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Nut consumption can help women to stay healthy

Nut consumption can help women to maintain a healthy weight. And that is not all: it also prevents the occurrence of cardiovascular disease in women with type 2 diabetes. Those were the outcomes of two recent analyses performed on data of the so-called Nurses’ Health Study.

Regular nut consumption to maintain a healthy weight!
One of the analyses showed that frequent and long-term nut consumption, in the form of peanuts, peanut butter and tree nuts, does not lead to weight gain. They even found out that nut consumption helped women to keep a balanced weight and to lower the risk of becoming obese.

During the study period of eight years, data relating to the height, body weight and dietary intake of 51,188 women (20-44 yrs) was collected. The relation between body weight changes and nut consumption was investigated. On average, all women showed an increase in body weight of 5 to 7 kg during the 8-year period. But women who frequently consumed nuts gained 0.51 kg less weight than those who rarely consumed nuts. This being despite the fact that nut consumption was accompanied with an overall higher greater fat and energy intake.

Peanut butter consumption for a healthy heart!
The other analysis showed that the consumption of peanuts, peanut butter and tree nuts could help to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, even in women with type 2 diabetes. People with type 2 diabetes are highly susceptible for developing cardiovascular diseases.

A total of 6,309 women with type 2 diabetes were followed for 22 years. Based on food frequency questionnaires the average intake of peanuts, peanut butter and tree nuts was assessed. The women who consumed 5 or more servings of nuts per week* had a 44% reduction in the risk of developing cardiovascular disease compared to women who almost never consumed nuts.

A 28% reduction in risk was even found from a consumption of 1 to 3 servings per month. Even when peanut butter alone was consumed (5 or more times per week) the risk of occurrence of heart problems decreased by 25%. Serving size was defined as 16 g for nuts and 28 g for peanut butter.

Advice for women: enjoy nuts in a healthy lifestyle!
Based on these outcomes it can be concluded that women are able to enjoy a handful of peanuts or nuts every day within a healthy lifestyle! They can help in maintaining a balanced weight, decrease the risk of obesity and decrease the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, and this also applies to women who suffer from type 2 diabetes. Thus, eating nuts can even promote health!

* One serving of nuts weighted 16 grams and one portion of peanut butter 28 grams.

Sources:
1) Bes-Rastrollo M., Wedick N.M., Martinez-Gonzalez A., Li T.Y., Sampson L., and Hu F.B. Prospective study of nut consumption, long-term weight change, and obesity risk in women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2009;89:1913-1919.
2) Li T.Y., Brannan A.M., Wedick N.M., Mantzoros C., Rifai N., and Hu F.B. Regular consumption of nuts is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease in women with type 2 diabetes. Journal of Nutrition, May 2009; E-pub ahead of print.

Cooking with nuts: Savoury Brazil Nut Muffins

Snack

8 servings

20 min

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
In a mixing bowl, mix the self-raising flour, baking powder, sea salt, the egg and the milk.
Add the goat’s cheese, bacon snippets, Brazil nuts, sweet peppers, spring onions, mustard and Tabasco sauce, mixing thoroughly with a spatula.
Grease the muffin (cake) forms and pour in the batter.
Sprinkle with a little pepper, salt and grated cheese.
Bake the muffins in the middle of the preheated oven for approx. 25 minutes.

Snack – Serves 8
• 175 g self-raising flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp sea salt
• 1 egg
• 1½ dl milk
• 100 g soft goat’s cheese
• 150 g lean bacon snippets
• 50 g Brazil nuts, finely chopped
• 10 sweet peppers, chopped
• 2 spring onions, cut into small rings
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 2 to 3 tsp Tabasco red pepper sauce
• freshly ground salt and pepper
• 50 g mature cheese, grated
• small muffin (cake) forms

Nutritional values


More information about Brazil nuts >

Peanuts and nuts can sharpen your eyesight

Peanuts and nuts can help to maintain good eyesight in later life. This was the conclusion of a recent study among 3,645 elderly Australians. During a period of ten years researchers investigated whether there was a relationship between dietary intake and the health of the eyes. They examined the manifestation of an illness known as macular degeneration.

At the moment approximately 2.3% of Europeans suffer from macular degeneration. Macular degeneration is a medical condition that results in the loss of vision. This condition often develops at an older age. It is a major cause of blindness in the elderly (>50yrs) and creates difficulty in reading or in recognizing faces. Owing to the ageing population, the expectation is that the number of people who suffer from this disease will increase in the coming years.

Participants in the study who consumed 1-2 servings of peanuts and tree nuts per week appeared to have a reduction of 35% in the risk of developing this condition of the eyes. The protective effect of nuts was seen particularly among non-smokers, participants who consumed larger amounts of vitamin A and participants with a favourable balance of blood cholesterol.

The researchers explained the protective effect of peanuts and nuts as being the result of their high content of omega-3 fats. Naturally, peanuts and nuts contain larger amounts of unsaturated ‘good’ fats and smaller amounts of saturated ‘bad’ fats.

Source:
Tan J.S., Wang J.J., Flood V., and Mitchell P. Dietary fatty acids and the 10-year incidence of age-related macular degeneration: the Blue Mountains Eye Study. Archives of Ophthalmology 2009; 127(5): 656-665.

Win tickets to California!

Did you just get back from your holiday and are you already making plans for the next? Maybe we can help, because with Abouts Nuts you can win two tickets to California, the nut capital of the world! Who doesn’t want to fly to the Golden State?

How does it work? Well, it’s really easy. Just go to www.aboutsnuts.com/en/game and test your knowledge about nuts by making the right connections between nut, nut shells, plants and countries of origin. A hint: the encyclopedia on the site offers useful information.

Good luck!

Imprint

Editorial staff
Intersnack Group, Düsseldorf
Schuttelaar & Partners, The Hague

Editorial Board
Schuttelaar & Partners, The Hague

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