Scientists Find Nuts May Cut Heart Risks

Scientists found that eating a handful of nuts a day for a year, along with a Mediterranean diet rich in fruit, vegetables and fish, may help undo a collection of risk factors for heart disease. Now that sounds like a tasty way to help yourself to a more healthy heart, don't you think? Almost everyone loves nuts and we always knew they were good for you.

Now Spanish researchers found that adding nuts worked better than boosting the olive oil in a typical Mediterranean diet. Actually, both regimens cut the heart risks known as metabolic syndrome in more people than a low fat diet did. What is most surprising is that they found substantial metabolic benefits in the absence of calorie reduction or weight loss. This was according to Dr. JoAnn Manson, chief of preventive medicine at Harvard's Brigham and Woman's Hospital.

The study appeared Monday in the Archives of Internal Medicine. It said the people who improved most were told to eat about three whole walnuts, seven or eight whole hazelnuts and seven or eight whole almonds. They didn't lose weight, on average, but more of them succeeded in reducing belly fat and improving their cholesterol and blood pressure. I think it is really kind of amazing, isn't it?

However, Dr. Manson, who wasn't involved in the study, cautioned that adding nuts to a Western diet, one packed with too many calories and junk food, could lead to weight gain and more health risks. She did say though that by using nuts to replace a snack of chips or crackers is a very favorable change to make in your diet. I can do that easily enough.