Visceral fat—also called abdominal or belly fat—is necessary to help cushion your organs. But when there’s too much of it, it can increase your risk for metabolic syndrome, a condition associated with heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.
Metabolic Syndrome is a cluster of conditions that includes a larger waist circumference, high blood pressure, high triglycerides, high blood sugars, and low HDL (beneficial) cholesterol. It is defined as having three or more of these conditions.
While metabolic syndrome used to be primarily found in the older population, rates have steadily climbed in younger people. There is evidence that 1 in 5 young adults in the U.S. now has metabolic syndrome.
The good news is that there are many things you can do to lower your risk. For example, previously reported on Vanderbilt University Medical Center research that suggested swapping out high-carbohydrate snacks for nuts helped reduce abdominal fat. These same researchers wanted to dig deeper and look at the “why” behind these results, and they published their findings in May 2025 in Clinical Nutrition.2 Let’s break down what they found.
Nuts are loaded with brain- and heart-healthy fats, plant protein, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Eating them regularly has been linked to a healthier heart, brain, blood sugar levels, and weight.
The key with choosing your nuts—besides picking ones you like—is to choose unsalted raw or dry-roasted nuts most of the time, as oil-roasting can add unnecessary fat to your nuts. If you prefer some salt, choose lightly salted. Even better, mix unsalted with lightly salted to get your taste buds used to less salt, since eating too much sodium is connected to increased blood pressure, which is the opposite of what you’re trying to accomplish by noshing on nuts.
It’s important to remember that no one food or food category is a magic pill for weight loss or disease risk reduction. It takes a healthy-habit team effort. For example, eating more plants, including nuts, may help reduce abdominal fat. We’ve got meal plans specifically designed to help reduce abdominal fat, including 30-day and seven-day plans.
Fat isn’t the only thing that can increase waist circumference. That bloating in your hands, face, feet, and middle? It could be a result of eating too much salt.
Gas and bloating can also result from eating food that is typically considered healthy, like broccoli, cauliflower, and beans. Figure out which foods or sneaky additions to foods, like inulin and sugar alcohols—including those in gum—are causing the bloat and remove them for a while before slowly adding them back in to see how your body reacts. When in question, meet with a registered dietitian to help you figure it out.
Regular physical activity can also help reduce abdominal fat, as can getting plenty of quality sleep and taking time throughout the day. Of course, a lack of sleep results in higher stress levels, and so the cycle goes.
The Bottom Line
This study suggests that swapping high-carb snacks with nuts may help stimulate genes stored in abdominal fat that influence factors related to metabolic syndrome, including how fat is used, levels of inflammation, cholesterol, and immunity. Choose your favorite unsalted raw or dry-roasted nuts and use them as snacks or incorporate them into your meals. Toss some into your oatmeal or yogurt, use them in place of croutons on your salad or a pair nut butter with dark chocolate for a tasty, heart-healthy ending to a meal.
Source: Eating Well Magazine