Go Nuts Over Nuts: Good for Mind and Body

Hopefully you already know that a handful of almonds is a great way to stave off hunger and fill your growling tummy with some fiber and healthy fats. Did you also know that it may be protecting your memories?

Studies show that the use of olive oils and the consistent eating of walnuts and almonds may help prevent dementia and other memory defecits in the future. 

Exercise, on a regular basis is also proven to keep your brain healthy and sharp as well. 

Check out the findings below.

Nutty finding: Olive oil, nuts can protect your brain

Maggie Fox, Senior Writer, NBC News

May 20, 2013 at 6:32 PM ET

It might seem against all logic, but adding a little olive oil or a handful of nuts to your diet each day may help keep your mind clear, researchers reported on Monday. It’s the same diet that’s also been shown to reduce deaths from heart attacks and strokes.

The researchers found that people who ate these healthy fats were less likely to show the early signs of dementia than those who stuck to a more traditional diet. And this was done in Spain -- where people are already eating a so-called Mediterranean diet.

“Our findings support increasing evidence on the protective effects of the Mediterranean Diet on cognitive function,”Miguel Martinez-Gonzalez of the University of Navarra in Spain and colleagues reported in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.

The findings come from a large and well-publicized trial that showed the Mediterranean diet rich in fruits, vegetables, olive oil and a little wine can cut the risk of heart attacks and strokes by 30 percent. Martinez and colleagues took a part data on 500 volunteers from their own study center, who were followed for more than six and a half years after starting the diet.

A Mediterranean diet includes lots of salad, fruit, vegetables, nuts, a little fish, a little lean meat, a small amount of cheese and olive oil. Wine is also served at meals. In the main study, 7,400 volunteers got extra counseling, and either a weekly supply of extra-virgin olive oil or mixed nuts -- walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts.

The volunteers, aged 55 to 80, were all at high risk of heart disease because of diabetes, a family history of the disease, high blood pressure, unhealthy cholesterol levels -- or they were overweight or smokers. They were randomly assigned to either add more extra-virgin olive oil to their daily diets, a daily handful of the mixed nuts, or just a standard diet with advice to cut fat.

Such “randomized” studies are considered more powerful, because people don’t choose which diet to adopt -- and so other outside factors don’t interfere with the results. For instance, people who choose to eat nuts might also dislike meat, or they might like sweets, or they might exercise more or less than people who don’t think much about eating nuts.

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