Regular consumption of peanuts before meals may help support metabolic health — in the areas of body weight, blood pressure, and blood glucose — according to a new study published in the journal Nutrients.
Peanuts aren’t widely thought of as a health food, but there is evidence that they may be compatible with a healthy diet and offer certain health benefits. Last year, a study showed that eating more peanuts is linked to a lower risk for having an ischemic stroke (a stroke caused by a clot) and a lower risk for cardiovascular disease in general. Peanuts are considered to be a low-glycemic index food, meaning that they don’t tend to raise blood glucose or insulin levels quickly — and a low-glycemic diet has been shown to help reduce A1C levels (a measure of long-term blood glucose control) in people with diabetes. Another way that peanuts may help improve metabolic and cardiovascular health is by boosting levels of nitric oxide, a substance made by the body that plays a key role in blood vessel health.
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For the latest study, researchers looked at the effects of eating a small portion (35 grams) of lightly salted dry-roasted peanuts twice a day before meals as part of a diet aimed at weight loss. The participants were 107 adults with an elevated risk for type 2 diabetes and an average age of 58, and 65% were women. Participants were randomly assigned to follow one of two diets for six months — either the peanut-oriented weight-loss diet or a traditional low-fat diet.
Both groups underwent nutrition counseling as part of the study, in which they were instructed to follow a calorie-restricted diet — 1700 calories per day for men, and 1300 calories per day for women. But for the peanut group, peanuts didn’t count toward this number, which meant that the peanut group consumed an average of 400 more calories per day than the low-fat group. Only 76 participants completed the entire study, and the results were based on these participants.
Peanuts linked to improvements in blood pressure
After six months, both diet groups experienced a similar level of weight loss — an average of 6.7 kilograms (14.8 pounds) in the peanut group and 6.6 kilograms (14.5 pounds) in the low-fat group, as noted in a news release on the study. But members of the peanut group also lowered their systolic blood pressure (the “top number” measured during heartbeats) by an average of 5.33 mmHg more than members of the low-fat group — a level of blood pressure reduction that is linked to about a 10% lower risk for major cardiovascular events like a heart attack or stroke. Both groups saw similar improvements in A1C, fasting blood glucose, and fasting insulin levels.
“Peanuts are often avoided when people are trying to lose weight because they believe peanuts contain too many calories,” noted study author Kristina Petersen, an assistant research professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at Texas Tech University, in the news release. “However, peanuts actually have a high satiety value, meaning they keep you feeling fuller longer, and that can be really helpful for those on a weight-loss diet.”
Want to learn more about peanuts and health? Read “Is Peanut Butter Good for Diabetics?” and see our “Seed and Nut Nutrition Chart.”
