Eating Nuts Daily Helps Improve Life Expectancy

Daily consumption of nuts can help you live longer, says a new study.

The study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine found a 20 percent reduced risk of death among people who consumed a handful of nuts every day.

Nearly 119,000 health professionals participated in the study. Through questionnaires, researchers collected information about participants' food habits, mainly intake of nuts. At the end of the 30-year-study, researchers found that regular consumption of nuts helped the participants remain healthy and protected them from heart diseases and cancer.

Regular consumption of nuts also helped people remain slim and reduced the risk of mortality. Interestingly, participants who ate more nuts had a healthier lifestyle, abstained from smoking and engaged in regular exercise.  

"This study adds to the current strong body of evidence which demonstrates that eating nuts daily, including almonds, confers health benefits and supports long-term health. Nuts deliver many good attributes in a small, satisfying package," Dr. Karen Lapsley, Chief Scientific Officer for the Almond Board of California, said in a news release.

Nuts are rich in many nutrients, including omega-3 fatty acids (help manage irregular heart rhythms), fibre (lower bad cholesterol) and vitamin E (prevent development of plaques in arteries, heart attack).

Many studies in the past have shown unlimited health benefits associated with eating nuts.

Earlier in July, researchers reported in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Medicine that eating nuts regularly helped cut the risk of cancer and cardiovascular diseases. In September, a team of researchers reported that daily consumption of walnuts helped prevent development of diabetes and heart diseases.