What Counts as a Serving of Nuts and Seeds?

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Hey, welcome to Nourishable, I’m Dr. Lara. Nuts and seeds are a great plant-based source of protein, but how much is one serving? Let’s science it. The serving size of nuts and seeds depends on whether you’re consuming them whole or ground into a paste. One serving of whole nuts or seeds is a half an ounce. One serving of nut butters is one tablespoon. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that adults eat 5 ½ to 6 ½ ounce equivalents of protein per day (*disclaimer about activity level and lifestage). Nuts and seeds pack a lot of nutrients and calories into a tiny weight, making them very nutrient dense and calorie dense. Since they’re much more nutrient and calorie dense than most other foods, a half an ounce of whole nuts counts as one full ounce of protein food. This is called an ounce equivalent. In their paste form, 1 tablespoon of nut butter is equivalent to 1 ounce of protein food. So if I put one ounce of walnuts on my morning muesli then that would count as two ounces of protein food. But if I spread one tablespoon of cashew nut butter on my whole wheat toast then that would count as 1 ounce of protein food. Nuts are seeds powerhouse plants because they’re full of protein, healthy fats and fiber. That being said, they are very calorically dense - this one ounce of walnuts is 185 calories - so use nuts to displace other foods from your diet rather than just adding them in. Aim to avoid mindlessly eating big portions of nuts because their calories can add up quickly. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends consuming 5 ounce equivalents per week from the nuts, seeds and soy group. Incorporating nuts and seeds into your regular diet is a delicious and nutritious way to vary your protein sources and pack some nutrient-dense crunch into meals and snacks. That’s what science tastes like.

[yaraRadwanNutrition]

Thank you for your very clear and informative videos. Can you please make a video about what counts as a serving of protein and also a serving of dairy? Thank you

[absolutezerocool]

I would be interested to know how peanut butter power, or almond milk fit into servings of nuts. I’m guessing the PB powder doesn’t have the good fats left?

[jayparkkc]

I am eating a serving of nuts as I watch this helpful video... But I dislike the 5 oz/week suggested limit as I prefer a higher dosage