Q: I know there's a labeling health claim for nuts. What is it and what does it mean?
A: In 2003, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved what the agency calls a "qualified" health claim for nuts, which basically says that scientific evidence suggests that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts (that translates into 27 to 30 pecans or a handful), as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, can reduce the risk of heart disease. The claim includes pecans, of course, but does not include macadamia nuts, cashews or Brazil nuts, because they are considered to be too high in saturated fat. The FDA made official what researchers already knew through years of research - that a healthy diet that regularly includes nuts, like Georgia pecans, can reduce the risk of heart disease even more than a similar diet without nuts.
