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A word from Barbara Niemans

For over 100 years, The Dutch society for nuts and dried fruits (De Nederlandse Zuidvruchten Vereniging, NZV) looks after the interests of importers and wholesalers of nuts, dried fruits, spices and related commodities. The main task of the NZV is to lobby in The Hague and Brussels for legislation on food security, regulatory compliance, trade standards and international trade policy. The NZV, together with its members, is highly interested in the health benefits of peanuts and nuts. About Nuts spoke to Barbara Niemans, secretary of the NZV, about their vision on peanuts and nuts in nutrition.

“Most consumers still see peanuts and nuts as a snack they can consume together with a drink. But peanuts and nuts are so much more,” states Barbara. “The NZV wants to inform consumers to enjoy the health benefits of peanuts and nuts on many more moments of the day. We do this by providing recipes on our website.” The favourable effects of peanuts and nuts on health were confirmed by an extended literature research by TNO (Dutch independent research organisation) in 2007 on request of NZV. Among other results, a regular consumption of peanuts and nuts was shown to contribute to the prevention of cardiovascular diseases and obesity, Barbara tells.

Barbara Niemans Secretary Dutch society for nuts and dried fruits

“We want to increase the awareness of consumers and healthcare professionals on the role of peanuts and nuts in a healthy diet. We would like to inform consumers that they can choose a handful of peanuts and nuts or that they can be incorporated in a dinner instead of taking another snack.” The nut is also a good choice when you look at the environmental impact, see said. “There is just not enough space on our planet to provide meat for everyone every day. Peanuts and nuts are a good and healthy alternative to meat, for yourself and for our planet. With a consumer campaign we would like to raise the awareness about the various healthy and sustainable aspects of peanuts and nuts.”

Nut consumption helps to regulate body weight in women

A recent study by Bes-Rastrollo et al. shows that the long-term regular consumption of peanuts, peanut butter and tree nuts helps women to regulate their body weight and reduce their risk of obesity. The number of people suffering from overweight and obesity is still increasing, and as a result also the prevalence of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Many studies show that peanut and nut consumption have beneficial effects on cardiovascular health. But since weight management is a priority in the treatment of chronic disease, and peanuts and nuts are seen as products with a relatively high energy density, there have been some concerns to promote the consumption of nuts . Nevertheless, several studies do show a positive effect of nuts on the regulation of body weight. However, these studies were short-term, often executed among a small group of participants and not designed to evaluate body weight changes. This makes it difficult to interpret the results for the general population.

Long-term cohort study
Bes-Rastrollo et al. investigated in a prospective cohort study the relation between nut consumption (tree nuts, peanuts and peanut butter) and body weight change of 51,188 women (20-44 yrs) during a period of 8 years. The participants did not suffer from cardiovascular disease, diabetes or cancer prior to the study. The food intake was recorded by means of a self-completed food frequency questionnaire at the start, mid-term and end of the study. Every two years the participants provided information about their body weight and height; the BMI value was calculated from these values. Based on the food frequency questionnaire the participants were divided into 4 categories according to their nut consumption.

Nut consumption does not increase body weight
On average, all women showed an increase in body weight of 5 to 7 kg during this 8-year period. However, the women who consumed peanuts, peanut butter or tree nuts more than twice per week experienced 0.51 kg less weight gain compared with those who only rarely consumed these food products. This study shows therefore that there is an inverse relation between nut consumption and weight gain, regardless of the increased fat and energy intake through frequent consumption.

Peanut butter consumption has no relation to obesity
The objective of the study was not only to study the effect of nut consumption on body weight, but also to investigate whether this had an impact on the development of obesity. The results of the study showed that consumption of nuts at least two times per week reduced the risk of becoming obese by 23%. The researchers concluded that there was no relation between the consumption of peanut butter and obesity, since for peanut butter alone the risk reduction was only 3%.

A balanced weight with regular consumption of peanuts, peanut butter and nuts.
Based on the results of this study, the researchers concluded that it is not necessary to avoid consumption of nuts in fear of gaining weight. In fact, the consumption of tree nuts, peanuts and peanut butter can help to regulate body weight, and as a consequence, reduces the risk of chronic diseases such as obesity, cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes. Nevertheless, it should be pointed out that this consumption should be a replacement for another food item, to avoid extra calorific intake.

Source:
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.

Nuts reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases in women with type 2 diabetes

Women with type 2 diabetes who regularly consume peanuts, peanut butter and tree nuts, at least 5 servings per week, are associated with a reduction in the risk of the development of cardiovascular diseases. People suffering from type 2 diabetes are highly susceptible to the development of cardiovascular disease. Many studies show the prospective effect of peanut and nut consumption on cardiovascular disease. However, until now it was unclear whether peanuts and nuts also have a cardiovascular protective effect in women with type 2 diabetes.

Women with type 2 diabetes followed for 22 years
In a recent prospective cohort study of Li et al. a group of 6,309 women with type 2 diabetes was followed for 22 years. The objective was to investigate the relation between the incidence of cardiovascular diseases and the intake of nuts in the form of peanuts, peanut butter and tree nuts. The participants completed a food frequency questionnaire every 2 to 4 years. In the questionnaire a question was also adressed to the average intake of nuts.

Great risk reduction by nut consumption
In total, 634 incidents of cardiovascular disease were reported during the study period of 22 years (54,656 person-years). Women that reported a high intake of peanuts, peanut butter and tree nuts prior to the study were in general leaner, more active and smoked less compared to the women that rarely consumed nuts. The results showed a strong protective effect in preventing the occurrence of cardiovascular disease owing to nut consumption. Women who consumed more than 5 servings of nuts per week* had a 44% reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease as compared to women who rarely consumed nuts.

Even nut consumption of 1-3 servings per month showed a risk reduction of 28%. Since it is also possible that other food products influence the effect established, the researchers corrected the results. However, after this correction no differences in risk reduction were found. Even for peanut butter alone, a risk reduction of 25% was shown for a consumption of at least 5 servings per week.

More favourable lipid profile
Women who consumed at least 5 servings of nuts per week had a favourable blood lipid profile which can expain the risk reduction that was found in this study. Compared to the women who rarely consumed nuts, frequent nut consumption resulted in reduction of the LDL-cholesterol, total cholesterol and the lipoprotein ApoB. These are all indicators that are used for the assessment of the risk of cardiovascular disease. This effect can be explained by the low saturated fat content and the high unsaturated fat content of peanuts and nuts.

Diabetic? Peanuts and nuts can help!
The results show that the regular consumption of peanuts, peanuts butter and nuts can help to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, even in diabetic women.

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

Source
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.

Win tickets to California!

About Nuts relaunched their website (www.aboutnuts.com) and offers you a chance to win a trip to California. By playing the About Nuts game you can win two tickets to the nut capital of the world!

In the game you have to make the right combination of nut, nut shell, plant and country of origin. We challenge you to play the game at www.aboutsnuts.com/game.

Good luck!

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

Editorial Board
Schuttelaar & Partners, The Hague

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