Panel Reviews Nut Benefits Ranging from Weight Management to Heart Health

Newswise — During a panel discussion at the 2010 Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Annual Meeting & Food Expo®, a panel highlighted a range of health benefits from eating nuts which have free-radical scavenging, anticarcinogenic, cholesterol-lowering, and cardioprotective abilities. While research has cited many of these benefits, the panel also cited the role of nuts in helping to manage weight.

Many people refrain from eating nuts, said Fereidoon Shahidi of Memorial University in Newfoundland, Canada. However, studies show "little or no weight change" from a diet including nuts. Shahidi, one of five panelists who presented highlights from more than 50 studies linking tree nuts to a variety of health benefits as well as reduction in coronary heart disease and inflammation, Type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers.

Different nuts offer different health benefits. For example, almond skins are extremely high in vitamin E, according to Karen Lapsley, Ph.D., chief scientific officer, Almond Board of California.

Almond skins contain more phenolics than flavonoids, and they are bioavailable, said Lapsley. As a result, almond skins may have potential use as a value-added ingredient, she added.

For more information, please contact:

Fereidoon Shahidi – [email protected]Cyril WS Kendall, Ph.D. – [email protected]Karen Lapsley, Ph.D. – [email protected]Ronald Pegg, Ph.D. – [email protected]

About IFTThe Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is a nonprofit scientific society. Our individual members are professionals engaged in food science, food technology, and related professions in industry, academia, and government. IFT’s mission is to advance the science of food, and our long-range vision is to ensure a safe and abundant food supply, contributing to healthier people everywhere.

For more than 70 years, the IFT has been unlocking the potential of the food science community by creating a dynamic global forum where members from more than 100 countries can share, learn, and grow. We champion the use of sound science across the food value chain through the exchange of knowledge, by providing education, and by furthering the advancement of the profession. IFT has offices in Chicago, Illinois, and Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit ift.org.