admin According to new research, adding almonds to a low-calorie meal plan can lower blood sugar levels and blood pressure as well as aid in weight loss. Getty Images
Many people avoid nuts because of their high fat and calorie content.
A new study found that those who ate almonds shed the same amount of weight as those who did not.
The improvement in cardiometabolic health was also observed.
According to nutrition experts, nuts like almonds satisfy and provide a wide range of nutrients.
If eaten as part of a healthy diet, they may help you lose weight.
If you’re trying to lose weight, it may be a good idea to stay away from nuts such as almonds. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s website, 100 grams of almonds contain 579 calories and almost 50 grams of fat.
researchTrustedSource recently published in the Obesity journal suggests that nuts could be an excellent addition to a diet for weight loss.
This study was the largest ever conducted in this field. It found that those who consumed almonds within a diet with a restricted calorie intake lost 9.3% of body weight.
The improvements were also seen in other measures of cardiometabolic fitness, including blood glucose and lipids.
A study on the effects of almonds when dieting
To examine the effect of almond consumption on weight loss, we recruited 140 men and women between the ages of 24 and 65. All participants had BMIs (body mass indices) in the overweight range.
Then, randomly, the people were assigned either an almond-enriched diet or a nut-free diet. The almond-enriched program provided 15% of the daily calories in whole California almonds that were not salted and had their skins.
The other group of people received the same number of calories as carbohydrate-rich snacks like rice crackers and fruit cereal bars.
All participants consumed a low-calorie diet for the first 12 weeks. For the next 24 weeks, participants ate a diet to maintain their weight.
The clinic was visited by participants at the beginning of the study, as well as after 12 and 36 weeks for evaluation. Researchers checked at these assessments whether the participants had maintained or lost weight depending on their current goal.
Also, they measured their waist circumference and total energy expenditure.
They also measured various cardiometabolic markers, including blood pressure, blood cholesterol, blood sugar and insulin levels, Insulin Resistance, and insulin sensitivity. The metabolic score was also calculated.
The scientists analyzed the data and found that both groups lost similar amounts of weight — around 7 kilograms (15,4 pounds) — while also improving their cardiometabolic health.
The authors found that the almond-enriched diet led to greater improvements in some lipoprotein subfractions. This included small LDL.
Almonds and weight loss
Cesar Sauza is a Registered Dietitian-Nutritionist at Ehproject.org. He said almonds were a high-fat food you should add to your diet.
He said that fats were essential to a balanced diet. The polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats in nuts can be heart-protective. They may reduce plaque formation, which could lead to clogged arterial walls and raise HDL cholesterol.
Sauza continued by saying that nuts are rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals. They are “powerhouses for our body and heart.”
He also noted that they could help with weight loss because they are satiating. They can help us be more in tune with our hunger and satisfaction cues. They can help us regulate our portion sizes.
