How do nuts help your heart health? (2024)

FAQs

How do nuts help your heart health? ›

Research shows that making nuts a regular part of a healthy diet helps to regulate our weight, and can protect against chronic diseases (such as heart disease and diabetes).

Research shows that making nuts a regular part of a healthy diet helps to regulate our weight, and can protect against chronic diseases (such as heart disease and diabetes).

Eating more nuts has been shown to lower levels of inflammation linked to heart disease. They can also reduce your risk of developing blood clots that can lead to a heart attack, and improve the health of the lining of your arteries.

Nuts, seeds and heart disease risk

This combination of 'good fats', makes nuts heart healthy – they help to reduce low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, (known as 'bad' cholesterol) in the body.

Nuts. Nuts like almonds, pistachios and macadamias each bring something special to the table. Almonds help improve memory, pistachio nut oils help preserve fatty acids and prevent inflammation, and macadamias contribute to normal brain function. Yet, the top nut award certainly goes to the walnut.

Most nuts appear to be generally healthy. But some may have more heart-healthy nutrients than others. For example, walnuts contain high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. Almonds, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts and pecans also appear to be quite heart healthy.

1. Almonds. Relatively low in calories, almonds are an excellent food for health due to their protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals.

Nuts like almonds, walnuts, or cashews and seeds such as sunflower seeds, chia seeds, or flaxseeds are great sources of protein, fiber, and healthy fats. They boost levels of HDL (or “good” cholesterol) while lowering LDL (“bad” cholesterol), and have also been shown to help reduce blood pressure.

These foods are the foundation of a heart-healthy eating plan. Protein-rich foods: Fish high in omega-3 fatty acids (salmon, tuna, and trout) Lean meats such as 95% lean ground beef or pork tenderloin or skinless chicken or turkey.

The evidence shows that eating around 15g nuts and seeds per day decreases the risk of coronary heart disease by around 20% compared with no or low nut and seed intakes. This can be achieved by eating 3-4 small handfuls of nuts and seeds each week. Further heart health benefits are likely if you eat more than this.

Which is better for your heart walnuts or almonds? ›

Clearly, almonds have the advantage when it comes to the powerful antioxidant Vitamin E, but walnuts offer a higher Omega-3 fatty acid content. The ALA Omega-3 fatty acids gained from walnuts are essential and tied to brain health, reduced inflammation, heart health, and more.

Can eating too many nuts raise cholesterol? Yes, it is possible that eating nuts in excess may increase LDL cholesterol levels due to their saturated fat content. Eating nuts in excess may also exceed a person's daily calorie needs, leading to increased LDL cholesterol levels.

More importantly, eating too many nuts can actually lead to food toxicity which can range from mild symptoms to severe illness. In addition, many nut varieties contain the amino acid L-Arginine, which can cause mouth ulcers if you over-indulge.

The American Heart Association recommends up to one egg a day for most people, fewer for people with high blood cholesterol, especially those with diabetes or who are at risk for heart failure, and up to two eggs a day for older people with normal cholesterol levels and who eat a healthy diet.

Of those studies, peanuts were the only nuts to which researchers found a statistically significant association between high and low consumption levels and decreased stroke risk.

They contain protein, healthy fats, and many nutrients like choline and carotenoids which previous studies report are associated with protective effects for cognitive function.

To obtain health benefits, nuts must be consumed regularly and in sufficient amounts. To this end, many guidelines recommend the daily consumption of 30 g (or 1 ounce = 28.4 g) of nuts as part of a cardioprotective diet [5,6,7].

Some studies suggest that eating nuts, such as tree nuts and peanuts, does not lead to obesity. A 2019 study from Nutrition Research discovered that consuming more than one to two servings of nuts per week may be linked to less weight gain and a decreased risk of overweight and obesity.

Although a higher consumption of nuts and peanuts was associated with lower CVD risk in women with T2D, it was not significantly associated with the inflammatory markers, including tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 (TNFR), ICAM-1, E-selectin, CRP, or fibrinogen.