Healthy living
Healthy eating
Go nuts for pistachios
Cutting levels of <a href="../bodymatters/Cholesterol.asp">cholesterol</a> - a soft and waxy fat in the bloodstream that causes furring up of the arteries - can reduce your risk of developing <a href="../bodymatters/Top10HeartHealthQuestions.asp">heart disease</a> . And munching pistachios can help, according to researchers at Pennsylvania State University.
In the US study, volunteers were put on three different low-fat diets for a month at a time. For the first month, they ate no pistachios. For the second, they ate a small number of the <a href="NutsCutHeartDiseaseRisk.asp">nuts</a> each day. In the final month, they had three ounces of the nuts per day - about a handful. The pistachios were given as whole nuts and also incorporated into other foods such as muffins and pesto sauce.
After each month the researchers took blood tests to measure the cholesterol levels of the volunteers. The team, who reported their findings at the Experimental Biology meeting in Washington, found that the diet that included a handful of nuts daily caused the biggest decrease in blood cholesterol levels.
"Our study has shown that pistachios, eaten with a heart healthy diet, may decrease a person's cardiovascular disease risk profile," says team leader, professor of nutrition, Dr Penny Kris-Etherton.
Information on this site is for interest only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should consult your own doctor about any specific health concerns.
