NutriDex

The Supplement Research Compendium
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Pine Nut

Pinus spp.

A tree nut whose human data is largely extrapolated from nuts as a group

Preliminary evidence 🥜Nuts🫀Heart & Metabolic⏳Longevity

✚ Updated · How we grade evidence

Evidence tier
Preliminary
Research weight
Citations
10 verified / 10
Classification
Nuts
❝
What the evidence says. Early or small human trials; promising but not yet conclusive.

Nutrition per serving 1 oz (28 g, ~167 kernels)

28gSERVING
  • Sugars 1 g4%
  • Fibre 1 g4%
  • Other carbs 1.7 g6%
  • Protein 3.8 g14%
  • Fat 19.2 g69%
  • Other 1.3 g5%
What's in one serving, by weight — average composition (USDA).
Fiber4%Protein8%Vitamin E17%Magnesium17%Copper41%Manganese100%+Zinc16%Selenium0%
One serving as % of the adult daily requirement (FDA Daily Values). The bold outer ring = 100% of a day's needs.
189 kcal3.8 g protein1 g fiber19 g fat
NutrientPer serving% daily value
Fiber1 g4%
Protein3.8 g8%
Vitamin E2.6 mg17%
Magnesium70 mg17%
Copper0.37 mg41%
Manganese2.5 mg107%
Zinc1.8 mg16%
Selenium0.2 µg0%
Phosphorus161 mg13%
Potassium167 mg4%
Iron1.6 mg9%
Calcium4.5 mg0%
Folate9.5 µg2%

Composition data: USDA FoodData Central ↗

What is Pine Nut?

Pine Nut (Pinus spp.) is a nut or seed used for may modestly improve blood lipids (lower total and ldl cholesterol) as part of the broader tree-nut evidence base. NutriDex grades the human evidence as Preliminary. Direct human evidence for pine nuts specifically is limited and preliminary; most benefit is inferred from trials of tree nuts as a group, where walnuts and almonds dominate the data. A meta-analysis of 61 controlled trials (Del Gobbo 2015) found tree nuts modestly lower total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglycerides in a dose-related way, but pine nuts were barely represented. The strongest pine-nut-specific data are small acute trials of Korean pine nut oil and its pinolenic acid (Pasman 2008), which raised satiety hormones CCK and GLP-1 and reduced short-term appetite, results that are mechanistically interesting but have not translated to demonstrated weight loss. Observationally, frequent nut eaters in the PREDIMED trial and in large cohort meta-analyses (Aune 2016) show lower cardiovascular and all-cause mortality, but these are association data spanning all nuts. Bottom line: pine nuts are a reasonable component of a nut-rich heart-healthy diet, but pine-nut-specific clinical proof is thin.

Purported Benefits

✓May modestly improve blood lipids (lower total and LDL cholesterol) as part of the broader tree-nut evidence base
✓Pine nut oil and its pinolenic acid acutely increase satiety hormones (CCK, GLP-1) and can reduce short-term food intake in small trials
✓Source of heart-healthy unsaturated fats that displace saturated fat when substituted into the diet
✓Contributes vitamin E, magnesium, manganese and plant phytosterols within a generally cardioprotective dietary pattern
✓Fits within nut-rich diets linked in cohorts to lower cardiovascular and all-cause mortality (group-level, not pine-nut-specific)

Dosing & Compounds

Typical Dose
1 oz (~28 g) per day, a small handful; appetite studies used ~2-3 g pine nut oil/pinolenic acid before a meal
Active Compounds
Monounsaturated fatty acids (oleic acid)Polyunsaturated fatty acids including pinolenic acid (a pine-nut-specific delta-5 PUFA)Linoleic acid (omega-6)Vitamin E (gamma-tocopherol)Magnesium and manganesePhytosterolsL-arginineZinc and copper

Safety & Cautions

Pine nuts are tree nuts and can trigger IgE-mediated allergy including anaphylaxis; people with tree-nut or peanut allergy should avoid them or consult an allergist. They are calorie-dense (~190 kcal per oz/28 g), so portions matter for weight management. Whole nuts are a choking hazard in young children. A specific quirk of pine nuts is "pine mouth" (pine nut syndrome), a harmless but unpleasant metallic/bitter taste disturbance lasting days to a couple of weeks after eating certain (often non-traditional) species. Unlike Brazil nuts there is no selenium-toxicity concern, and unlike peanuts they are a true tree nut rather than a legume and are not a notable aflatoxin source, though rancidity from their high unsaturated-fat content is possible if stored poorly. Educational only — always check with your doctor or pharmacist before combining Pine Nut with any medicine.

Key Studies ★ 10 studies

meta-analysis Nishi 2021 (Nutr Rev) ✓ PubMed
Systematic review/meta-analysis of 15 RCTs (n=899) in type 2 diabetes found nut-enriched diets had no adverse effect on body weight, BMI, waist circumference, or percent body fat — confirming weight-neutrality despite caloric density.
Meta-analysis Del Gobbo 2015 meta-analysis ✓ PubMed
Across 61 controlled intervention trials, tree nut intake dose-dependently reduced total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglycerides; pine nuts were minimally studied, so the effect is a tree-nut class finding.
Meta-analysis Aune 2016 dose-response meta-analysis ✓ PubMed
Pooling 20 prospective studies, ~28 g/day of nuts was associated with lower coronary heart disease, cardiovascular and all-cause mortality; benefit reflects total nut intake, not pine nuts specifically.
meta-analysis Del Gobbo 2015 (Am J Clin Nutr) ✓ Full text
Meta-analysis of 61 controlled trials (n=2,532) found tree-nut intake (mean ~67 g/d) lowered total cholesterol by 4.7 mg/dL, LDL-C by 4.8 mg/dL, ApoB and triglycerides, with dose the main determinant rather than nut type.
meta-analysis Aune 2016 (BMC Medicine) ✓ Source
Dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohorts found 28 g/d nut intake associated with ~29% lower coronary heart disease, ~21% lower CVD mortality, and ~22% lower all-cause mortality risk.
meta-analysis Viguiliouk 2014 (PLOS One) ✓ Full text
Meta-analysis of 12 RCTs (n=450) in type 2 diabetes: tree nuts (median 56 g/d) significantly lowered HbA1c by 0.07% and fasting glucose by 0.15 mmol/L vs control diets.
RCT Pasman 2008 RCT ✓ PubMed
In overweight post-menopausal women, Korean pine nut oil (rich in pinolenic acid) acutely raised the satiety hormones CCK and GLP-1 and lowered self-reported desire to eat versus placebo.
RCT Pasman 2008 (Lipids Health Dis) ✓ Full text
Double-blind crossover RCT in 42 overweight women: 2 g Korean pine nut oil free fatty acids (pinolenic acid) taken before an ad-libitum lunch reduced food intake by ~9% and prospective food intake by ~36% vs olive-oil control.
RCT Hughes 2008 (Lipids Health Dis) ✓ Full text
In 18 overweight postmenopausal women, Korean pine nut oil raised post-meal satiety hormones CCK (by up to 60%) and GLP-1 over 4 h vs control, and stimulated CCK release from enteroendocrine cells in vitro.
Cohort Guasch-Ferre 2013 (PREDIMED) ✓ PubMed
Within the PREDIMED trial, participants eating nuts >3 servings/week had ~39% lower all-cause mortality and reduced cardiovascular and cancer mortality versus non-consumers (observational analysis, all nuts).
10 sources cited · 10 verified Search all studies on PubMed ↗

Common questions about Pine Nut

What is Pine Nut used for?

Pine Nut is most often taken for May modestly improve blood lipids (lower total and LDL cholesterol) as part of the broader tree-nut evidence base, Pine nut oil and its pinolenic acid acutely increase satiety hormones (CCK, GLP-1) and can reduce short-term food intake in small trials, Source of heart-healthy unsaturated fats that displace saturated fat when substituted into the diet, Contributes vitamin E, magnesium, manganese and plant phytosterols within a generally cardioprotective dietary pattern. A tree nut whose human data is largely extrapolated from nuts as a group

Does Pine Nut work — what does the evidence say?

Preliminary evidence. Early or small human trials; promising but not yet conclusive. Direct human evidence for pine nuts specifically is limited and preliminary; most benefit is inferred from trials of tree nuts as a group, where walnuts and almonds dominate the data. A meta-analysis of 61 controlled trials (Del Gobbo 2015) found tree nuts modestly lower total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglycerides in a dose-related way, but pine nuts were barely represented. The strongest pine-nut-specific data are small acute trials of Korean pine nut oil and its pinolenic acid (Pasman 2008), which raised satiety hormones CCK and GLP-1 and reduced short-term appetite, results that are mechanistically interesting but have not translated to demonstrated weight loss. Observationally, frequent nut eaters in the PREDIMED trial and in large cohort meta-analyses (Aune 2016) show lower cardiovascular and all-cause mortality, but these are association data spanning all nuts. Bottom line: pine nuts are a reasonable component of a nut-rich heart-healthy diet, but pine-nut-specific clinical proof is thin.

What is the typical dose of Pine Nut?

1 oz (~28 g) per day, a small handful; appetite studies used ~2-3 g pine nut oil/pinolenic acid before a meal

Is Pine Nut safe? Any cautions or side effects?

Pine nuts are tree nuts and can trigger IgE-mediated allergy including anaphylaxis; people with tree-nut or peanut allergy should avoid them or consult an allergist. They are calorie-dense (~190 kcal per oz/28 g), so portions matter for weight management. Whole nuts are a choking hazard in young children. A specific quirk of pine nuts is "pine mouth" (pine nut syndrome), a harmless but unpleasant metallic/bitter taste disturbance lasting days to a couple of weeks after eating certain (often non-traditional) species. Unlike Brazil nuts there is no selenium-toxicity concern, and unlike peanuts they are a true tree nut rather than a legume and are not a notable aflatoxin source, though rancidity from their high unsaturated-fat content is possible if stored poorly.

How many studies support Pine Nut?

NutriDex cites 10 sources for Pine Nut, graded "Preliminary".

Cite this page
APA

Peh, D. (2026). Pine Nut (Pinus spp.): Benefits, Dosage, Side Effects & Evidence. NutriDex — The Supplement Research Compendium. Retrieved 26 Jun 2026, from https://nutridex.info/s/pine-nut

BibTeX
@misc{nutridex_pine_nut,
  author       = {Peh, Daryl},
  title        = {Pine Nut (Pinus spp.): Benefits, Dosage, Side Effects \& Evidence},
  year         = {2026},
  howpublished = {NutriDex --- The Supplement Research Compendium},
  url          = {https://nutridex.info/s/pine-nut},
  note         = {Reviewed by Dr Daryl Peh, MBBS Singapore, MMed FM. Accessed 2026-06-26}
}

For medical claims, citing the underlying primary studies linked above is preferred. NutriDex is an educational reference, not medical advice.

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