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Indulge in This Creamy Snack for Better Cholesterol
This Week's Tips
Next time you're yearning for something rich and creamy, here's an almost guilt-free indulgence your ticker will love: peanut butter.
Grab a spoonful. Not only will you be enjoying rich and satisfying taste, but also you could be helping to lower both your bad cholesterol and your risk of heart disease.
Spread a Little Joy
In one long-term study, women with type 2 diabetes enjoyed an almost 45 percent lower risk for cardiovascular disease and heart attack when they gave in and ate at least five servings of peanut butter and mixed nuts each week. This was compared with women who noshed less often on nutty snacks. And those five weekly 1-ounce helpings seemed to knock down the women's total and LDL cholesterol levels, too. Are your cholesterol levels putting your heart in danger? Find out here.
Nuts for All Hearts
Nutrients in peanuts and nuts may help hearts in a couple of ways. They may minimize inflammation -- something your heart really could do without -- and they may help your body use insulin better. Because of this, women with type 2 diabetes probably aren't the only ones who can benefit from eating nuts and peanut butter. In fact, research suggests that nuts may lower heart disease risk for everyone -- regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, or health status. Try these other heart-healthy changes, too:
- Step it up. Find out if your pedometer might be lying.
- Yuck it up. Here's how laughter helps your heart.
- Eat up. These foods will please both your heart and your taste buds.
Bonus: Nuts may stave off diabetes, too.
RealAge Benefit:
Lowering your bad (LDL) cholesterol can make your RealAge 3.3 years younger if you are a man and 0.6 years younger if you are a woman.
Regular consumption of nuts is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease in women with type 2 diabetes. Li, T. Y. et al., Journal of Nutrition 2009 Jul;139(7):1333-1338.
