Eating a handful of almonds everyday can improve a person’s diet quality which may have numerous lifelong health benefits, a new study suggests.

Researchers from University of Florida in U.S. conducted a study on 28 parent-child pairs.

The parents were instructed to eat 42 grammes of whole almonds each day during the three-week intervention portion of the research period, and the children were encouraged to eat 14 grammes of whole almonds or an equivalent amount of almond butter each day.

At the beginning of the 14-week research period the participants’ average Healthy Eating Index scores were 53.7 for the parents as well as children.

The Healthy Eating Index is a measure of diet quality that assesses conformance to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA’s) Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

A score below 51 is reflective of a poor diet, a score between 51 and 80 reflects a need for improvement and a score greater than 80 indicates a good diet.

After the almond intervention, the average Healthy Eating Index score for parents as well as children increased to an average 61.4.

They increased their Healthy Eating Index component scores for total protein foods and decreased the intake of empty calories.

Researchers believe the parents and children were replacing salty and processed snacks with almonds. PTI

The results suggest whole food approaches, like adding almonds to one’s diet, may be an achievable way to improve overall public health.

“Adding a variety of fruits, vegetables and nuts to your diet can improve your overall diet quality,” said Alyssa Burns from University of Florida.PTI