dteresa wrote: It looks like you were saying nuts could be a healthful addition to the diet and you cited studies that showed lower mortality rates in those consuming nuts.
Yes, and as described in the links above and here...
viewtopic.php?f=22&t=40295... this is an association and not a cause and effect and is also marker of a more healthy lifestyle and dietary pattern.
Those who eat more nuts tend to be better educated, have higher incomes, are more active, drink less, smoke less, eat more fruits and vegetables and weigh less.
As the authors themselves stated...
"it is not possible to conclude that the observed inverse association between nut consumption and mortality reflects cause and effect"And, as I showed in the above links, the healthy lifestyle pattern, with or without nuts, has a much more powerful impact, then any one single food.
In some of the studies, those with the mortality benefit also include olive oil and non-fat dairy, yet should you include those too? or are they also just other markers of the overall healthy lifestyle and dietary pattern?
dteresa wrote:But recently in a video you showed that the nuts were replacing muffins in one study.
I evaluated this study because it was being used as "proof" that there was a benefit in replacing carbohydrates (ncluding healthy unrefined minimally processed intact whole grains and starchy vegetables), with nuts. However, that is not what this study showed. First, the nuts were used as a replacement for a fairly unhealthy muffin. Second, the impact of two oz of nuts, though reported as significant, only dropped A1c from 7.2 to 6.9 and glucose from like 131 to 129.
dteresa wrote:So I am under the impression from that that nuts are only healthful if they are replacing muffins or some other snack type food but will not necessarily have a positive effect on diabetes or heart disease or mortality if just added to a wfpb no fat diet, which is what I am eating now.
What matters most is overall dietary patterns. As I showed here, does chicken cause cancer or does chicken prevent it?
viewtopic.php?f=22&t=28191&p=310350#p310350Understanding this issue of perspective and context, may be the single most important issue to your health and not whether you eat walnuts or not. The other is effect size...
viewtopic.php?f=22&t=28413#p284034viewtopic.php?f=22&t=28413&start=15#p377392dteresa wrote: I am not at all fond of nuts, except for salted roasted pistachios which I cannot eat in moderation so I stay away from them.
You are not alone. Many people find themselves in the same spot and for that reason, need to be very careful if & when including them.
dteresa wrote:But if nuts will improve my health on this diet after twenty years of diabetes and two years from an MI, then I will add them to my diet.
The question is, will adding more of a food considered to be healthy, make my already extremely healthy diet, healthier?
That is the whole point of this discussion, which I hope you take the time to read.
viewtopic.php?f=22&t=28413However, let me also give you another perspective, lets say, you believe it to be true, that there is something unique in nuts/seeds that without it, you may not do as well. So, the question is, what is that? Most all the benefits we know of are due to certain aspects of nuts that are readily available on a better per calorie basis in many of the other foods recommended. Nuts/seeds are not very high on the overall nutrient density scale or on the nutrient density scale of any single nutrient.
So, lets look at it this way, if you were living a healthy lifestyle in all areas and consuming an excellent diet and wanted to added in a few nuts or seeds to get the biggest nutritional bang for the lowest calorie buck, which would it be.
If you have seen my full nuts talk, I walk you through this process and the 3 that come up scoring the highest are walnuts, flax seed and chia seed. So, let's compare them on several key issues so you can choose the best one. This comparison is based on equaling them all out to 1.6 grams of Omega 3's, which is the upper level of the recommended AI.
(excuse the formatting)
Nutrient - - - Flax Seed - - Chia Seed - - WalnutsWeight - - - - 7 grams - - - 9 grams - - - - 18 grams
Calories - - - 37 calories - -44 calories- - -118 calories
Fat - - - - - - -3 grams - - - -2.8 grams - - 11.7 grams
Sat Fat - - - - .3 grams - - - .3 grams - - -- 1.1 grams
Omega 6 - - - .4 grams - - - .5 grams - - - 6.9 grams
Omega 3 - - - 1.6 grams - - - 1.6 grams - -1.6 grams
6/3 ratio - - - .25 - - - - - - - .32 - - - - - - 4.15
Fiber - - - - - - 1.9 grams - --3.1 grams - - 1.2 grams
*ND - - - - - - - -- 3.8 - - -- - - 3.4 - - - - - - 2.4 - - -
*ND - Nutrient Density based on NutritionData.com scale of 1-5
While this may definitely fall under the category of "minutia, but since you did ask, from my perspective & based on the above analysis, the flax and the chia clearly win.
And, since you also mentioned that it is hard for you to limit some foods, let's also add in a "binge factor."
Of the three, which ones do you think you are more likely to overeat/binge on?
I know of many who can not eat just a few walnuts, but have known few who overeat on ground flax of chia seeds
Unless that is, they make them into chia pudding or flax muffins
In Health
Jeff