Anyone promoting fat-packed nuts as health food would have to be, well, crazy. Right? Not so fast. A growing body of scientific evidence is giving nuts (the seeds or dried fruits of trees) new respectability. Here's the scoop.

By Julia Califano 

Q: I've been reading that nuts can reduce the risk of heart disease. What's the story? 
A: This association was first detected six years ago in a large-scale study at Loma Linda University in California. Researchers examined the diet records of over 31,000 Seventh-Day Adventists (who eat a varied, predominantly vegetarian diet) and found that those who ate nuts often--five or more times a week--were half as likely to have a fatal heart attack as Adventists who rarely or never ate nuts. Scientists at several institutions (including Loma Linda, the University of Florida at Gainesville and the University of Hawaii, Honolulu) are showing that incorporating two to three ounces of walnuts, peanuts or macadamias each day into a low-fat diet can reduce "bad" LDL cholesterol that can clog arteries. 

Q: How do nuts control cholesterol? 
A: No one knows for sure. There may be a correlation with their rich stores of cholesterol-busting mono- and polyunsaturated fats and soluble and insoluble fiber. Some nuts, especially walnuts, are also good sources of heart-healthful Omega-3 fatty acids. In addition, government researchers have recently discovered that peanuts contain resveratrol, a beneficial component of red wine. One ounce of peanuts delivers nearly half the resveratrol of an ounce of red wine. Experts say other nuts probably contain resveratrol, too. 

Q: Are there more benefits to nuts? A: Plenty. Whether you eat them raw, roasted, stir-fried or toasted, nuts are nuggets of concentrated nutrients. Ounce for ounce, peanuts and almonds provide about as much protein as red meat, yet without any cholesterol. And they're packed with vitamins and minerals. One-third cup of shelled peanuts, for example, supplies 20 percent of the recommended Daily Value for folate and niacin, 6 percent for iron and zinc, 8 percent for thiamin and 14 percent for magnesium. Some nuts are surprisingly rich in calcium; one-third cup of almonds has as much calcium as one-quarter cup of milk. Nuts are also rich in phytochemicals (including resveratrol and quercetin, one of the beneficial components of tea); scientists believe these plant compounds may help prevent cancer. 

Q: But what about all the fat and calories in nuts?
A: On average, nuts weigh in at about 180 calories and 18 grams of fat per handful (or one-third cup), on a par with potato chips. It doesn't make much difference if you eat them fresh from the shell or oil-roasted--nuts absorb very little fat in the roasting process. What does matter, however, is how many nuts you eat. Work your way through a small bowl of cocktail nuts at a bar and you can consume nearly 720 calories and 72 grams of fat. For this reason, nutritionists generally advise eating no more than two tablespoons, or roughly half an ounce, per day. "That's enough to get the nutritional benefits of nuts without overdosing on fat and calories," says Lenore Hodges, director of nutritional services at Florida Hospital in Orlando. Still, nuts may not be as bad for the waistline as most people think. "In the Loma Linda study, subjects who ate nuts regularly actually weighed less than subjects who avoided nuts," observes Richard Mattes, professor of foods and nutrition at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. The reason, he believes, is that nuts are highly satiating. "We don't know if it's the mix of fatty acids, the type of protein or the fiber, but nuts seem to fill people up before they overeat," he says. 

Q: I've seen "reduced-fat" peanuts. How is this possible?
A: Nut processors won't reveal their defatting secrets. But food technology professors, who will talk, say the defatting probably involves placing the nuts in a pressurized chamber, which literally squeezes the oil out of them. The procedure removes nearly 50 percent of the fat and 15 percent of the calories. Another newfangled peanut is expected to hit supermarkets in a year or two. Researchers at the University of Florida recently cultivated a hybrid variety that produces peanuts with as much monounsaturated fat as olive oil. In one study, daily 1- to 2 1/2 -ounce doses helped 20 post-menopausal women lower their LDL cholesterol by 12 percent in six months. 

Julia Califano, a freelance writer in Hoboken, New Jersey, has added peanuts back into her diet.