A strong body of emerging research is demonstrating that nuts may be used to decrease the risk of heart disease and other life-threatening conditions. Although we know that nuts are a complex and natural whole food with many beneficial nutritional components, we need to better understand how their various components work.
Nuts are rich in plant protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and micronutrients.
While we know that these components have been associated with reducing life threatening diseases, additional epidemiological and clinical studies could help to shed light on how these nutrients work to promote health. Some of our most pressing public health problems are obesity, cardiovascular disease and other conditions related to overeating in general, and to the over consumption of saturated fat in particular. Nuts in the diet can improve cholesterol levels and decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease. In the area of fat generally, more work should be done to understand how total fat intake and fat as a percentage of overall caloric intake affects our health. It is intriguing that scientists have demonstrated that increased nut consumption does not increase weight, but research is needed in this area.