Consuming a handful of nuts every day could reduce a person's risk of developing a number of diseases, including cancer and heart disease, a new study has found.

UK and Norwegian researchers analysed 29 studies on nuts from around the world, involving some 819,000 people. They found that eating 20g of nuts every day, which is around a handful, reduced a person's risk of developing coronary heart disease by 30%.

It also reduced their risk of developing cancer by 15%, while the overall risk of premature death was reduced by 22%.

The researchers also found that 20g of nuts per day appeared to reduce the risk of diabetes by as much as 40%, however they acknowledged that there was less data about this condition among the 29 studies compared to the other conditions.

"We found a consistent reduction in risk across many different diseases, which is a strong indication that there is a real underlying relationship between nut consumption and different health outcomes. It's quite a substantial effect for such a small amount of food," commented the study's co-author, Dr Dagfinn Aune, of Imperial College London.

The study included different types of nuts, such as walnuts and hazel nuts. It also included peanuts even thought these are classed as legumes. The researchers noted that the results were similar irrespective of the types of nuts analysed. They believe this is related to the nutritional value of nuts.

"Nuts and peanuts are high in fibre, magnesium, and polyunsaturated fats - nutrients that are beneficial for cutting cardiovascular disease risk and which can reduce cholesterol levels.

"Some nuts, particularly walnuts and pecan nuts, are also high in antioxidants, which can fight oxidative stress and possibly reduce cancer risk. Even though nuts are quite high in fat, they are also high in fibre and protein, and there is some evidence that suggests nuts might actually reduce your risk of obesity over time," Dr Aune said.

Details of these findings are published in the journal, BMC Medicine.