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Walnuts have been known to have tremendous nutritional, and even medicinal, benefit. But now, the popular snack may have more value when it comes to men’s health.
A new study in the journal Biology of Reproduction found that young men who eat approximately two handfuls of walnuts a day improve the health of their sperm, BBC News reported. Over a 12-week period, sperm shape, movement and strength all improved in men who ate walnuts regularly.
The researchers believe that the fatty acids in walnuts contributed to the boost in healthy sperm. While they do not know if eating walnuts can combat male infertility, it is commonly thought that infertility in men is a result of too few sperm or poor swimming ability, shape and size, according to BBC News.
The study examined 117 men between 21 and 35 years old. Each were divided into one of two groups – one with no changes in diet while avoiding tree nuts, the other adding 2.6 ounces of walnuts to their diet each day.
The control group saw no changes in sperm quality, whereas the walnut eaters saw improvements in everything from concentration to movement, shape and chromosome abnormalities.
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