Are
you a nut about almonds? If so, feel free to eat them as often as you like,
researchers say. Six studies presented this week at the 2002 Experimental
Biology conference in New Orleans add more support for eating almonds. Studies
have shown that almonds protect against cell damage, and they lower
"bad" cholesterol, which helps reduce the risk of heart disease.
Researchers
at the University of Toronto found that people who ate about 1 ounce or a
handful of almonds each day lowered their LDL cholesterol by nearly 3 percent.
The study showed an even greater decrease in LDL cholesterol in men and women
who ate about two handfuls a day, meaning that the effect of almonds at lowering
cholesterol does not end at a handful.
At the same time, all of the people in the study, those who ate 1 ounce and
those who ate more, maintained their weight the entire time.
But what about the fat content that's always prevalent in nuts?
We may be getting less fat from almonds than we thought. A study from King's
College in London showed that the cell walls of almonds may play a role in the
body's absorption of the fat in almonds. When eating almonds, chewing only
disrupted some of the cell walls, leaving some of the almond intact.
"This is exciting new research," said Dr. Karen Lapsley. "Because
some of the almond remained intact, not all of the fat was released for
digestion.
This suggests that almonds may be a lower-calorie food than suspected because
not all of the calories from fat are absorbed." Don't throw away the almond
skin, though: A study from Tufts University suggested that the nutrients found
in almonds and in their skin, together, may offer a significantly higher amount
of protection than when those nutrients are isolated from each other.
Another study, from the University of California at Davis, suggested there are
antioxidant compounds in almond skin -- in addition to its naturally occurring
form of vitamin E -- that may provide positive health effects when eaten with
the meat of the almond. Some of the studies received funding from the Almond
Board of California.
