Do Nuts Help or Hurt People with Diabetes?

Crazy! Can nuts aid in the prevention of diabetes? Can nuts aid in the management of diabetes? Are almonds a nutritious snack or are they merely trendy? Should you eat nuts as part of your diet? The short answer is “yes,” but before you answer too quickly, keep reading as there are some conditions that apply.

Table of Contents

What are Nuts?

Nuts are the seeds of many different plants, enclosed in a hard shell. Tree nuts is the popular name for these nuts. According to botany, nuts are also those whose shells must crack apart in order for the nuts inside to fall out. For the purposes of this piece, however, the more general uses of nuts—such as those with hard shells that must be cracked, like hazelnuts and chestnuts—as well as other nuts that are actually considered seeds and legumes, like peanuts, are mentioned. Here are a few of the more popular nuts:

Filberts/Hazelnuts
Brazil nuts
Almonds
Nuts
Walnuts
Almonds
Pine Nuts
Cashews
Nutty macadamia
pistachios
Cocos
Acorns

Nuts are included in the Protein Foods Group of the USDA’s “Choose My Plate” program, which aims to assist individuals in making healthful food choices. Nuts also contain high levels of fiber, heart-healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, heart-healthy omega-3 fats, vitamins, and minerals. Additionally rich in antioxidants are nuts. It should be noted that nuts contain a lot of calories.

But even though you should be watching your calorie intake, you should also keep in mind that you are getting a lot of good nutrition in addition to your calories and not a lot of sugar, cholesterol, or bad fats (the kind of saturated fat that can clog up arteries).

To reap the health advantages of nuts without having to shell out a lot of calories, take them as a mid-meal snack and cut back on other high-protein foods like meat as needed.

Facts About Nutritious Foods

One handful (about six to nine Brazil nuts, twenty to fourteen almonds, eighteen to twenty hazelnuts, nine to fourteen walnuts, eighteen to twenty pecans, around fifty pistachios, sixteen to eighteen cashews, and one hundred and fifty pine nuts) constitutes one ounce of nuts.Nuts can make up 1-2 of the 5-6.5 ounces of protein that the USDA advises an adult consume each day. By the way, the USDA refers to something other than “serving” as a “ounce equivalent.

Almonds

Although almonds are now mostly obtained from California, almond trees are thought to have been planted and harvested for the first time in China and Central Asia. An ounce of almonds contains:

160 calories
1 gram of saturated fat, 9 gram of monounsaturated fat, and 3.5 gram of polyunsaturated fat make up the 14 grams of fat.
Potassium: 208 milligrams (6% DV)
6 g of carbohydrates and 4 g of dietary fiber
Six grams of protein
Vitamins: B vitamins (thiamin, folate, and B6) and vitamin E (35% DV)
Minerals: manganese, magnesium, copper, iron, zinc, and selenium
No sodium, no cholesterol

Walnuts

Considered to be one of the most ancient tree nuts, walnuts have been consumed for approximately 10,000 years. Once more, California is the main producer of walnuts nowadays. OZ of walnuts contains:

190 calories
18g of fat, of which 1.5 g are saturated fat, 13 g are polyunsaturated fats, and 2.5 g are omega-3 and alpha linolenic acid.
One milligram (5%DV) of sodium
125 mg of potassium (4% DV)
4 g of carbohydrates and 2 g of dietary fiber
4 g of protein
Vitamins: B vitamins, thiamin, folate, and B6
Minerals: manganese, magnesium, calcium, zinc, copper, iron, and selenium
Absent cholesterol

Brazil Nuts

Brazil nuts are produced today mostly in Bolivia, Brazil, and Peru, but they also grow in the Amazon jungle. The fatigued and malnourished Spanish soldiers discovered in 1569 that the minerals in Brazil nuts allowed for a quick and full recovery. Brazil nuts, ounce for ounce, have:

190 calories
19g of fat, of which 4.5 g are saturated, 7 g are monounsaturated, and 7 g are polyunsaturated.
1 mg of sodium (5% DV)
187 mg of potassium (4% DV)
3 g of carbohydrates and 2 g of dietary fiber
4 g of protein
Vitamins: B vitamins, thiamin and folate
Minerals: manganese, magnesium, selenium, copper, iron, zinc, and phosphorus.
Brazil nuts provide about eight times the daily value (DV) of selenium, making them one of the best sources of this essential mineral for metabolic reactions that have anti-inflammatory properties.
Absent cholesterol

Cashews

Cashews come from the Amazon jungle as well. Cashews are currently grown in Mozambique, Vietnam, Brazil, and India. In an ounce, cashews contain:

160 calories
13g of fat, of which 3 g are saturated, 8 g are monounsaturated, and 2 g are polyunsaturated.
5 mg of sodium (0%DV)
160 mg of potassium (4% DV)
9 g of carbohydrates and 1 g of dietary fiber
4 g of protein
Vitamins: B vitamins, thiamin, folate, and B6
Minerals: manganese, magnesium, selenium, copper, iron, zinc, and phosphorus

Hazelnuts

Another extremely old crop that originated in Asia and spread to Europe and the Americas is hazelnuts. The main manufacturers of today are the US, Turkey, Italy, and Spain. The Pacific Northwest is where most hazelnuts are imported into the US. Filberts are another name for hazelnuts. An ounce of almonds contains:

180 calories
17 grams of fat, of which 1.5 grams are saturated fat, 13 grams are monounsaturated fat, and 2 grams are polyunsaturated fat.
193 mg of potassium (6% DV)
5 g of carbohydrates and 3 g of dietary fiber
4 g of protein
Vitamins: B vitamins (B6, folate, thiamin); vitamin E (20% DV)
Minerals include manganese, magnesium, copper, iron, zinc, and selenium.
With 90%DV, hazelnuts are a great source of manganese. Many metabolic processes that are anti-inflammatory and antioxidant require the trace element manganese.
neither sodium nor cholesterol

Macadamia Nuts

Before someone discovered the nut, macadamias were planted as attractive trees.The rest is history, as they say! In one ounce, macadamia nuts contain:

200 calories
22 g of fat, of which 3.5 g are saturated, 17 g are monounsaturated, and 0.5 g are polyunsaturated.
One milligram of sodium (0%DV)
103 mg of potassium (2% DV)
4 g of carbohydrates and 2 g of dietary fiber
2 g of protein
Vitamins: B complex (thiamin, B6)
Minerals: manganese, magnesium, selenium, copper, iron, zinc, and phosphorus.
Absent cholesterol

Pecans

Perhaps because pecans are native to the Americas, they are well-known in Southern pecan pies. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson also planted pecan trees; in fact, it’s said that Washington always carried a few pecans in his pockets! Pecans, one ounce, contain:

200 calories
20g of fat, of which 2 g are saturated, 12 g are monounsaturated, and 6 g are polyunsaturated.
116 mg of potassium (4% DV)
4 g of carbohydrates and 3 g of dietary fiber
3 g of protein
Vitamins: B vitamins (thiamin, folate, and B6) and vitamin E (2% DV)
Minerals: manganese, magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, zinc, copper, iron, and selenium.
neither sodium nor cholesterol

Pine Nuts

In addition to being a mainstay of Roman legions, pine nuts were also an essential component of Greek and Roman cuisine. Other names for pine nuts include pinon, pignolia, and Indian nuts. Mediterranean pine nuts are not as flavorful as Chinese pine nuts. Pine nuts, one ounce, contain:

190 calories
20 g of fat, of which 1.5 g are saturated, 5.5 g are monounsaturated, and 10 g are polyunsaturated.
169 mg of potassium (4% DV)
4 g of carbohydrates and 1 g of dietary fiber
4 g of protein
Vitamins: B vitamins (thiamin, folate); vitamin E (20% DV)
Minerals: manganese, magnesium, copper, zinc, iron, and phosphorus.
neither sodium nor cholesterol

Pistachio Nuts

Do you recall your fingertips being red after consuming pistachios in the vintage movie theaters? That’s right—they’re not really red! That was a dye used to create them, or at least what we can only speculate was created. They are old, though: over 9000 years ago, the Sumerians and Babylonians were the first people to plant pistachios, making them one of the oldest trees known. Nowadays, California is the primary source of pistachios. Pistachios, ounce for ounce, have:

160 calories
Fat: 13g, of which 4g are polyunsaturated, 7g are monounsaturated, and 1.5g are saturated fat.
285 mg of potassium (8% DV)
8 g of carbohydrates and 3 g of dietary fiber
Six grams of protein
Vitamins: B vitamins (B6, folate, thiamin); vitamins E, A, and C
Minerals include magnesium, manganese, copper, iron, zinc, phosphorus, and selenium.
No cholesterol and only 2 mg of salt

Nuts Contains Plenty of Antioxidants

Beyond these widely reported nutritional facts, nuts are rich in plant sterols, which are known to promote heart health, plant proanthocyanidins, which are also known to be antioxidants and anti-inflammatory agents, and plant flavonoids, which are antioxidants and anti-inflammatory agents. Additionally, flavonoids are being researched as anti-cancer medications for both prevention and therapy.

However, are nuts healthy for a diabetic meal plan?

Overall, yes, nuts may and should be a part of your diet plan. You also shouldn’t be too concerned with the number of calories in nuts, in case you were concerned. There are several reasons to avoid obsessing over caloric content. Firstly, these are not “empty” calories; rather, they are nutritious calories. Second, a sizable amount of those calories come from good fats, which can lower the risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, and death in general.

Furthermore, a recent extensive study—a meta-analysis of numerous other studies—showed that eating tree nuts can help diabetics better control their blood sugar levels. The fact that a large number of the included studies were small and of low quality hampered the study, but that is precisely the benefit of a meta-analysis.

A meta-analysis is intended to be a statistical method for “rooting out” the underlying information and “smoothing out” imperfect data. Including walnuts in the diet lowers the risk of diabetes in women, according to other studies.

Not all nuts are made equal; the most researched nuts in relation to diabetes are pistachios and walnuts. Pistachios have really been demonstrated to reduce the risk of diabetes in people who have already been diagnosed with prediabetes. You shouldn’t worry about which particular nut is ideal because they are all generally excellent to take in your diet. Instead, you should probably incorporate mixed nuts or just your favorite nuts into your diet.

What then is the threshold? The majority of research has examined the advantages of consuming one handful of nuts daily. You can experiment with other tree nuts or simply use mixed nuts, but you can’t go wrong with walnuts and pistachios. Remember that a handful of nuts only contains an ounce of nuts and less than 200 calories.

This should be fairly simple for most people to include in their diets. The conventional view is that eating a handful of nuts every day has more advantages for blood pressure, heart health, and diabetes glycemic management than it does for calories. Go crazy now!

Please share any recipes you may have that use nuts in the comments section below.

DiabetesCouncils Article | Reviewed by Dr. Christine Traxler MD on June 10, 2020