Olive Oil and Nuts Better Than Drugs For Your Heart!

HEART-HEALTHY NUTRITIONAL STUDY
FROM SPAIN...

Diet High In Olive Oil and Nuts Are Better

Than Drugs for Reducing Heart Disease,
According To Cardio-Health Researchers

Early results from a Spanish cohort study featuring 7500 people with heart disease risk have found Mediterranean diets high in virgin olive oil and nuts including: walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts are more effective in reducing heart disease event likelihood than drug treatments.

The team of Spanish researchers published initial findings in the trial that
is due to complete next year in Atherosclerosis, reporting significant improvements in groups eating traditional Mediterranean diets plus
virgin olive oil or nuts, compared to those on a low-fat diet.

Among the people over 55 artery thickness was lower in the virgin olive
oil and nut groups but only among those who already had somewhat thickened arteries.They explained the findings emphasized the value
of dietary versus prescribed pharmacological interventions in controlling
the likelihood of a cardiovascular event.

They showed that, "a modification in the entire diet pattern managed to achieve, in just one year, results pharmaceutical drugs did not, even after two years of treatment.""This improvement was not observed among those who did not have thickening of the artery wall at the start of the study."

The study places each volunteer in one of three groups following a Mediterranean diet with the virgin olive oil group receiving 15 litres of
virgin olive oil per three months, a nut group given 30grams a day of walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts, and a third group given instructions
and material to follow a low-fat diet.

"We thus observed who had suffered the greatest thickening of this layer, due to arteriosclerosis, a significant improvement and regression of
lesions having taken place in those cases that had followed a Mediterranean diet enriched with virgin olive oil or nuts," said the researchers.

The results showed the nut and virgin olive oil groups after three months
had improved adolipoprotein ratios that delivered lower heart disease
risk for both men and women.

For men, the number at high-risk dropped 5%, while 16.6% of women
fell from high-medium status to low cardio-metabolic risk.

"Data from this study provide further evidence to recommend a TMD rich
in virgin olive oil as a useful tool for controlling CHD risk, particularly in individuals at high risk for developing CHD," they concluded.

The project is co-joined by the Department of Neurology at University Hospital of Navarra, the Primary Health Care services of Osasunbidea
(the Navarre Public Health Service), the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona
and the Institute of Fat of Seville.

Source:
Atherosclerosis
Volume 218, Issue 1 , September 2011, Pages 174-180
"Effect of a traditional Mediterranean diet on apolipoproteins B, A-I,
and their ratio: A randomized, controlled trial"

This article is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Consult with your doctor or
healthcare professional for medical and nutrition advice.