Pistachios--wikipedia
If you’re nuts about nuts, you may be glad to know that eating a moderate amount of the “right” ones can help bring down cholesterol levels. In fact, the first study of how pistachios lower cholesterol was completed recently, and it is just one of many investigations into how different nuts can reduce this contributor to heart disease and stroke.
Nuts and heart health
Since 2003, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has allowed food manufacturers to claim that consuming a moderate amount of certain nuts, when part of a low-fat diet, can be beneficial for your heart. Among the nuts named by the FDA were almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, pistachios, and walnuts. Also named were peanuts, which are a legume, not a nut.
Almonds--wikipedia
Nut and cholesterol studies
A Pennsylvania State University study focused solely on the benefit of pistachios and found that the nut—which is grown in California (the top US producer) and Arizona (number 2 producer)—helps reduce levels of “bad” cholesterol, also known as low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.
The study evaluated 28 adults who had high levels of LDL at the beginning of the study. For two weeks, the participants ate a standard American diet, which is high in fat. They did not, however, include any pistachios.
This portion of the study was followed by three four-week segments, during which the participants followed (1) a low-fat diet without pistachios; (2) a low-fat diet that included one serving of pistachios daily; and (3) a low-fat diet that included two daily servings of pistachios. The participants took two-week breaks between each type of diet.
When the participants ate one daily serving of pistachios, their LDL cholesterol levels declined by 9 percent; when they had two servings, it fell by 12 percent. LDL cholesterol levels did not fall when participants ate the low-fat diet alone.
Other nut and cholesterol studies
A study that evaluated hazelnuts found that men with high cholesterol who followed a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet for four weeks and added 40 grams of hazelnuts daily experienced a 5.2 percent drop in total cholesterol, 3.3 percent decline in LDL cholesterol, and 12.6 percent rise in “good” HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol.
The pride of Arizona—pecans—also are beneficial. A 2001 study found that adding pecans to the diet reduced LDL cholesterol by 10.4 percent and raised HDL cholesterol by 5.6 percent.
Pecans, shelled and unshelled--Wikipedia
Enjoying nuts
Because nuts are high in calories, moderation—1 to 1.5 ounces daily--is the secret when you eat them for health benefits. If weight gain is a problem, it’s important to add nuts without adding extra calories, so use them in place of foods that contain less healthy fats, like baked goods, dairy, and meat.
Although many nuts can help lower cholesterol, a few are very high in fat and so should be consumed with caution. They include Brazil nuts, cashews, and macadamia nuts.
When choosing nuts, select dry roasted, unsalted varieties. Farmers markets and health food stores (see below) often offer them in these forms.
For more information about nuts and where to get them in the Phoenix area, see the following:
Arizona Pecan Growers Association
Downtown Phoenix Public Market
Or: List of Phoenix area farmers markets
Want to read more articles by the Phoenix Alternative Medicine Examiner? Please subscribe at the top of this column to receive e-mail updates.
Other articles by the Phoenix Alternative Medicine Examiner
Comments