Are Nuts Good Or Bad?

[patric46]

ive been hearing in the media ALOT recently about the health benifits of nuts particularly walnuts...every cardiologist it seems is raving on about how healthy they are... this is very confusing because one serving( a small handfull) contains 20mgs. of fat (but only 1.5 staurated fat)..i know thats there is "good" fat and "bad" fat...still that seems alot for those of us who are watching our fat intake and trying to lower our numbers.. i used to eat alot of cashews and that was around the time i got high cholestrol numbers so i stopped eating them....and my numbers did go down..but i made other dietery changes so i dont know if that had anything to do with it..any one have any input? im all for doing anything thats heart healthy and good for the body but i certainly dont want to raise my numbers.........btw i love the way they taste

[housemum]

I've heard that nuts are good fat. Eat all you want, but their calorie intake is high.

I especially love almonds and am eating more to get my cholesterol down, Also taking flax and fish oil.

[zip2play]

patric,

I think nuts are ok in small quantities and some are actually good for us (especially WALNUTS). Unfortunately, they are a high fat food (that 20 mg. figure you give is more likely 20 GRAMS) and thus, contribute to out spare tires and "orchestras and balconies."
Eat them in EXTREME moderation if you are trying to control either your weight or your fat intake.

I find it easier to just never have them around because the taste is so good that I can easily pig out on them. A serving is an ounce and there are few people who will weigh out an ounce and stop there (A small handful is often considerably more.)

[Magpiezoe]

Hello, They are supposed to help lower cholesterol; however, they work best when substituted for meat. I also agree with the small quantities. The thing that I have discovered is that, I still have to count them as a fat. I was trying the flax seed idea to help keep cholesterol low, (2 Tbs. ground flax seed per day.) but it rasied both my LDL and my HDL so I have to lay off the seeds. (It raised my LDL to 130, which is not good and didn't raise the HDL enough to compensate for the LDL.) I guess it has something to do with my genes. My body just doesn't know how to process fat, so I have to count all fat. My sister on the other hand does quiet well with Cheerios. (It's the oats in them that helps.) She discovered if she stops eating her Cheerios, her cholesterol goes back up...eat the Cheerios and it goes down again. (Amazing!)

[patric46]

intresting to see that this post has been added to...zip your absolutly correct..it should have read grams...btw the spare tire,orchestras,and balconys line was pretty funny...i dont have a problem with calories because im slightly underweight (always have been) so thats never a problem, and now i watch my calories from fat BIG TIME ...but im trying to raise my hdh without raising my ldl or total (if thats possible, my ldl is 153 and my doctors gonna give me hell if it goes up) and i hear walnuts or almonds can raise the hdl... im also taking 3 twin lab fish oil caps a day so im hoping with the combination to get the hdl to rise considerbly to balence the ldl..................................... ............................ my total is 209 and my trigs are 78 so im hoping with those numbers and a high hdl to stay off of statins..my mom takes 10mg pravachol a day and does well with it so i dont have anything against statins but id like to try and get my numbers in good shape without them if i can..................................... ........................................ ........................................ .............i buy a 1 pound bag of shelled walnuts for about $4.99 in my local supermarket and just make it last 16 days..its a very small handful like about 8 or 9 small nuts...moderation is never really a problem with me once i stick my mind to something...