No Weight Gain from Almonds?
Imagine adding a handful or more of almonds to your diet and NOT gaining weight! Well, the most recent study into the advantages of eating almonds has shown just that.
Published in the September issue of the British Journal of Nutrition, researchers reported the results of putting two separate groups on a diet of almonds for 10 weeks each. One group was instructed to eat their usual diet and add two ounces of almonds to their diet daily, and the other group was instructed to make no changes. After a three week clean-out period, the groups changed places.
Although the group who added almonds increased their calorie intake by 344 calories, researchers found that the result showed that people actually only increased by 77 calories a day and did not gain weight! There were several reasons researchers felt this was so: First, people who ate the almonds felt more satisfied thus ended up eating fewer calories overall. Second, although almonds are high in fat, the fiber appears to prevent metabolism and absorption of the fat and resultant calories from the almonds. Finally, this study caused researchers to again question the theory, ‘a calorie is a calorie is a calorie’.
A final advantage to eating a diet that includes a daily handful of almonds is that when researchers check blood levels of the almond eaters, they found they had higher levels of vitamin E, which is another benefit of eating almonds, because most Americans don’t get enough vitamin E in their diet. But it has been found that not only is vitamin E provided by almonds, they are also a good source of magnesium, protein and fiber, potassium, calcium, phosphorous, iron and monounsaturated fat. Previous studies have found that almonds can also decrease LDL cholesterol, which the ‘bad’ cholesterol is found responsible for clogging our arteries. In fact, the FDA issued a health claim in 2003 that states: “Scientific evidence suggests, but does not prove, that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, such as almonds, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease.”
What can you learn from this? I am always telling clients to eat a handful of nuts per day. They make a great afternoon snack, along with a piece of fruit! The nuts will keep you feeling satisfied and the fruit will not only provide you with some important healthy nutrients, but also give you an afternoon ‘kick’ that people usually get from something sweet and not as healthy.
To learn more about almonds, click this link: http://www.almondsarein.com/
Published in the September issue of the British Journal of Nutrition, researchers reported the results of putting two separate groups on a diet of almonds for 10 weeks each. One group was instructed to eat their usual diet and add two ounces of almonds to their diet daily, and the other group was instructed to make no changes. After a three week clean-out period, the groups changed places.
Although the group who added almonds increased their calorie intake by 344 calories, researchers found that the result showed that people actually only increased by 77 calories a day and did not gain weight! There were several reasons researchers felt this was so: First, people who ate the almonds felt more satisfied thus ended up eating fewer calories overall. Second, although almonds are high in fat, the fiber appears to prevent metabolism and absorption of the fat and resultant calories from the almonds. Finally, this study caused researchers to again question the theory, ‘a calorie is a calorie is a calorie’.
A final advantage to eating a diet that includes a daily handful of almonds is that when researchers check blood levels of the almond eaters, they found they had higher levels of vitamin E, which is another benefit of eating almonds, because most Americans don’t get enough vitamin E in their diet. But it has been found that not only is vitamin E provided by almonds, they are also a good source of magnesium, protein and fiber, potassium, calcium, phosphorous, iron and monounsaturated fat. Previous studies have found that almonds can also decrease LDL cholesterol, which the ‘bad’ cholesterol is found responsible for clogging our arteries. In fact, the FDA issued a health claim in 2003 that states: “Scientific evidence suggests, but does not prove, that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, such as almonds, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease.”
What can you learn from this? I am always telling clients to eat a handful of nuts per day. They make a great afternoon snack, along with a piece of fruit! The nuts will keep you feeling satisfied and the fruit will not only provide you with some important healthy nutrients, but also give you an afternoon ‘kick’ that people usually get from something sweet and not as healthy.
To learn more about almonds, click this link: http://www.almondsarein.com/
posted by Margie Geiser, MBA, RD, NSCA-CPT at
6:23 AM
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