The body of evidence about nuts and health continues to grow. These local and international research papers, published around December 2022, corroborate decades of research about the importance of a regular handful of nuts in a healthy diet.

The effects of walnuts and academic stress on mental health, general well-being, and the gut microbiota in a sample of university students: A randomised clinical trial. (2022).
This clinical trial involved 80 healthy Australian undergraduate students (aged 18 to 35 years), who were either allocated to a treatment group (who ate around 56g/day of walnuts), or a control group (no nuts) for 16 weeks. Among the findings, daily walnut consumption improved mental health indicators and protected against some of the negative effects of academic stress on metabolic and stress biomarkers. In females, academic stress was linked with lower gut microbial diversity, which was improved by walnut consumption.

Nut-enriched energy restricted diet has potential to decrease hunger in women at cardiometabolic risk: A randomized controlled trial (Brazilian Nuts Study): Brazilian Nuts effects on food intake and appetite. (2022).
In this 8-week, randomised, parallel-arm clinical trial, 28 women at cardiometabolic risk received an energy-restricted diet containing 15g of Brazil nuts and 30g of cashew nuts (treatment, or ‘BN’ group), or an energy-restricted nut-free diet (control). BN consumption did not have acute effects on food intake, appetite, or peptide hormones. However, after 8-weeks intervention, postprandial ghrelin decreased in the BN group, compared with the control. The researchers concluded that an energy-restricted diet containing Brazil nuts showed potential to decrease hunger in cardiometabolic risk women.

Pharmacotherapeutic potential of walnut (Juglans spp.) in age-related neurological disorders. (2022).
This study reviewed the evidence base on the ‘pharmaceutical’ properties of walnuts that may play a role in improving neurological disorders, including epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease, and as well as their potential effects on memory and cognition. Among the findings, the researchers suggest walnut extracts could reduce Amyloid-ß fibrillation and aggregation (a pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease), indicating a beneficial effect on memory and cognition. They say further research is needed to gain a better understanding of this area.