New research has found that just swapping out one serving of meat for nuts can improve your health.

Suggestions from researchers at the University of Ohio say that a handful of nuts or legumes a day instead of meat can reduce the risk of an early death by 17%.

The study found when participants closely followed the Alternative Healthy Eating Diet (which includes foods that reduce chronic disease risk) or the Alternative Mediterranean Diet (which emphasizes vegetables, fish and olive oil), they experienced a 20% improvement in their health.

To get their findings, the University studied the diets of over 47,000 women and 25,00 men over the course of 12 years. Participants who strayed from their diet the most over the 12-year period were 6-12% more likely to die at an early age.