Nuts to you ;-)

Eating nuts helps your heart. Discover how walnuts, almonds and other nuts help lower your cholesterol when eaten as part of a balanced diet. By Mayo Clinic staff
Eating nuts as part of a healthy diet can be good for your heart. Nuts, which contain unsaturated fatty acids and other nutrients, are a great snack food, too. They're inexpensive, easy to store and easy to take with you to work or school.
The type of nut you eat isn't that important, although some nuts have more heart-healthy nutrients and fats than do others. Walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, you name it, almost every type of nut has a lot of nutrition packed into a tiny package. If you have heart disease, eating nuts instead of a less healthy snack can help you more easily follow a heart-healthy diet.
Can eating nuts help your heart?
Most studies on people who eat nuts as part of a heart-healthy diet have found that nuts lower the LDL, low-density lipoprotein or "bad," cholesterol level in the blood. High LDL is one of the primary causes of heart disease, so nuts' ability to lower LDL cholesterol seems to be quite beneficial.
Eating nuts reduces your risk of developing blood clots that can cause a fatal heart attack. Nuts also improve the health of the lining of your arteries. The evidence for the heart-health benefits of nuts isn't rock solid yet — the Food and Drug Administration only allows food companies to say evidence "suggests but does not prove" that eating nuts reduces heart disease risk.
What's in nuts that's thought to be heart healthy?
Although it varies by nut, researchers think most nuts contain at least some of these heart-healthy substances:
■Unsaturated fats. It's not entirely clear why, but it's thought that the "good" fats in nuts — both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats — lower bad cholesterol levels.
■Omega-3 fatty acids. Many nuts are also rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s are a healthy form of fatty acids that seem to help your heart by, among other things, preventing dangerous heart rhythms that can lead to heart attacks. Omega-3 fatty acids are also found in many fish, but nuts are one of the best plant-based sources of omega-3 fatty acids.
■L-arginine. Nuts also have lots of l-arginine, which is a substance that may help improve the health of your artery walls by making them more flexible and less prone to blood clots that can block blood flow.
■Fiber. All nuts contain fiber, which helps lower your cholesterol. Fiber also makes you feel full, so you'll eat less later. Fiber is also thought to play a role in preventing diabetes.
■Vitamin E. Researchers still aren't sure, but it's thought that vitamin E may help stop the development of plaques in your arteries which can narrow them, leading to chest pain, coronary artery disease or a heart attack.
■Plant sterols. Some nuts contain plant sterols, a substance that can help lower your cholesterol. Plant sterols are often added to products like margarine and orange juice for additional health benefits, but sterols occur naturally in nuts.
What amount of nuts is considered healthy?
Nuts contain a lot of fat; as much as 80 percent of a nut is fat. Even though most of this fat is healthy fat, it's still a lot of calories. That's why you should eat nuts in moderation. Ideally, you should use nuts as a substitute for saturated fats, such as those found in meats, eggs and dairy products.
Instead of eating unhealthy saturated fats, try substituting a handful of nuts. According to the Food and Drug Administration, eating about a handful (1.5 ounces, or 42.5 grams) a day of most nuts, such as almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts, pecans, some pine nuts, pistachio nuts and walnuts, may reduce your risk of heart disease. But again, do this as part of a heart-healthy diet. Just eating nuts and not cutting back on saturated fats found in many dairy and meat products won't do your heart any good.
Does it matter what kind of nuts you eat?
Possibly. Most nuts appear to be generally healthy, though some more so than others. Walnuts are one of the best-studied nuts, and it's been shown they contain high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. Almonds, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts and pecans are other nuts that appear to be quite heart healthy. Even peanuts — which are technically not a nut, but a legume, like beans — seem to be relatively healthy. Coconut, which is technically a fruit, may be considered by some to be a nut, but it doesn't have heart-health benefits. Both coconut meat and oil contain a large amount of saturated fat.
How about nut oils? Are they healthy, too?
Nut oils are good sources of omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin E, but they lack the fiber in whole nuts. Walnut oil is highest in omega-3s. Nut oils contain saturated as well as unsaturated fats. Consider using nut oils in homemade salad dressing or in cooking. When cooking with nut oils, remember that they respond differently to heat than do vegetable oils. Nut oil, if overheated, can become bitter. Just like with nuts, use nut oil in moderation, as the oils are high in fat and calories.
Enjoying a few peanuts over the festive season is one thing, but assuming you should ditch them along with other high fat foods, once the New Year dieting urge kicks in is a big mistake!
It's official, American peanuts provide more than 30% of your daily needs for no less than 14 key nutrients and that's on top of the protein and energy they provide! So peanuts offer a powerful nutritional boost, just what you need if you're cutting back the calories after the festive excesses. And if this seems a contradiction, rest assured that research shows 'nuts are fattening' is a myth.
New EU regulations now govern nutrition and health claims for all foods and drink products sold throughout the EU. These new rules are designed so that shoppers are less likely to be misled by unsubstantiated claims, such as for 'beautiful skin', 'enhanced virility', 'increased muscle definition', or simply that a product contains beneficial amounts of certain nutrients, when in fact the content is negligible. Nutrition claims can no longer be made unless a product supplies a significant quantity (15% of daily needs) in 100g and to be able to claim that a product is a high/excellent source, the product must contain at least 30% of daily needs, which is exceptionally tough for more than a few key nutrients.
American peanuts can legitimately claim to be an excellent source of 14 nutrients: fibre, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, copper, manganese, vitamin B1 (thiamin), vitamin B3 (niacin), pantothenic acid, folate, vitamin E, unsaturated fats and monounsaturated fats. Additionally they provide protein, iron and vitamin B6 (pyridoxine). That's a powerful concoction in a great tasting package and at a fraction of the cost of detox pills and potions!
Your waistline will thank you too. Harvard University investigated the relationship between nut consumption and long term weight change in 51,000 women, aged 20-45yrs. Results over 8 years showed that women eating peanuts, peanut butter or tree nuts more than twice a week had: less weight gain than women who did not eat them; lower BMIs (body mass index); and overall a lower risk of obesity.