2. Loaded With Antioxidants
Nuts are packed with powerful antioxidants.
The polyphenols found in nuts help fight oxidative stress by neutralizing free radicals — unstable molecules that can damage cells and raise the risk of various diseases.
One study even showed that walnuts have a stronger ability to combat free radicals than fish.
Research has also found that the antioxidants in nuts like walnuts and almonds help shield the delicate fats within your cells from oxidative harm.
In a small study involving 13 participants, eating walnuts or almonds boosted polyphenol levels and significantly lowered oxidative damage compared with a control meal.
Another study showed that within 2–8 hours of eating whole pecans, participants experienced a 26–33% reduction in oxidized LDL (“bad”) cholesterol — a key contributor to heart disease.
That said, some research involving older adults and people with metabolic syndrome found that walnuts and cashews did not dramatically increase overall antioxidant capacity, although other health markers did show improvement.
3. May Aid Weight Loss
Although they’re considered a high-calorie food, research suggests that nuts may help you lose weight.
One large study assessing the effects of the Mediterranean diet found that people assigned to eat nuts lost an average of 2 inches (5 cm) from their waists — significantly more than those given olive oil.
Almonds have consistently been shown to promote weight loss rather than weight gain in controlled studies. Some research suggests that pistachios aid weight loss as well.
In one study in overweight women, those eating almonds lost nearly three times as much weight and experienced a significantly greater decrease in waist size compared to the control group.
In addition, though nuts are quite high in calories, research shows that your body doesn’t absorb all of them, as a portion of fat stays trapped within the nut’s fibrous wall during digestion.
For example, while the nutrition facts on a package of almonds may indicate that a 1-ounce (28-gram) serving has 160–170 calories, your body only absorbs about 129 of these calories.
Similarly, recent studies revealed that your body absorbs about 21% and 5% fewer calories from walnuts and pistachios, respectively, than had previously been reported.
4. May Lower Cholesterol and Triglycerides
Nuts have impressive impacts on cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
Pistachios have been shown to lower triglycerides in people who are obese and people with diabetes.
In one 12-week study in obese people, those eating pistachios had triglyceride levels nearly 33% lower than in the control group.
The cholesterol-lowering power of nuts may be due to their high content of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Almonds and hazelnuts appear to raise “good” HDL cholesterol while reducing total and “bad” LDL cholesterol. One study found that ground, sliced, or whole hazelnuts had similar beneficial effects on cholesterol levels.
Another study in women with metabolic syndrome observed that eating a 1-ounce (30-gram) mix of walnuts, peanuts, and pine nuts per day for 6 weeks significantly lowered all types of cholesterol — except “good” HDL.
Some studies show that macadamia nuts lower cholesterol levels as well. In one trial, a moderate-fat diet including macadamia nuts reduced cholesterol as much as a lower-fat diet.
5. Beneficial for Type 2 Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome
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