Scientists Find Nut Consumption Linked to Lower Body Fat and Improved Cholesterol Levels

Eating nuts regularly may help reduce body fat and improve cholesterol levels without causing weight gain, despite their high calorie content. A new systematic review suggests that including nuts in the diet could produce modest improvements in body composition and metabolic health, although the benefits may vary depending on the type of nut and overall dietary pattern.

Published in the journal Foods, the systematic review and meta-analysis examined how nuts containing different types of healthy fats influence body weight, fat mass, muscle mass and blood cholesterol levels.

Researchers reviewed 154 articles representing 119 randomised controlled trials, with 102 trials included in the quantitative meta-analysis.

The analysis focused on nuts rich in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), both of which are considered beneficial dietary fats.

The findings revealed that nut consumption did not significantly increase body weight, body mass index or waist circumference, despite being associated with approximately 120 additional calories consumed daily.

Importantly, regular nut consumption was associated with a reduction of approximately 0.41 kilograms in total body fat and a 0.3 percentage-point decrease in body fat percentage.

Participants also showed a 0.71 percentage-point increase in the proportion of lean body mass. However, absolute lean mass did not significantly increase, indicating that the findings did not demonstrate actual muscle gain.

Interestingly, MUFA-rich nuts were associated with a reduction of approximately 0.42 kilograms in fat mass, although researchers could not establish that they were more effective than PUFA-rich nuts.

The analysis also found modest reductions in total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, while HDL cholesterol remained largely unchanged.

However, researchers highlighted differences between studies and uncertainty surrounding several outcomes.

Further research is needed to determine whether these improvements translate into meaningful long-term health benefits.

REFERENCE: Hu, W., Chen, M., Wang, Z., et al. (2026). Effects of Nut Consumption on Body Composition: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials with Subgroup Analyses by Nut Fatty-Acid Profile. Foods. DOI: 10.3390/foods15203594