Most people who are trying to get rid of unwanted fat believe the key is to reduce fat and calorie intake as much as possible. People who go on diets of low to no-fat/no-calorie diets always end up on a roller coaster of weight loss to weight gain because they are involved in temporary diets that no one can or would want to sustain long term. They are also very unhealthy because depriving the body of key fats leads to disease. Low or no-calorie diets will not cause fat loss, but muscle loss because the body holds onto stored fat for energy, when it doesn’t get its daily requirement of fat from food.

People are under the impression that you cannot lose weight with a food that is high in fat but this is just isn’t true. First it is important to distinguish between good and bad fats. In the case of nuts, the fats are very healthy and in the proper amounts, eating nuts will actually help you lose weight. Of course, you could gain weight eating nuts or any other food for that matter, if your daily calorie intake exceeded your daily need for calories based on your activity level.

The food and drug administration is now considering a proposal to make health claims on food packages promoting the benefits of nuts. Recent studies show that nuts contain a number of vitamins, minerals, protein, fiber and antioxidants which are all important for any healthy weight loss program. A 14 year health study followed over 86,000 nurses who ate five or more ounces of nuts every week. Researchers found that the nurses who ate nuts tended to weigh less than nurses who didn’t consume nuts. Most people would love to find a healthy food that tastes great and is very filling. The fat and fiber content in nuts make them very filling and satisfying and so people tend not to overeat them.

Studies conducted have shown that eating small amounts of nuts help people lose weight. One psychological benefit found was that people who ate nuts didn’t feel like they were on a diet which helped them stay on it longer. One ounce of nuts contains between 150 and 200 calories, most of which comes from healthy monounsaturated fat. Most of the time nuts are consumed by themselves which can be a problem when it comes to calorie control. Nuts should not be eaten mindlessly, but should be eaten in controlled portions. Another good way to control intake is by eating nuts from the shell because you will end up eating less when you consider the time it takes to open them. Your goal with eating nuts should be to replace other high fat foods such as chips, cookies and doughnuts. One satisfying substitute is peanut butter(made only from peanuts or peanuts and salt) on a celery stick.

Roasted nuts have several health benefits but for maximum health benefits consume raw nuts. For one thing they contain vitamin E and B1 which roasted nuts do not because these nutrients are destroyed in the roasting process. Eating nuts contribute to good health and with a healthy body you will more efficiently burn fat and lose weight more quickly.