritional value and health benefits of nuts. The team played close attention to the correlation between nut consumption and disease rates.

They found that people who consumed just a handful of nuts per day were 30% less likely to develop heart disease, 15% less likely to develop cancer, 40% less likely to develop diabetes, and 50% less likely to develop respiratory disease. Furthermore, people who consumed a handful of nuts daily had a 22% lower risk of premature death from all causes. Those are some pretty remarkable findings, attesting to the health benefits of nuts.

How can something as delicious as nuts offer such amazing health benefits? Researchers cite the high concentration of unsaturated fats in nuts as being the primacy cause of its benefits. Not all fats are bad. While saturated fats should be consumed in moderation, experts say that unsaturated fats should be added to your diet for their health benefits. Certain foods, such as fish and nuts, contain high concentrations of these healthy fats. And consuming them works to lower levels of bad cholesterol and raise levels of good cholesterol.

"In nutritional studies, so far much of the research has been on the big killers such as heart diseases, stroke and cancer, but now we're starting to see data for other diseases," explained the study's co-author and researcher. "We found a consistent reduction in risk across many different diseases, which is a strong indication that there is a real underlying relationship between nut consumption and different health outcomes. It's quite a substantial effect for such a small amount of food," he added.

This study was published in the journal BMC Medicine.