Eating Nuts Reduces Cholesterol Levels
Written by Trixie Webb on Tuesday, May 11th, 2010
The US research recommends eating nuts can help decrease cholesterol levels. There were 600 people involved in the review of 25 studies. The review showed eating on average of 67 grams of nuts everyday reduced cholesterol levels by 7.4%.
Nuts may block cholesterol absorption. The study showed nuts are important part of a healthy diet, not including those nuts coated with sugar or salt. While nuts were improving cholesterol levels, it also reduced the amount of triglyceride which is a type of blood fat that has been linked to heart illnesses.
However, it is not yet clear why nuts have this effect, although there is one suggestion that has been raised and that is related to the plant sterols they contain, which are considered to interfere with cholesterol absorption.
Lead researcher Joan Sabate said that the effects of nut consumption were dose related and different types of nuts had similar effects. She also highly recommends increasing nut consumption as part of a healthy diet.