the triad diet programNuts and Seeds
Most studies on health have involved nuts but not seeds. Yet
both (in their whole, raw state—not roasted or salted) have non-
oxidized essential fatty acids, vitamins and minerals, fiber, lignans,
plant sterols, and protein. These are healthful food components.
With respect to cardiovascular health, when replacing calories
from the diet, especially meat calories, and not adding additional
calories, nuts and seeds have been shown to reduce cholesterol
and the incidence of cardiovascular disease and heart attacks.
In the “Nurses’ Health Study,” women who consumed nuts
greater than five times per week had about a 35 percent lower
risk of coronary heart disease; 39 percent reduction of fatal coro-
nary heart disease; and a 32 percent reduction in non-fatal heart
attacks than those women who rarely ate nuts.^9 In the “Physicians
Health Study,” men who rarely or never consumed nuts compared
to those who consumed nuts two or more times per week had re-
duced risks of sudden cardiac death of 47 percent and total coro-
nary heart disease death of 30 percent.^10 In a pooled analysis of
four U.S. epidemiological studies, those in the highest intake group
for nut consumption had an approximately 35 percent reduced
risk of coronary heart disease incidence.^11 These are people who
weren’t eating a whole-food diet. They were just eating an Ameri-
can diet and some of them had nuts and seeds and some of them
didn’t. And because of that one change, they had a 40 percent or
more reduction in sudden cardiac death.
A recent review of nut consumption and chronic disease
showed a consistent association between nut consumption and a
reduced risk of coronary heart disease; reduced risk of diabetes
mellitus among women; and a protective benefit of frequent nut
consumption on gallstone diseases in both sexes. Long-term nut
consumption is also linked with lower body weight and lower risk
of obesity and weight gain.^12
The main cautions I offer when eating nuts and seeds are these:
First, since they contain fat calories, which have nine calories per
gram of fat (compared to four calories from carbohydrates or pro-
tein), be cautious when eating nuts and seeds while trying to lose