Effects of Consuming Almonds on Insulin Sensitivity and Other Cardiometabolic Health Markers in Adults With Prediabetes

Abstract

Objective: This study was designed to assess the effects of replacing high-carbohydrate (CHO) foods with raw almonds on insulin sensitivity and cardiometabolic health markers in overweight or obese adults with prediabetes. Method: This randomized crossover study consisted of two 6-week dietary intervention periods, separated by a ! 4-week washout. Subjects incorporated 1.5 oz of raw almonds twice daily or isocaloric CHO-based foods into their diets, with instructions to maintain body weight. Dietary intakes as well as insulin sensitivity, CHO metabolism indices, lipoprotein lipids and particles, and inflammatory markers were assessed. Results: Thirty-three subjects (17 male, 16 female), mean age 48.3 ± 2.2 years and body mass index 30.5 ± 0.7 kg/m 2 , provided evaluable data. Compared to CHO, almonds resulted in significantly (p < 0.01) higher intakes of protein, fat (unsaturated fatty acids), fiber, and magnesium and significantly (p < 0.001) lower intakes of CHO and sugars. No differences were observed between diet conditions for changes from baseline in the insulin sensitivity index from a short intravenous glucose tolerance test or other indices of glucose homeostasis. No significant differences were observed in biomarkers of cardiovascular risk except that the CHO intervention led to a shift toward a higher concentration of cholesterol in small, dense low-density lipoprotein subfraction 3+4 (LDL3 þ 4) particles (p ¼ 0.024 vs almonds). Conclusions: Intake of 3.0 oz/d raw almonds, vs energy-matched CHO foods, improved the dietary nutrient profile, but did not significantly affect insulin sensitivity and most markers of cardiometabolic health in overweight and obese men and women with prediabetes.

A Comprehensive Review of Almond Clinical Trials on Weight Measures, Metabolic Health Biomarkers and Outcomes, and the Gut Microbiota

“…Neither snacking on almonds nor cookies altered body or body fat mass, waist circumference (WC), or BMI, compared to baseline. However, the overall nutritional status was improved with almond snacking by decreasing % energy Palacios et al [48], in a crossover RCT, randomized 54 adults with prediabetes (48% women, mean age 48 years, mean BMI 31, 61% completers) into their usual diet plus snacks consisting of 84 g raw almonds/day (480 kcals) divided into two servings, or an isocaloric variety of carbohydrate snacks including baked chips, pretzels, dried mangos, pudding, cookies, mini-bagel, or rice cakes for 6 weeks. The subjects were instructed to use food substitution in their usual diet during each diet arm to maintain baseline energy intake.…”

“…An almond pre-meal 18.5 g dose before each meal significantly reduced body fat mass and visceral fat compared to cookies between baseline and 8 weeks [42]. In RCTs of 4-12 weeks duration, there were generally no or limited differences in body mass or composition measures between almond and carbohydrate-rich snacks [41,[44][45][46][47][48][49]. however, in RCTs of ≥16 weeks, almond snacking tended to improve both body fat and lean mass compared to high-carbohydrate control snacks [42,43].…”

“…Ten RCTs evaluated the effects of "snacking" on 50-84 g almonds/day compared to isocaloric carbohydrate-based snacks consisting of cereal bars, cookies, crackers, minimuffins, biscuits, potato chips, or a variety of snack choices, including low-fat potato chips, bagels, rice cakes, pretzels, vanilla cookies, dried mango slices, or pudding cups, with the usual diet in individuals ranging from 18 to >60 years for 4-20 weeks to examine changes in hunger, satiety, energy intake, and body weight and composition [40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49]. Snacking on almonds was more effective than snacking on savory crackers for acutely reducing the overall hunger drive, but there was no overall 24 h difference in energy intake [40].…”

Nutritional quality of formulated complementary diet from defatted almond seed, yellow maize and quality protein maize flours

“…Almond seeds contain about 21.2% protein with 30 g serving of almonds providing 6.3 g of protein (Ahren et al 2005; United States Department of Agriculture, USDA 2018) with lots of phytosterols and ranked number two after cashew nuts in tree nut (Shakerardekani et al 2013). Studies had shown that besides high nutritive values, almonds provide varied healthful effects like cardiometabolic, modulation of blood glucose fluctuations, reduction in postprandial plasma lipids and free radicals scavengers (Tan and Mattes 2013;Esquius et al 2020;Palacios et al 2020;Semidei et al 2020).…”

Effect of Almond Consumption on Metabolic Risk Factors—Glucose Metabolism, Hyperinsulinemia, Selected Markers of Inflammation: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Adolescents and Young Adults

“…Almonds have been shown to influence insulin and HOMA IR. The monounsaturated fatty acid content of almonds may play a favorable role in insulin resistance ( 34 , 36 ).…”