REAL LIFE NEWS: SEE, I TOLD YOU NUTS WERE GOOD FOR YOU!
by Hazed
The latest food that seems to have a health benefit is nuts. Eating just a handful each day could lower your risk of a heart attack, or of dying from cancer or diabetes. But the bad news is that peanut butter doesn’t count.
Scientists in the Netherlands found that those who ate around 10g of nuts or peanuts per day saw the effect. However, if the nuts were in the form of peanut butter, the salt and vegetable oils in the spread could cancel out the positive effect.
Nuts from trees and peanuts (also known as groundnuts) contain vitamins, fibres and antioxidants. These may contribute to lower death rates, particularly if those eating them are already suffering from respiratory diseases like asthma and emphysema, diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases, such as dementia. They could also reduce the risk of cancer and cardiovascular diseases, such as heart attacks and strokes.
The study was led by Epidemiologist Professor Piet van den Brandt. His team studied more than 120,000 Dutch people aged between 55 and 69. He said the findings were “remarkable”, in particular because eating such a small amount of nuts made such a big difference. He said, “A higher intake was not associated with further reduction in mortality risk.”
Bad luck for those with nut allergies!
