"Regulate Your Weight With Almonds"

Scientists have noticed for many years that people who regularly eat almonds tend to weigh less than people who do not — even though they tend to eat more calories over the course of a day. Why? A new study published in the September 2007 issue of the British Journal of Nutrition sheds light on the mechanisms behind almonds’ ability to provide valuable nutrition and help lower (low density lipoprotein) LDL cholesterol levels without contributing to weight gain.

In the study, women were instructed to eat 344 calories worth of almonds (slightly more than 2 ounces) every day for one 10-week period, and then eat their customary diet for another ten weeks. The women did not gain weight during the period they consumed almonds. In addition, because of the high vitamin E and magnesium content in almonds, they met the daily dietary recommendations for those two nutrients that most Americans don’t consume in adequate amounts.

The researchers determined that the study participants felt satisfied, so they naturally compensated for most of the calories in almonds by replacing other foods in their normal daily diet with the almonds. They also noted a decrease in total carbohydrate intake, suggesting almonds may have replaced carbohydrate-rich foods.

Additionally, the researchers found that the fiber in almonds appears to block some of the fat they contain. So, in reality, almonds may provide fewer calories to the body than the amount the food label states. This raises broader questions about the availability of energy from foods, indicating that many may not actually deliver the amount listed on the nutrition facts label.

“Solid data has shown that eating one to three daily ounces of almonds can help lower (low density lipoprotein) LDL cholesterol levels,” said study co-author Rick Mattes, Ph.D., R.D. from Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN. “But many health care providers have been hesitant to recommend almonds as a daily snack because they’re a relatively high-calorie food and could contribute to weight gain.

This study challenges that assumption. The study indicates that the nutrition facts label may overstate the amount of energy available to the body from eating almonds.”

Study Details

A research team at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana conducted a study with 20 women, most of whom were overweight. One group was instructed to eat a normal diet for 10 weeks, but make one change — add 344 calories worth of almonds every day, slightly more than two ounces. The other group was instructed to eat their customary diet and no almonds. The groups then took a break for three weeks, and switched, so the second group ate almonds and the first group ate none.

Researchers measured body weight, metabolic rates, and physical activity at various points during the study. Compliance to almond consumption was assessed through diet records, as well as by measuring blood levels of vitamin E; this was because eating almonds, among the leading sources of vitamin E, has been shown to increase vitamin E levels in the blood.

The researchers found that when people were eating the 344 calories worth of almonds every day, they were in total, only taking in an extra 77 calories each day.

This is because the participants naturally compensated for the great majority of the calories in almonds, or about 74 percent, as they found the almonds satiating, or satisfying.

A further portion of these extra daily 77 calories was offset because the fiber structure of almonds blocked the fat in almonds from being fully absorbed. Also, although not statistically significant, the researchers noted an increase in energy expenditure through an increase in resting energy expenditure, or the number of calories used while participants were at rest. Based on the various measures in the study, the researchers concluded that the calories from almonds were compensated for by natural substitution of other foods, by some of the fat from the almonds passing through the body without being digested, and by an increase in resting energy expenditure.

Also notable, eating almonds led to significant increases in the intake of several important nutrients: polyunsaturated fat and monounsaturated fat, vitamin E, magnesium and copper. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005 notes that Americans don’t meet the recommendations for vitamin E and magnesium. But in this study when participants ate almonds, on average, they met the daily recommendations for both nutrients.

Similar studies have shown that subjects can consume up to 570 calories worth (3½ ounces) of almonds per day without leading to weight gain. Another benefit of the almond’s nutrition is it may help reduce spikes in blood sugar when combined with high-carbohydrate meals.

So why don’t we try to add Almond into our diet menu?