RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT:
Science explores the link between almonds and exercise recovery, skin health, prediabetes and gut health.
Almonds – a food for fitness: We all know the importance of properly fueling our bodies for exercise. But what about exercise recovery? A new study, which adds to the findings of pilot research1 , found that almond eating participants experienced reduced muscle soreness and improved muscle performance during intensive exercise.
In the latest study involving mildly overweight and occasionally physically active adults (not trained athletes), participants who ate 56g of almonds daily experienced an almost 25 percent reduction in muscle soreness when performing an explosive power exercise during the recovery period. Study participants included 25 mildly overweight middle-aged, physically active but untrained men and women who performed a 30-minute downhill treadmill run test after eight-weeks of consuming either two ounces of whole raw almonds or a calorie-matched carb snack of unsalted pretzels.
This study included non-smoking participants who were mildly overweight and occasionally physically active but were not trained athletes, so the results are not generalizable to populations with other demographic and health characteristics.
Snacking on almonds for eight weeks reduced perceived feelings of muscle soreness during recovery from muscle-damaging exercise, resulting in better maintenance of muscle functional capacity. This study suggests that almonds are a functional food snack to improve exercise tolerance in mildly overweight, middle-aged adults.
Read more here about the study.
Beauty benefits in your snack: November is National Healthy Skin Month – making it a perfect time to choose snacks that benefit your skin. One serving of almonds (one ounce or 23 almonds) offers 50% of the daily value of antioxidant vitamin E and almonds have been found to support skin health in more ways than one, according to research2 .
In the study, 91 participants included healthy, postmenopausal women with Fitzpatrick skin type I (always burns, never tans) or II (usually burns, tans minimally). Those who ate about 2 one-ounce servings of almonds showed significant reductions in wrinkle severity, by 15% at week 16 and 16% at week 24, compared to the control group who ate a calorie-matched nut-free snack.
The study was limited to 24 weeks, so results do not provide insight into longer duration and effects of eating almonds. Additionally, the results cannot be generalized to demographics outside of those included in the study and although snacks in both groups were calorie-matched, they were not macronutrient-matched.
Results of this study suggest that daily consumption of almonds may contribute to the improvement of facial wrinkles and reduction of skin pigmentation among postmenopausal women with Fitzpatrick skin types I and II.
Read more here about the study.
Managing blood sugar levels with almonds: With National Diabetes Month around the corner, let’s get smart about snacking for balanced blood sugar- almonds help you do just that.
As part of a dietary strategy for prediabetes, almonds are a perfect snack. The latest study3 shows first-of-its-kind results, where eating almonds before meals reversed nearly one quarter of participants with prediabetes to normal blood glucose regulation.
In the study, 60 participants included Asian Indians with prediabetes and overweight/obesity. The almond group ate 20g of almonds ahead of breakfast, lunch and dinner for three months, which in addition to the prediabetes reversal led to statistically significant reductions in body weight, waist circumference, fasting glucose, postprandial insulin, hemoglobin A1C, total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol and no changes in beneficial HDL-cholesterol.
Limitations include the relatively small sample size and limited period of intervention. Since the study included Asian Indians who had well-controlled prediabetes, researchers cannot extrapolate the same impact for those with type 2 diabetes or broader US populations.
Nourish your gut with almonds: Gut health has continued to grow in popularity for consumers, who are eager to learn more about the microbiota and how to feed the beneficial bacteria in the body.
Recent research4 found that eating almonds daily positively impacted the composition of the gut microbiome.
A study of 87 healthy adults set out to determine the impact whole almonds and ground almonds have on the composition of gut microbiota, gut microbiota diversity and gut transit time.
Led by Professor Kevin Whelan, the study found that participants who consumed whole and ground almonds experienced significant increases in butyrate as well as increased stool frequency. Almonds were well tolerated and did not lead to gastrointestinal symptoms, which indicates almond consumption may be a way to increase fiber without causing any adverse effects. This is suggestive of positive alterations to microbiota functionality.
Butyrate is a type of beneficial short-chain fatty acid (SCFA), in the colon, which is produced by microbes in the gut when they digest fiber. It’s the primary fuel source for colonocytes, the cells that line the colon, and may play a role in multiple processes related to human health, including improving sleep quality and fighting inflammation, and has been associated with a lower risk of colon cancer.
Limitations include the sex distribution of volunteers (86% female) as well in age (average 27.5 years).
Ask us about these new studies when visiting our booth at FNCE!
