Grown in abundance in Kashmir, walnuts are the next big thing in the healthy foods list now. A study carried out at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has found that walnuts greatly help in keeping diabetes at bay. Eating walnuts may cut the diabetes risk by half, the research that examined over 34000 adult Americans and their dietary habits, has found. The researchers assessed this population for diabetes using common laboratory measurements including fasting plasma glucose and haemoglobin A1c. The average intake of walnut was 1.5 tablespoon a day. The researchers found that increasing the consumption of walnuts to 28 grams a day (4 tablespoons) was associated with a 47% lower prevalence of type 2 diabetes. Walnuts are a rich source of recommended polyunsaturated fats that also include plant-based omega-3 fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid. The researchers, led by Dr Lenore Arab, have concluded, as per a report that “both among individuals with known diabetes and those diagnosed based on elevated diabetes blood markers, the prevalence of individuals with diabetes was significantly lower among the walnut consumers.” Walnut consumers, the report said, showed lower risk for diabetes compared with non‐nut consumers based on self‐report. Dr Lenore Arab of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA said, “These findings provide more evidence for food-based guidance to help reduce the risk for diabetes.” Regardless of age, gender, race, education, BMI, and amount of physical activity, those adults who reported consuming walnuts showed a lower risk for type 2-diabetes compared to those who did not consume any nuts. In 2015, Dr Arab’s team demonstrated how consuming walnuts helps in improving cognitive functions. “The hope is to identify healthful actionable approaches to slow cognitive decline across the population and through minor changes in dietary intake to lessen the social and economic burden of cognitive impairment,” the researchers wrote while referring to the study. Walnuts have also been shown to decrease Low Density Lipids (LDL) due to their monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids. This decrease, as per British Journal of Nutrition lowers the risk of coronary heart disease. There also is scientific evidence to prove that walnuts help in lowering oxidative stress and inflammation. Doctors and researchers have recommended inclusion of all nuts, especially walnuts in the daily diet to avail the wonderful health benefits of this brain shaped dried fruit.
Walnuts fight diabetes efficiently: Study
