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Summary: Don't be afraid
to go nuts over nuts - they
could save your life!
Here's a really nutty idea
for preventing heart
disease: Eat more almonds.
While it's true that almonds
are high in fat, it's
important to remember that
they're high in
monounsaturated fats, the
kind that protect the heart.
Data from the Harvard
Nurses' Health Study shows
that women who consumed more
than five ounces of nuts a
week lowered their risk of
heart disease by 35%,
compared with women who
rarely ate nuts. And another
study done at Harvard's
School of Public Health
found that eating nuts at
least twice a week reduced
the risk of having a second
heart attack by 25% among
4,000 people.
To get more almonds in your
diet, you might try drinking
them. All natural almond
milk is a dairy alternative
that's high in protein,
fortified with vitamins A, D
and E, a good source of
calcium and 100% lactose and
cholesterol free. Found in
health food stores, it can
be used for cooking and
lactose intolerance, and
it's lower in calories than
other nondairy drinks.
 Almonds contain significant
stores of antioxidants (35%
of the daily recommended
value for vitamin E), as
well as fiber, arginine--a
protein that keeps arteries
elastic--and phytochemicals
known as plant sterols,
which help lower harmful LDL
cholesterol levels while
maintaining beneficial HDL
levels. A three-month study
done at Loma Linda
University and presented at
the Experimental Biology
2000 conference found that
when participants added just
two ounces of almonds a day
to their already
low-saturated fat and
cholesterol diet, their
levels of harmful LDL
cholesterol dropped even
lower.
"It's all the components
working together," explains
Gene Spiller, Ph.D.,
director of the Health
Research and Studies Center
in Los Altos, California.
"It's the fiber, the
unsaturated fats, the
arginine, the plant sterols
and other phytochemicals.
They all work together to
lower cholesterol and
prevent heart disease."
Though high in calories, the
good news is that almonds
can be part of a
heart-healthy weight-loss
plan if eaten in moderation.
A recent Harvard study found
that when almonds--along
with other nuts and olive
oil, also good sources of
monounsaturated fat--were
added to a low-fat diet,
participants lost as much
weight as those who were on
a low-calorie, low-fat diet.
And six months later,
dieters eating nuts and
olive oil had maintained
their weight, while those on
the low-calorie, low-fat
diet were putting the pounds
back on. Researchers believe
that the nuts' varied
flavors make it easier for
people to stick to their
diets--good news for your
taste buds, body and
self-confidence.
Article published with
permission of
www.psychologytoday.com
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