Dried fruit, a perfect snack

It is rich in vitamins, minerals, unsaturated fats (‘good’). It calms hunger because it gives an immediate sense of satiety

From a tasty lunch or snack break to an essential ally of our health: it is the dried fruit, of which science discovers new virtues every day, even in contrast to established beliefs. It is not true that walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds make you gain weight; on the contrary, in moderate quantities, they help to maintain the line and are precious allies of diabetic patients. According to a study published in the journal BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health, 14 grams of dried fruit a day helps not to gain weight and, over the years, reduce the risk of obesity and prevent cardiovascular disease. The experts followed the people who joined the study for 20 years, monitoring their health status, weight and diet every four years. They found that those who added at least 14 grams of dried fruit a day to their menu had a lower risk of gaining two or more kilos in 4 years. In particular, consuming a handful of nuts per day is associated with a 15% lower risk of becoming obese.

Dried fruit is rich in vitamins, minerals, ‘good’, unsaturated fats and, importantly, has high satiating power. So if you eat it instead of a “junk” snack, you gain a lot in health. Numerous studies have shown that eating almonds, walnuts, pistachios, peanuts, helps to keep hunger symptoms at bay because dried fruit promotes a greater sense of satiety. This was one of the topics of NutriMI, the annual Forum of Practical Nutrition of the past months, in which Nucis Italia and Prof. Alessandra Bordoni, professor at the Department of Food Science and Technology of the University of Bologna, also took part. And that’s not all: dried fruit helps in the prevention and reduction of risk factors related to certain diseases, from cardiovascular diseases to metabolic syndrome, hypertension to glucidic and lipid metabolism, inflammation and oxidative stress.

Even those who have diabetes would do well to consume dried fruit. This is stated in a study conducted by epidemiologists and nutritionists at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston and published in the journal Circulation Research. The researchers analyzed the dietary data of 16,217 people, before and after diagnosis of diabetes, in particular data on the consumption of nuts over several years: eating (especially nuts) at least about 28 grams 5 times a week helps to prevent cardiovascular risk, as diabetes doubles the chances of being subject to heart attack and stroke.