Consumer health: Eating nuts for heart health
Discover how walnuts, almonds and other nuts can help lower your cholesterol when eaten as part of a balanced diet.
Eating nuts as part of a healthy diet may be good for your heart. Nuts contain unsaturated fatty acids and other nutrients. And they're a great snack food—inexpensive, easy to store and easy to pack when you're on the go.
One drawback to nuts is that they're high in calories, so it's important to limit portions. But choosing nuts instead of a less healthy snack may just help you stick to a heart-healthy diet.
How might nuts help your heart?
Research has found that people who are at risk of a heart attack can cut their risk by eating a healthy diet that includes nuts.
Research suggests that eating nuts may:
- Lower your low-density lipoprotein (LDL or "bad") cholesterol and triglyceride levels, which play a major role in the buildup of deposits called plaques in your arteries
- Improve the health of the lining of your arteries
- Lower levels of inflammation linked to heart disease
- Reduce the risk of developing blood clots, which can lead to a heart attack and death
©2020 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
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