New research suggests that there is a link between peanut and nut intake and lower mortality rates, UPI reported.
Researchers at Maastricht University in the Netherlands found that men and women who eat at least 10 grams of nuts or peanuts per day had a 23 percent lower risk of dying from several major causes of death than people who don't consume nuts or peanuts, Time reported.
"It was remarkable that substantially lower mortality was already observed at consumption levels of 15 grams of nuts or peanuts on average per day (half a handful)," Professor Piet van den Brandt, who led the study, said in a statement. "A higher intake was not associated with further reduction in mortality risk. This was also supported by a meta-analysis of previously published studies together with the Netherlands Cohort Study, in which cancer and respiratory mortality showed this same dose-response pattern."
For the study, researchers collected and analyzed data from more than 120,000 Dutch men and women. Nut consumption was assessed by asking about portion size and frequency of intake of peanuts, other nuts (tree nuts), and peanut butter. They then examined the relationship with overall and cause-specific mortality since 1986.
They found that nuts were the best at warding off death from "respiratory disease, neurodegenerative disease and diabetes; the reduction rate was as high as 45 percent for respiratory disease, Time reported.
The findings are detailed in the International Journal of Epidemiology.
