Below is an abstract of the Adventist study, with particular
emphasis on nut consumption.  Note that although the abstract
doesn't mention the fact, peanuts are included as nuts for
purposes of data tabulation.

Todd Moody
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Arch Intern Med 1992 Jul;152(7):1416-1424

A possible protective effect of nut consumption on risk of
coronary heart disease. The Adventist Health Study.

Fraser GE, Sabate J, Beeson WL, Strahan TM

Center for Health Research, School of Public Health, Loma Linda
University, CA 92350.

BACKGROUND--Although dietary factors are suspected to be
important determinants of coronary heart disease (CHD) risk, the
direct evidence is relatively sparse.  METHODS--The Adventist
Health Study is a prospective cohort investigation of 31,208
non-Hispanic white California Seventh-Day Adventists. Extensive
dietary information was obtained at baseline, along with the
values of traditional coronary risk factors. These were related
to risk of definite fatal CHD or definite nonfatal myocardial
infarction. RESULTS--Subjects who consumed nuts frequently (more
than four times per week) experienced substantially fewer
definite fatal CHD events (relative risk, 0.52; 95% confidence
interval [CI], 0.36 to 0.76) and definite nonfatal myocardial
infarctions (relative risk, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.28 to 0.85), when
compared with those who consumed nuts less than once per week.
These findings persisted on covariate adjustment and were seen in
almost all of 16 different subgroups of the population. Subjects
who usually consumed whole wheat bread also experienced lower
rates of definite nonfatal myocardial infarction (relative risk,
0.56; 95% CI, 0.35 to 0.89) and definite fatal CHD (relative
risk, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.60 to 1.33) when compared with those who
usually ate white bread. Men who ate beef at least three times
each week had a higher risk of definite fatal CHD (relative risk,
2.31; 95% CI, 1.11 to 4.78), but this effect was not seen in
women or for the nonfatal myocardial infarction end point.
CONCLUSION--Our data strongly suggest that the frequent
consumption of nuts may protect against risk of CHD events. The
favorable fatty acid profile of many nuts is one possible
explanation for such an effect.

UI: 92328610