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Almonds May Help in Weight Loss

Almond Diet Sheds More Pounds Than Low-Fat, High-Carb Diet

By MannWebMD Medical News

Reviewed By , MDon Friday, November 07, 2003

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Nov. 7, 2003 -- Nut lovers, rejoice: New research suggests another good reason to sprinkle some almonds on your salad or toss a handful into your morning cereal. Almonds may help you shed those unwanted pounds.

Researchers found that people eating a diet rich in almonds lost more weight than those on a high-carb diet with the same number of calories. The finding goes against the traditional belief that a calorie is a calorie is a calorie.

The findings also support those from a recent study that showed people on a low-carb diet lost more weight than those on a low-fat diet -- even when the low-carb dieters ate 300 more calories a day.

In the new study, researchers followed 65 overweight and obese adults -- 70% of whom had type 2 diabetes - for 24 weeks. One group ate a 1,000 calorie/day liquid diet supplemented with 3 oz of almonds (384 additional calories). The other group ate the same liquid diet but instead supplemented with a mix of complex carbohydrates (such as wheat crackers, baked potatoes, or air-popped popcorn). The two diets were equal in calories and protein but differed in fat. Besides the liquid diet, they could also have salads with lemon juice or vinegar dressing.

The almond diet contained 39% total fat including 25% from heart-healthy monounsaturated fats, while the non-almond diet contained 18% total fat, 5% from monounsaturated fats.

The study appears in the new issue of the International Journal of Obesity.

Participants in the almond diet saw an 18% reduction in weight and body mass index (BMI) -- a measure of weight based on height -- compared with an 11% reduction in the non-almond dieters. Additionally, waist circumference in the almond group decreased by 14%, compared with a 9% decrease in the non-almond group.

Systolic blood pressure, the upper number in blood pressure readings, dropped by 11% in almond eaters and stayed the same in the non-almond eaters.

Good Diabetes News

Both groups had improvement in their type 2 diabetes with lower blood sugar and insulin levels. But those on the almond diet were able to lower their need for diabetes medication more so than the non-almond dieters.

"It seemed as though 96% of participants with type 2 diabetes were able to be well-controlled on less medication as compared to 50% of in the [non-almond] group," she says.

Study researcher Wien, DrPH, RD, CDE, a clinical dietitian and research fellow at City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, Calif., calls this finding "exciting." "The almonds definitely had an impact on blood sugar."

She says that a side effect of some diabetes medication is increased hunger, "so the faster one can get off of medications during weight loss, the better because when you take away something creating hunger behind the scenes, it can lead to greater success in weight-loss effort."

"When patients would come to me and tell me they wanted crunchy food with texture, I used to suggest crunchy vegetables. So this study was almost a feasibility study in that I didn't know whether nuts would be satisfying and meet their needs [without sacrificing their waistline] -- they did," Wien says.

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