Nuts reduce cholesterol via monounsaturated fatty acids.Adults who consume a short-term macadamia macadamia (măk'ədā`mēə), name for the nut of the Macadamia ternifolia, an evergreen tree native to Australia, but cultivated in Hawaii. The nuts, also called Queensland nuts, are eaten roasted or raw. nut-enriched diet have significantly lower cholesterol levels than those who consume a control diet. * Macadamia nuts contain low levels of saturated fats and high levels of monounsaturated fatty acids.[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In this five-week study, 25 men and women with slightly elevated cholesterol were randomly assigned to the macadamia diet (1.5 ounces/day) or an average American diet. Total fat in the diets was the same; only the percentages of saturated and monounsaturated fats differed. At five weeks, the macadamia diet was associated with a 9% reduction in both serum total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein low-density lipoprotein n. Abbr. LDL A lipoprotein that contains relatively high amounts of cholesterol and is associated with an increased risk of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease. (LDL LDL - ["LDL: A Logic-Based Data-Language", S. Tsur et al, Proc VLDB 1986, Kyoto Japan, Aug 1986, pp.33-41]. ) compared with controls. Other cholesterol measures, such as the ratio of LDL to beneficial high-density lipoprotein high-density lipoprotein n. Abbr. HDL A lipoprotein that contains relatively small amounts of cholesterol and triglycerides and is associated with a decreased risk of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease. (HDL (Hardware Description Language) A language used to describe the functions of an electronic circuit for documentation, simulation or logic synthesis (or all three). Although many proprietary HDLs have been developed, Verilog and VHDL are the major standards. ), also improved significantly after the macadamia diet. Research studies show that nuts are beneficial to reduce levels of LDL and prevent cardiovascular disease. This study indicates that macadamia nuts are a good substitute for saturated fats in the diet. Reference * Griel AE, Cao Y, Bagshaw DD, Cifelli AM, Holub B, Kris-Etherton PM. A macadamia nut-rich diet reduces total and LDL-cholesterol in mildly hypercholesterolemic men and women. J Nutr. 2008 Apr;138(4):761-7. --Laura J. Ninger, ELS |
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