Walnuts (genus Juglans) are plants in the walnut family Juglandaceae. There are 21 species in the genus range. The best-known member of the genus is the Persian Walnut (Juglans regia). The nuts of all the species are edible, but the walnuts commonly available in stores are from the Persian Walnut, the only species which has a large nut and thin shell.



Research suggests that eating walnuts at the end of a meal may help cut the damage that is done to the arteries by the fatty food. It is believed that the nuts are rich in compounds that reduce hardening of the arteries, and keep them flexible.

Based on the findings published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, a team of researchers from Barcelona's Hospital Clinico recommended eating 30 g of walnuts a day, and also showed that walnuts had more health benefits than olive oil.

24 adults were recruited to the research: half with normal cholesterol levels and the other half with levels that were moderately high. The research was partly funded by the California Walnut Commission.

Each participant was given two high-fat salami and cheese meals, eaten one week apart. For one meal, the researchers added five teaspoons of olive oil. For the other, they added eight shelled walnuts. Tests showed that both the olive oil and the walnuts helped to reduce the sudden onset of harmful inflammation and oxidation in arteries that follows a meal high in saturated fat.

Over time, saturated fat is thought to cause the arteries to start to harden and increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. However, unlike olive oil, adding walnuts also helped preserve the elasticity and flexibility of the arteries, regardless of cholesterol level. Arteries that are elastic can expand when needed to increase blood flow.

Eating high-fat meals disrupted production of nitric oxide by inner lining of the arteries, a chemical needed to keep blood vessels flexible. Walnuts contain arginine, an amino acid used by the body to produce nitric oxide. The nuts also contain antioxidants and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), a plant-based omega-3 fatty acid with health-giving properties. The protective fat from walnuts actually undoes some of the detrimental effects of a high-saturated-fat diet, whereas a neutral fat, such as olive oil, does not have as much protective ability.

However, this is not to say that olive oil is bad, but it may not be the key protective factor in the Mediterranean diet.

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