Macadamia nuts are tree nuts that have a subtle, butter-like flavor and creamy texture.
Native to Australia, macadamia trees are now grown in various places around the world, such as Brazil,
Costa Rica, Hawaii, and New Zealand.
Like most other nuts, macadamia nuts are rich in nutrients and beneficial plant compounds. They’re also linked to several benefits, including improved digestion, heart health, weight management, and blood
sugar control.
Here are 10 health and nutrition benefits of macadamia nuts.
Macadamias – Benefits
1. Rich in nutrients
Macadamia nuts are calorie-rich nuts that are high in healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals. One ounce (28 grams) offers (1Trusted Source):
- Calories: 204
- Fat: 23 grams
- Protein: 2 grams
- Carbs: 4 grams
- Sugar: 1 gram
- Fiber: 3 grams
- Manganese: 58% of the Daily Value (DV)
- Thiamine: 22% of the DV
- Copper: 11% of the DV
- Magnesium: 9% of the DV
- Iron: 6% of the DV
- Vitamin B6: 5% of the DV
Macadamia nuts are also rich in monounsaturated fats, a type of fat that may boost heart health by lowering your total and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels (2Trusted Source).
These nuts are low in carbs and sugar and have a moderate fiber content. This combination makes them unlikely to spike your blood sugar levels, which may be especially beneficial for people with diabetes (3Trusted Source).
2. Loaded with antioxidants
Like most nuts, macadamia nuts are a great source of antioxidants.
Antioxidants neutralize free radicals, which are unstable molecules that can cause cellular damage and increase your risk of conditions like diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and heart disease (4Trusted Source, 5Trusted Source).
Additionally, macadamia nuts boast some of the highest flavonoid levels of all tree nuts. This antioxidant fights inflammation and helps lower cholesterol (4Trusted Source).
Furthermore, this nut is rich in tocotrienols, a form of vitamin E with antioxidant properties that may help lower cholesterol levels. These compounds may even protect against cancer and brain diseases (6Trusted Source, 7, 8Trusted Source, 9Trusted Source).
3. May boost heart health
Macadamia nuts may lower your risk of heart disease.
Various studies suggest that eating 0.3–1.5 ounces (8–42 grams) of these nuts daily can lower total and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels by up to 10% (2Trusted Source, 10Trusted Source, 11Trusted Source, 12).
Interestingly, a small study in people with high cholesterol noted that a diet rich in macadamia nuts reduced levels of this blood marker as much as a heart-healthy, low-fat diet recommended by the American Heart Association (13Trusted Source).
What’s more, eating 1.5–3 ounces (42–84 grams) of macadamia nuts each day may significantly reduce markers of inflammation, such as leukotriene B4. Inflammation is a risk factor for heart disease (9Trusted Source).
Researchers believe the heart benefits of macadamia nuts may come from their high monounsaturated fat content.
This fat is consistently linked to better heart health and a lower risk of stroke and fatal heart attacks (10Trusted Source, 14Trusted Source).
4. May reduce your risk of metabolic syndrome
Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of risk factors, including high blood sugar and cholesterol levels, that raise your risk of stroke, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes (15Trusted Source).
Research shows that macadamia nuts may protect against both metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes.
For instance, one recent review linked diets rich in tree nuts, including macadamia nuts, to reductions in fasting blood sugar levels.
The diets included in this review had people eat 1–3 ounces (28–84 grams) of tree nuts per day. They experienced significantly improved levels of hemoglobin A1c, a marker of long-term blood sugar control (3Trusted Source).
Furthermore, diets rich in monounsaturated fats — which comprise 80% of the fat in macadamia nuts — may help reduce risk factors for metabolic syndrome, especially in people with type 2 diabetes (10Trusted Source, 16Trusted Source).
In general, nut intake is also linked to lower blood sugar and body weight in people with metabolic syndrome or type 2 diabetes (17Trusted Source, 18Trusted Source, 19Trusted Source).
5. May aid weight loss
Despite being rich in calories, macadamia nuts may help you lose weight.
This may be partly explained by their amounts of protein and fiber, two nutrients known to reduce hunger and promote feelings of fullness (20Trusted Source, 21Trusted Source, 22Trusted Source).
Research further shows that a portion of the fats in nuts may remain in the nut’s fibrous wall during digestion. Thus, macadamia and other nuts may provide fewer calories than previously thought (23Trusted Source, 24Trusted Source, 25Trusted Source).
In one 3-week study, 71 young Japanese women ate bread daily with either 10 grams of macadamia nuts, coconut, or butter. Those in the macadamia group lost 0.9 pounds (0.4 kg) by the end of the study, while those in the other groups remained at the same weight (10Trusted Source).
Macadamia nuts are also rich in monounsaturated fats, especially the omega-7 fat palmitoleic acid, which may protect against unwanted weight gain.
In one 12-week study, obese mice fed high-fat diets with large amounts of macadamia oil — rich in palmitoleic acid — had significantly smaller fat cells than those given none of this product (26Trusted Source).
However, it’s unclear whether macadamia nuts offer the same benefits in humans.
