GOING NUTS

Nut labels, ads, and Web sites promise to protect your heart, boost your energy levels, satisfy your hunger, build your muscles, nurture your bones and digestive health, and make you look good in a bikini. Many of those claims are a stretch.

Nuts (and seeds) are good foods. Most are rich in unsaturated fats, magnesium, and copper, with smaller amounts of protein, fiber, and iron. But they are also high in calories. Calories vary, about 150-200 calories for 1 ounce, about 20-25 pieces. All nuts should lower LDL (bad) cholesterol if they are eaten instead of meat, butter or other saturated fats. (This means eating less animal protein when adding nuts and seeds, not adding nuts and seeds without reducing the other proteins!) However, only nuts that have at least twice as much polyunsaturated fat as saturated fat lower triglycerides if you eat them instead of processed pasta, bread, crackers, and rice. That means pistachios, walnuts, pecans, almonds, peanuts, hazelnuts, soy nuts, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds qualify as "best bites", but macadamias, cashews and Brazil nuts don't make the cut.

The Nut Case

• Salt: Salted nuts typically have 100 to 300mg of sodium in every 1 ounce (1/4-cup) serving. Go for brands that say "unsalted" or "raw" or "50% less salt" or "lightly salted" to dodge the extra sodium.
• Dry roasted or raw: Roasted nuts (with or without oil) are no higher in saturated fat or calories than raw.
• Portion control: If you are unlikely to stop at 1/4 cup (just 4 flat tablespoons), try Emeralds or Blue Diamond's 100-calorie packs. Better yet, make your own: toss one serving of your favorite nut into a resealable plastic bag to help control the calories. Another idea is to make a mix with equal amounts of nuts, dried fruit and whole grain cereal and put into single serving baggies for healthy snacks. Keep them convenient in your car, briefcase, book bag or desk drawer.
• Calories: Try using them to garnish a salad or add to rice or cereal instead of eating them right from the can to save calories and fat grams.
• Peanut butter: As long as the peanut butter brand has no partially hydrogenated oil it is healthy. Check the label. A serving is only two flat tablespoons (190 calories). It is easy to eat more.
• Extras: In Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters, the nuts are dwarfed by oats, sugar, rice flour, and oil. Planters Chocolate Lovers and Mauna Loa Chocolate Macadamias end up with 7 grams of saturated fat and 230 calories per serving (about 10 nuts). Stick with plain nuts or the Emeralds Cocoa Dusted almonds.
• Fiber: Nuts and seeds are a decent, not terrific, source of fiber. Most have 2-3 grams of fiber per 1/4-cup serving and adults need about 30 grams/day. Exceptions: soy nuts-which are dried beans, not nuts-have 8grams of fiber/serving. Pumpkin seeds and cashews have 1 gram.