Short answer: Yes. Eating a handful of nuts a day has been linked with a significantly lower risk of high blood pressure, according to a new systematic review and meta-analysis.

This may be due to several factors, including the L-arginine and dietary fibre content of nuts, their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, and their role in supporting healthy weight management.

The study authors say their findings support dietary guideline recommendations to include a serving of nuts each day.

What did the research find?

The study, published in the British Journal of Nutrition, found a 26% reduction in the risk of hypertension with consumption of a 30g handful of nuts/day, compared with no nuts (1).

The systematic review and meta-analysis combined the findings of eight earlier cohort studies, together involving >143,000 people and >20,600 cases of hypertension. Participants ranged in age from 18 to 87 years.

Three studies were from the United States, two from Europe, and three from Asia. Six of the studies were rated as high quality and two as medium quality.

The researchers used criteria of the World Cancer Research Foundation to assess the strength of the evidence, grading the likelihood of causality as ‘probable’.

These findings are consistent with an earlier meta-analysis of four cohort studies (2), which also found a lower risk of hypertension with higher nut intake. However, the current review included nearly twice as many studies, providing further evidence that regular nut consumption may help reduce the risk of hypertension.

Did you know? The main dietary risk factors linked with hypertension include low intakes of potassium, whole grains, fruit, nuts and seeds, vegetables and high intakes of sodium, red and processed meat, added sugars and sugar sweetened beverages.

What does this mean in practice?

These findings have important public health implications.

Hypertension has become a significant global health concern – as it affects more than 1.4 billion people worldwide, and due to its role in increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), stroke, and kidney failure.

Hypertension is the fourth leading modifiable risk factor contributing to disease burden in Australia, affecting nearly four in 10 adults – or around 7.2 million people.

The findings are also consistent with previous large-scale reviews, which have linked higher nut consumption with a lower risk of CVD. The researchers suggest that a lower risk of hypertension may be one reason for this.

The findings also align with research showing that dietary patterns rich in nuts – including vegetarian, vegan, DASH and Mediterranean diets – are associated with a lower risk of hypertension.

Similar benefits have also been reported for the EAT-Lancet Planetary Health diet, which includes nuts as an important component.

How might nuts support healthy blood pressure?

Research points to several possible mechanisms:

• Nuts provide L-arginine, a key component of nitric oxide – which regulates blood pressure by relaxing and widening blood vessels. 

• They also contain dietary fibre, which is known to indirectly reduce blood pressure – via the short-chain fatty acids that are produced through fermentation of fibre in the gut.

• Nuts also offer a range of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds, which may help reduce oxidative stress and inflammation – both associated with cardiovascular risk.

• Finally, regular nut consumption has been linked with healthier body weight, which is important because excess weight is a major risk factor for hypertension.

The researchers say further large-scale cohort studies could help clarify associations with higher intakes of nuts, different types of nuts, and whether they are salted or not, on hypertension risk.

Future research should also investigate specific nut compounds, such as L-arginine, to better understand the biological pathways underlying the observed associations.

Clinical takeaway for health professionals: These findings provide further support for dietary recommendations to include nuts regularly as part of a healthy dietary pattern. For most adults, a practical recommendation is around 30g of nuts per day.

The bottom line:

This research provides evidence for a reduced risk of hypertension with higher intake of nuts. It showed a 26% reduction in risk at an intake of 30g nuts/day (equivalent to a handful).

Written by the Nuts for Life dietitians, 19 August 2026