Snacking Smart

Inside your favorite kinds of nuts — walnuts, almonds, pecans and others — you’ll find many vitamins, minerals and other compounds your body needs for good health. There are the antioxidants found in vitamin E; several essential minerals such as magnesium, selenium, copper and manganese; and even fiber for more effective digestion. Thiamin, niacin, folate, phosphorus and zinc are all found in nuts.

Dieting With Nuts

Can you lose weight while eating nuts? Surprisingly, yes. Clinical trials have shown that snacking before lunch and before dinner can lead to weight loss by cutting down on appetite. In one study of a 1,300-calorie weight-loss diet, both the nut-snackers and the control group (who munched on snacks other than nuts) lost about three pounds in two weeks.

Best of all, by adding nuts to your diet you’re doing more than losing weight. You’re improving your cholesterol profile, thereby cutting your risk of heart disease and certain types of cancer. If that’s not snacking smart, what is?

Snacking Ideas

Here are three tips to help you get the most from your favorite nuts.

• Toast ‘em. Toasting intensifies their flavor, so you can use fewer nuts and still get the taste you like.
• Chop ‘em. A few nuts can go a long way, especially if you cut them up. Add chopped nuts to cereal, mix them with raisins, or sprinkle them on yogurt.
• Measure ‘em. Try pouring out a portion of nuts rather than continually dipping into the container. Don’t sweat it too much, though. According to national surveys, most folks typically consume about an average serving size —about 1.5 ounces— whenever they snack on nuts.