Small dietary changes such as adding almonds or replacing typical snacks with almonds can improve intakes of protein, fiber and overall diet quality  

MODESTO, Calif., May 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Timely new research¹ highlights how almonds align with the recently published 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs), which prioritize diets built on whole, nutrient-dense and minimally processed foods² according to the Almond Board of California.   

The new study – published in Nutrients just ahead of the release of the new DGAs – set out to assess diet quality including the nutritional impact of adding almonds to the diet and replacing snacks with almonds, among American children and adults.

Key findings:

• Replacing popular processed snacks such as ice cream, cookies, cakes, doughnuts, candy and savoury snacks with almonds significantly improved diet quality, especially for children, teens and young adults.
  
  
• When solid snacks were replaced with almonds, diets were higher in protein, fiber, unsaturated fats and magnesium, and lower in saturated fat, added sugars and sodium.
  
  
• Adding almonds (30 grams or 50 grams) to diets increased overall diet quality, even without any other dietary changes.

How the research was conducted
The study, funded by the Almond Board of California, used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) collected between 2017-2023. This ongoing and nationally representative survey collects detailed information on the diets of children and adults across the United States. Researchers then applied computer-based simulations to the NHANES data to test various scenarios in which almonds were added to diets. Because this was a modeling study based on existing data, the findings show associations but cannot prove cause and effect.

The modeled diet scenarios included:

• Replacing all solid snacks with almonds, matching both for calories. For example, if snacks provided 300 kcal, the testing scenario replaced them with enough almonds to give 300 kcal.
  
  
• Replacing half or all of the less healthy snacks with almonds, again matching the typical solid snacks and almonds for calories.
  
  
• Adding 30g or 50g of almonds to diets without removing or changing any other element.

The researchers then assessed the potential impacts of each scenario on overall nutrition using four well-established assessment tools^* that evaluate different aspects of diet quality, including nutrient density, nutrients consumed in excess, adequacy of essential nutrients, and overall compliance with dietary guidance. The tool to measure the latter – the Heathy Eating Index (HEI) 2020 – was aligned with the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which were current at the time of the research.

A closer look at the results
On average, solid snacks provided 329 kcal a day, amounting to just under 16% of total daily energy (calories). Only 58 kcal a day (less than 3% of total calories) came from healthy snacks such as fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds and plain yogurt. Most snack calories came from ice cream, frozen dairy desserts, sweet baked products (e.g. cookies, brownies, cakes, pies, doughnuts and pastries), chocolate, savory snacks and popcorn.

Replacing all solid snacks –or even just half of the less healthy snacks – with almonds brought diets closer to meeting DGA recommendations, with the greatest impact in children aged 4-13 years. These improvements were largely the result of significant drops in saturated fat, added sugars, sodium and refined grains. There were also significant increases in protein, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, fiber and magnesium.

Unsurprisingly, adding either 30g or 50g of almonds to diets without any other changes resulted in higher calorie (energy) intakes, but there was also an improvement in the nutrient density of diets. Research has consistently shown that adding almonds to the diet does not lead to weight gain³. While the greatest effects on diet quality were seen with the larger serving size, even the 30g portion led to significant improvements and moved diets closer to recommendations.

How the findings apply in the real world
While the research evaluated diets against the 2020-2025 DGAs, lead study author Dr. Adam Drewnowski, Director of the Center for Public Health Nutrition at the University of Washington, believes the study findings are just as relevant to the newly updated 2025-2030 Guidelines.

"Almonds are a nutrient-dense, minimally processed food and are well aligned with the new Guidelines," says Dr. Drewnowski. "Our research found swapping sugary and/or salty snacks such as cookies, cakes, candy and chips for nutrient-rich almonds – or even just adding almonds to diets without making any other changes – has great potential for increasing essential nutrients like protein, fiber, unsaturated fats and magnesium, and lowering saturated fat, added sugars and sodium."

The findings are perhaps unsurprising given the strong nutritional profile of almonds – a 1 ounce serving provides 6g of protein, 4g of fiber, 13g of unsaturated fat, only 1g of saturated fat, and 15 essential nutrients, including 77 mg magnesium (20% DV), 210 mg potassium (4% DV), and 7.3 mg vitamin E (50% DV).

Like all research, this study had limitations. Dietary intake was based on self-reported data, which may not be reported accurately, and the Body Mass Index of participants wasn't considered. Modelling studies like this also don't consider how eating almonds may influence appetite or overall food intake. For example, almonds are known to have a satiating effect, so adding them to diets may result in a reduction in energy intake. While the tools used to assess diet adequacy themselves also have their own limitations, the use of multiple scoring systems helped to ensure findings were robust, thorough and complete.

The benefits of adding almonds to the diet extend beyond the United States. "While our study examined U.S. dietary patterns, the results are relevant to other countries where Western diets are prevalent. Almonds are an easy, delicious snack that can support improved diet quality globally," concludes Dr. Drewnowski.

ABOUT THE ALMOND BOARD OF CALIFORNIA
The Almond Board of California promotes natural, wholesome and quality almonds through leadership in strategic market development, innovative research, and accelerated adoption of industry best practices on behalf of the more than 7,600 almond farmers and processors in California, most of whom are multi-generational family operations. Established in 1950 and based in Modesto, California, the Almond Board of California is a non-profit organization that administers a grower-enacted Federal Marketing Order under the supervision of the United States Department of Agriculture.

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SOURCE Almond Board of California