Nut intake and risk of metabolic syndrome

Abstract

Studies of nut intake and metabolic syndrome (MetS) risk are sparse. We examined the relationship between nut consumption and MetS in the Adventist Health Study, a population with a wide range of nut intake ranging from never to daily. The analytic sample included 747 adults with complete demographic, diet, anthropometric, and clinical data. MetS was defined according to the AHA/NHLBI diagnostic criteria. Diet was assessed by a 204‐item FFQ (validated against 24‐hr diet recalls) including 8 items on nuts. Validity correlations were moderate for tree nuts and low to moderate for peanuts and peanut butter. Intake of tree nuts (T), peanuts + peanut butter (P), and total nuts (T+P) was quantified and categorized. Odds ratios with 95% CI were estimated using multivariable logistic regression. 35% of subjects had MetS. Total and tree nuts had an inverse association with MetS. Individuals with high total nuts intake (>;3 servings/week) had 34% less MetS than individuals with low intake (<1 serving/week) (OR=0.66, 95% CI: 0.43–0.99). Consumption of 1/day of tree nuts was associated with 20% lower odds of MetS (OR=0.80, 95% CI: 0.65–0.99). Consumption of peanuts was not related to MetS. In a population with high range of nut intake, consumption of total and tree nuts but not peanuts is associated with lower MetS. This association is independent of demographic, lifestyle and other dietary factors.Funding: NIH 1RO1 CA 94594 (data collection) and International Nut Council