Carter, S., A.M. Hill, J.D. Buckley, S.Y. Tan, G.B. Rogers, A.M. Coates, 2023. Acute feeding with almonds compared to a carbohydrate-based snack improves appetite-regulating hormones with no effect on self-reported appetite sensations: a randomised controlled trial. Eur. J. Nutr. 62(2):857–866. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-022-03027-2
Purpose: Early satiety has been identified as one of the mechanisms that may explain the beneficial effects of nuts for reducing obesity. This study compared postprandial changes in appetite-regulating hormones and self-reported appetite ratings after consuming almonds (AL, 15% of energy requirement) or an isocaloric carbohydrate-rich snack bar (SB). Methods: This is a sub-analysis of baseline assessments of a larger parallel-arm randomised controlled trial in overweight and obese (Body Mass Index 27.5-34.9 kg/m2) adults (25-65 years). After an overnight fast, 140 participants consumed a randomly allocated snack (AL [n = 68] or SB [n = 72]). Appetite-regulating hormones and self-reported appetite sensations, measured using visual analogue scales, were assessed immediately before snack food consumption, and at 30, 60, 90 and 120 min following snack consumption. A sub-set of participants (AL, n = 49; SB, n = 48) then consumed a meal challenge buffet ad libitum to assess subsequent energy intake. An additional appetite rating assessment was administered post buffet at 150 min. Results: Postprandial C-peptide area under the curve (AUC) response was 47% smaller with AL compared to SB (p < 0.001). Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide, glucagon and pancreatic polypeptide AUC responses were larger with AL compared to SB (18%, p = 0.005; 39% p < 0.001; 45% p < 0.001 respectively). Cholecystokinin, ghrelin, glucagon-like peptide-1, leptin and polypeptide YY AUCs were not different between groups. Self-reported appetite ratings and energy intake following the buffet did not differ between groups. Conclusion: More favourable appetite-regulating hormone responses to AL did not translate into better self-reported appetite or reduced short-term energy consumption. Future studies should investigate implications for longer term appetite regulation.
Lopez-Neyman, S. M., N. Zohoori, K.S. Broughton, D.C. Miketinas, 2023. Association of tree nut consumption with cardiovascular disease and cardiometabolic risk factors and health outcomes in US adults: NHANES 2011-2018. Curr. Dev. Nutr. 7(10):102007. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cdnut.2023.102007
Background: Tree nuts are nutrient dense, and their consumption has been associated with improvements in health outcomes. Objective: To estimate the usual tree nut intake and examine the association between tree nut consumption and cardiometabolic (CM) health outcomes in a nationally representative sample of US adults. Methods: Cross-sectional data were analyzed from a sample of 18,150 adults aged ≥ 20y who provided at least one reliable 24-h dietary recall and had complete data for the variables of interest in the NHANES 2011-2018. Tree nut consumers were defined as those consuming ≥ ¼ ounce/d (7.09 g). The National Cancer Institute Method was used to estimate the usual tree nut intake among consumers. Measurement error calibrated regression models were used to assess the association between tree nut consumption and each health outcome of interest. Results: Approximately 8% of all participants (n = 1238) consumed tree nuts and had a mean ± SE usual intake of 39.5 ± 1.8 g/d. Tree nut consumers were less likely to have obesity (31% vs. 40%, P < 0.001) and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (22% vs. 30%, P < 0.001) compared with nonconsumers. Moreover, tree nut consumers had a lower mean waist circumference (WC) (97.1 ± 0.7 vs. 100.5 ± 0.3 cm, P < 0.001) and apolipoprotein B (87.5 ± 1.2 vs. 91.8 ± 0.5 mg/dL, P = 0.004) than nonconsumers. After adjusting models for demographics and lifestyle covariates, the difference in WC between average intake (33.7 g/d) and low threshold intake (7.09/g) of tree nuts was -1.42 ± 0.58 cm (P = 0.005). Conclusions: Most US adults do not consume tree nuts, yet modest consumption was associated with decreased prevalence of cardiovascular disease and CM risk factors and improvement for some health outcome measures.
Carter, S., A.M. Hill, L.C. Mead, H.Y. Wong, C. Yandell, J.D. Buckley, S.Y. Tan, G.B. Rogers, F. Fraysse, A.M. Coates, 2023. Almonds vs. carbohydrate snacks in an energy-restricted diet: Weight and cardiometabolic outcomes from a randomized trial. Obesity 31(10):2467–2481.
Objective: This study evaluated weight and cardiometabolic outcomes after a 3-month energy-restricted diet (-30%) containing almonds (almond-enriched diet [AED]) or containing carbohydrate-rich snacks (nut-free control diet [NFD]) (Phase 1), followed by 6 months of weight maintenance (Phase 2). Methods: Participants (25-65 years old) with overweight or obesity (BMI 27.5-34.9 kg/m2 ) were randomly allocated to AED (n = 68) or NFD (n = 72). Results: Both groups lost weight during Phase 1 (p < 0.001) (mean [SE], -7.0 [0.5] kg AED vs. -7.0 [0.5] kg NFD, p = 0.858) and Phase 2 (p = 0.009) (-1.1 [0.5] kg AED vs. -1.3 [0.6] NFD, p = 0.756), with improvements in percentage lean mass after Phase 2 (4.8% [0.3%], p < 0.001). Reductions occurred in fasting glucose (-0.2 [0.07] mmol/L, p = 0.003), insulin (-8.1 [4.0] pmol/L, p = 0.036), blood pressure (-4.9 [0.8] mm Hg systolic, -5.0 [0.5] mm Hg diastolic, p < 0.001), total cholesterol (-0.3 [0.1] mmol/L), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) (-0.2 [0.1] mmol/L), very low-density lipoprotein (-0.1 [0.03] mmol/L), and triglycerides (-0.3 [0.06] mmol/L) (all p < 0.001), and high-density lipoprotein increased (0.1 [0.02] mmol/L, p = 0.011) by the end of Phase 2 in both groups. There were group by time interactions for lipoprotein particle concentrations: very small triglyceride-rich (-31.0 [7.7] nmol/L AED vs. -4.8 [7.9] nmol/L NFD, p = 0.007), small LDL (-109.3 [40.5] nmol/L AED vs. -20.7 [41.6] nmol/L NFD, p = 0.017), and medium LDL (-24.4 [43.4] nmol/L AED vs. -130.5 [44.4] nmol/L NFD, p = 0.045). Conclusions: An energy-restricted AED resulted in weight loss and weight loss maintenance comparable to an energy-restricted NFD, and both diets supported cardiometabolic health. The AED resulted in greater improvements in some lipoprotein subfractions, which may enhance reductions in cardiovascular risk.
Gulati, S., A. Misra, R. Tiwari, M. Sharma, R.M. Pandey, A.D. Upadhyay, H. Chandra Sati, 2023. Premeal almond load decreases postprandial glycaemia, adiposity and reversed prediabetes to normoglycemia: a randomized controlled trial. Clinical nutrition ESPEN, 54, 12–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnesp.2022.12.028
Background: Asian Indians show rapid conversion from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes (T2D). Novel dietary strategies are needed to arrest this progression, by targeting postprandial hyperglycaemia (PPHG). Design: We conducted a free-living randomized controlled open-label parallel arm study to evaluate the effect of a premeal load of almonds (20 g) 30 min before major meals on anthropometric, glycaemic, and metabolic parameters over 3 months. Sixty-six participants with prediabetes in the age range of 18-60 yrs were recruited. The study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov (registration no. NCT04769726). Results: Thirty participants in each arm completed the study. As per ‘intention-to-treat’ analysis, overall additional mean reductions were statistically significant for body weight, BMI, waist circumference (WC), subscapular and suprailiac skinfolds, and improved handgrip strength (Kg) (p < 0·001 for all) in the treatment arm vs. the control arm (after multiple adjustments). In the blood parameters, the additional mean reduction in the treatment arm vs. control arm was statistically significant for fasting and post-75 g oral glucose-load blood glucose, postprandial insulin, HOMA-IR, HbA1c, proinsulin, total cholesterol, and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (p < 0·001 for all). Most importantly, we observed a reversal to normoglycemic state (fasting blood glucose and 2 h post-OGTT glucose levels) in 23.3% (7 out of 30) of participants in the treatment arm which is comparable to that seen with Acarbose treatment (25%). Conclusion: Incorporation of 20 g of almonds, 30 min before each major meal leads to significant improvement in body weight, WC, glycemia (particularly PPHG), and insulin resistance and shows potential for reversal of prediabetes to normal glucose regulation over 3 months.
Keywords: Almonds; Asian Indians; Postprandial glucose regulators; Postprandial hyperglycaemia; Prediabetes.
