Eat This, Drop Your Cholesterol

Sometimes, it's not what you take out of your diet but what you add to it that has the power to lower your lousy LDL cholesterol, raise your healthy HDL cholesterol, and maybe even chip away at your risk of diabetes.

The newest addition to your power arsenal (and your plate): Chickpeas -- also known as garbanzo beans -- the luscious legume that's pureed to make hummus (and that tastes great whole, too). People eating roughly 25 ounces of chickpeas per week -- that's a little more than 3 ounces a day (just a hill of beans, not a mountain of them) -- saw their total cholesterol and lousy LDL levels decrease and healthy HDL levels increase compared to 4 weeks on a chickpea-free diet. That's not all: Their insulin levels also improved, and they lost a small amount of weight -- without dieting OR exercising. Try this quick and easy hummus recipe.

Credit should go to the fact that these legumes fill you up with fiber (more than 5 grams in half a cup), protein (6 grams per half cup), and polyunsaturated fatty acids, all qualities your heart and your weight love. Plus, chickpeas are a great source of vitamins, minerals, and phytoestrogens.

Hummus isn't the only way to get more chickpeas into your life. Try tossing the whole beans into salads and pasta dishes. Add a new dimension to tuna salad by stirring them right in -- with some parsley and spices, if you want (like this). And make them a fixture in your three-bean salad. Easy. Healthy. Cheap. And you don't have to give up a thing. Find more fun and delicious ways to enjoy chickpeas.