The FastDay Forum

Walnuts anyone?

"[Study] Conclusions The inclusion of walnuts in an ad libitum diet for 6 months, with or without dietary counseling to adjust calorie intake, significantly improved diet quality, endothelial function, total and LDL cholesterol, but had no effects on anthropometric measures, blood glucose level, and blood pressure. "

http://www.endocrinologyadvisor.com/car ... le/455896/

I've seen similar studies saying that almonds are good too. Only slightly worrying thing is that the almond study was sponsored by the Almond Council and the walnut study was sponsored by the California Walnut Commission. While I do think nuts are good for you, and contain good fats and many micronutrients, they are easy to over-eat and these studies may over-state their benefits.

Oh, @ADFnFuel, I was quite excited at the idea that I could eat my way through our walnut tree's bumper crop of walnuts - without any weight gain - and then I read, right at the end, that, ' One author disclosed financial ties to the California Walnut Commission'! Then @carorees also pointed it out so my hopes were shattered!
I might have to eat some walnuts just to cheer myself up!

There are plenty of studies about the benefits of a handful of walnuts or almonds a day - but as we have seen, the sponsorship of this research is often dubious! However it is easy to overdo them and you also need to think about your omega 6 and 3 ratio which ideally should be in a 1:1 ratio. Nuts are omega 6 polyunsaturated fat and too much O6 can be counterproductive and inflammatory - especially if not fresh. So eat them in moderation and don't forget to balance it out with O3 such as fish, eggs and good quality meat.

I am guilty of eating a hand full of nuts most days. The gentle flavour of almonds is very pleasant and have swapped very sugary snack of fruit for them.

I love nuts but have trouble keeping portions reasonable, the calories just add up SO FAST!