The Study
Effects of walnut consumption on blood lipids and other cardiovascular risk factors: a meta-analysis and systematic review.
This study is like a 'super summary' of several small experiments where people were given walnuts to eat and their blood was tested. It shows that eating walnuts really does lower bad cholesterol, because it combines results from fair tests where people were randomly assigned to eat walnuts or not.
Analysis score
Maximum 100 for a systematic review with meta-analysis.
Where the score came from
Yes, eating walnuts can help lower bad cholesterol, which is good for your heart, and they don’t make you gain weight even though they have lots of calories.
Where does this study sit?
Systematic Reviews & Meta-analyses
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control
Max 58Cross-Sectional
Max 44Case Reports & Series
Max 30Expert Opinion
Max 567 / 100
Quality score
The highest quality evidence. These studies systematically search, appraise, and synthesize results from multiple individual studies, providing the most reliable summary of current knowledge.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Lowering bad cholesterol by this amount can reduce heart disease risk over time, and not gaining weight is a big plus for a high-calorie food.
- 2Walnuts lowered total cholesterol by 10.3 mg/dL and bad cholesterol (LDL) by 9.2 mg/dL.
- 3Good cholesterol (HDL) and triglycerides didn’t change.
- 4Weight stayed the same.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
The American journal of clinical nutrition
Year
2009
Authors
Deirdre K Banel, F. Hu
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.