Long term nut consumption is associated with reduced risk of coronary heart disease and better cognitive function. This study examined supplementing habitual diets with almonds or carbohydrate-rich snack foods (providing 15% energy) on biomarkers of cardiovascular and metabolic health, mood and cognitive performance. Participants (overweight/obese, 50-80 years) were randomised to an almond-enriched diet (AED) or isocaloric nut-free diet (NFD) for 12 weeks. Body weight, blood lipids, glucose, insulin, blood pressure (BP), arterial stiffness, cell adhesions molecules, C reactive protein (CRP), mood, and cognitive performance (working memory primary outcome), dietary profiles and energy intake/expenditure were measured at baseline and Week 12 in 128 participants (n = 63 AED, n = 65 NFD). Compared with NFD, AED was associated with altered macro and micronutrient profiles, but no differences in energy intake or expenditure. The AED significantly reduced triglycerides and SBP but there were no other changes in cardiometabolic biomarkers, mood, or cognitive performance. The inclusion of almonds in the diet improves aspects of cardiometabolic health without affecting cognitive performance or mood in overweight/obese adults.Nutrients 2020, 12, 1180 2 of 18 cognitive performance [7]. Nut consumption represents one aspect of nutrition with wide ranging benefits that may counteract these negative influences, including reducing oxidative damage and inflammation, and improving vascular responsiveness [8][9][10]. Improvements in vascular function associated with nut intake are proposed to not only improve cardiovascular health but also contribute to improving cognitive function [11]. Clinical trials have found improvements in vascular health following consumption of walnuts [12], hazelnuts [13], and almonds [14], but this has not been a consistent finding in all studies, possibly due to differences in methods of assessing vascular health, differences in populations evaluated, dose, or length of the period of consumption [9,10].Furthermore, there is now emerging literature to support nut consumption being associated with enhanced cognitive function or reduced cognitive decline [15,16]. Key nutrients found in nuts (and almonds in particular), including monounsaturated fat [17] and vitamin E [18] have been associated with reduced cognitive decline, and it has been proposed that regular nut consumption may prevent or slow the progressing of age-related brain dysfunction [16,19]. Prospective/longitudinal studies have demonstrated a positive association between nut consumption and cognitive performance [20][21][22] with a greater effect in those with the highest nut consumption [21]. In addition, prospective cohort studies reported improved cognitive performance and a reduced incidence of cognitive decline when the Mediterranean dietary pattern (with nuts as a key component) was adhered to [23,24].There have been mixed results from randomized controlled trials assessing the effects of nut intake on cognition. A 12 week weight loss in...
Vascular stiffness can be measured using numerous techniques including assessments of central haemodynamics, aortic arterial stiffness, and indices of aortic wave reflection and endothelial dilatation. Impaired vascular function is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Epidemiological studies indicate that regular nut consumption reduces CVD risk, with one of the proposed mechanisms being via improvements in vascular function. This narrative review summarizes the evidence from a systematic search of the literature of the effects of tree nut and peanut consumption on measures of vascular function excluding flow mediated dilatation. A total of 16 studies were identified, with a mix of acute controlled studies (n = 3), an uncontrolled pre/post chronic study (n = 1), chronic crossover (n = 7) and parallel studies (n = 5). Nut types tested included almonds, peanuts, pine nuts, pistachios and walnuts, with dose and length of supplementation varying greatly across studies. Most studies (n = 13) included individuals at risk for CVD, according to various criteria. Findings were inconsistent, with ten studies reporting no significant changes in vascular function and six studies (one acute and five chronic studies) reporting improvements in at least one measure of vascular function. In summary, nuts have the potential to improve vascular function and future studies should consider the population, dose and length of nut supplementation as well as suitability of the different vascular function techniques.
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