Study: Walnuts Support Lifelong, Heart-Healthy Eating

Key TakeawaysA new study found that regularly eating walnuts was associated with better cardiovascular and overall health later in life.Walnuts are an excellent source of key nutrients like plant-based omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, manganese, magnesium, and copper.The findings reinforce that walnuts can be an easy and accessible food choice for young and middle-aged adults working toward a heart-healthy diet.

Key Takeaways

A new study found that regularly eating walnuts was associated with better cardiovascular and overall health later in life.Walnuts are an excellent source of key nutrients like plant-based omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, manganese, magnesium, and copper.The findings reinforce that walnuts can be an easy and accessible food choice for young and middle-aged adults working toward a heart-healthy diet.

A new study suggests that a heart-healthy diet can start with eating a handful ofwalnutsand that the nuts may reinforce healthy habits throughout life.

Research has already shown that walnuts have heart-health benefits, including helping reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

However, few studies have looked at whether there are long-term links between eating walnuts or other nuts—or eating no nuts at all—andcardiovascular disease(CVD) risk.

To explore the possible long-term health benefits, researchers from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health looked for links between nut consumption andCVD risk factorsto see if walnuts would come out on top.

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Cracking the Case on Nuts and Health

For the new study, which was published inNutrition, Metabolism, and Cardiovascular Disease,the researchers looked at data from about 3,000 young adults aged 18 to 30 years old who were enrolled in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study.

The participants were mostly Black and White and included a balance of men and women. They came from several locations across the United States—from Birmingham, Alabama to Oakland, California.

The participants’ diet histories helped researchers put them into categories based on their nut consumption:

The average intake of walnuts during the study was about 3/4 of an ounce a day, and the intake of other nuts among the walnut consumers and the other nut consumers was about 1 and 1/2 ounces a day.

Then, the researchers looked at the participants’ heart disease risk factors, including their dietary intake, smoking status, body composition, blood pressure, plasma lipids (e.g., triglycerides), fasting blood glucose, and insulin concentrations.

Eating More Walnuts Could Help You Live Longer

Are Walnut Eaters Healthier?

The results showed the potential positive effects of eating nuts (including walnuts) when you’re young. After following up with participants after 30 years, the researchers noted that:

What Makes Walnuts Wonderful?

Lyn Steffen, PhD, MPH, RD, an author of the study and a Professor of Epidemiology and Community Health at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, told Verywell that the study is one of the longest to suggest that regularly eating walnuts is linked to better health later in life.

“[The findings] reinforce that walnuts might be an easy and accessible food choice to improve a variety of heart disease risk factors when eaten in young to middle adulthood,” Steffen said.

The study also backs up the latestDietary Guidelines for Americans, which recommend incorporating nuts into your diet.

“A daily one-ounce serving—or roughly a handful—of walnuts provides a wide range of beneficial nutrients,” Steffen said. “Walnuts are the only nut that provides an excellent source of theomega-3 alpha-linolenic acid(ALA).”

Walnuts are also a source of key nutrients that support our heart and overall health, including fiber, manganese, magnesium, copper, iron, calcium, zinc, potassium, vitamin B6, folate, and thiamin.

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Easy Ways to Add Walnuts to Your Diet

If the results of the latest study are motivating you to include more walnuts into your diet, there are plenty of easy and creative ways to do so:

If walnuts aren’t for you, that’s OK. While they don’t have as many ALA omega-3 fatty acids as walnuts, other nuts likealmonds,pecans, andpistachiosdo provide key nutrients that can support your overall health.

What This Means For YouIncluding walnuts in an overall heart-healthy diet can be a bridge to better health as we age. If you don’t like walnuts, including any nut that you do like can offer health benefits over eating no nuts.

What This Means For You

Including walnuts in an overall heart-healthy diet can be a bridge to better health as we age. If you don’t like walnuts, including any nut that you do like can offer health benefits over eating no nuts.

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3 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Yi SY, Steffen LM, Zhou X, Shikany JM, Jacobs DR Jr.Association of nut consumption with CVD risk factors in young to middle-aged adults: the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study.Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2022;32(10):P2321-P2329. doi:10.1016/j.numecd.2022.07.013Liu X, Guasch-Ferré M, Drouin-Chartier JP, et al.Changes in nut consumption and subsequent cardiovascular disease risk among US men and women: 3 large prospective cohort studies.J Am Heart Assoc. 2020;9(7):e013877. doi:10.1161/JAHA.119.013877USDA: Food Data Central.Nuts, walnuts, English.

3 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Yi SY, Steffen LM, Zhou X, Shikany JM, Jacobs DR Jr.Association of nut consumption with CVD risk factors in young to middle-aged adults: the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study.Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2022;32(10):P2321-P2329. doi:10.1016/j.numecd.2022.07.013Liu X, Guasch-Ferré M, Drouin-Chartier JP, et al.Changes in nut consumption and subsequent cardiovascular disease risk among US men and women: 3 large prospective cohort studies.J Am Heart Assoc. 2020;9(7):e013877. doi:10.1161/JAHA.119.013877USDA: Food Data Central.Nuts, walnuts, English.

Yi SY, Steffen LM, Zhou X, Shikany JM, Jacobs DR Jr.Association of nut consumption with CVD risk factors in young to middle-aged adults: the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study.Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2022;32(10):P2321-P2329. doi:10.1016/j.numecd.2022.07.013Liu X, Guasch-Ferré M, Drouin-Chartier JP, et al.Changes in nut consumption and subsequent cardiovascular disease risk among US men and women: 3 large prospective cohort studies.J Am Heart Assoc. 2020;9(7):e013877. doi:10.1161/JAHA.119.013877USDA: Food Data Central.Nuts, walnuts, English.

Liu X, Guasch-Ferré M, Drouin-Chartier JP, et al.Changes in nut consumption and subsequent cardiovascular disease risk among US men and women: 3 large prospective cohort studies.J Am Heart Assoc. 2020;9(7):e013877. doi:10.1161/JAHA.119.013877

USDA: Food Data Central.Nuts, walnuts, English.

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Key Takeaways#

Cracking the Case on Nuts and Health#

Are Walnut Eaters Healthier?#

What Makes Walnuts Wonderful?#

Easy Ways to Add Walnuts to Your Diet#

What This Means For You#