DOES NUT CONSUMPTION PROTECT AGAINST ISCHEMIC-HEART-DISEASE

Nuts are part of the Mediterranean tradition. For millennia, tree nuts have been in the region. Results of an epidemiological study conducte d among California Adventists provide strong evidence that frequent co nsumption of nuts have a protective effect on both fatal and non-fatal ischaemic heart disease events. The unique nutrient composition of nu ts makes it plausible that nuts favourably affect heart disease risk f actors and interfere with the process of atherogenesis. Results of rec ently conducted human nutritional studies, with varying degrees of met hodological rigour, all seem to indicate that eating nuts lowers serum cholesterol and favourably modifies the lipoprotein profile. The effe cts of nut consumption on other cardiovascular disease risk factors de serve further exploration.