Although cashews and other tree nuts are calorie-dense foods, they're also loaded with healthy fats that help reduce your risk of coronary heart disease, heart attack and stroke. Cashews are packed with protein, dietary fibers and a rich supply of essential minerals and vitamins that contribute to overall health.
Risk Factors
If you have excess cholesterol and fats in your bloodstream, these substances combine to create hard plaques inside the walls of the arteries that serve your heart. When these plaques reduce the flow of oxygen and other vital nutrients to your heart muscles, you have coronary heart disease. You can help prevent, or even reverse, plaque formation by incorporating moderate amounts of healthy fats as part of a therapeutic lifestyle change, or TLC, diet.
Lowering Your Risk
The plant protein found in cashews lowers your total cholesterol level and the vitamin E may reduce plaque formation, reports the Mayo Clinic's website. The omega-3 fatty acids can remove excess fats from your blood, while both polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats lower levels of the "bad" low-density lipoproteins, or LDL, cholesterol that builds up inside your arteries. The combined effect of the healthy nutrients in cashews can help lower your risk of developing coronary heart disease.
Expert Insight
Cashews and other tree nuts are such an important part of a heart-healthy diet that the American Heart Association recommends you eat at least four servings of nuts, legumes or seeds every week. MayoClinic.com lists a daily handful of nuts as one of the top five foods to lower your blood cholesterol.
Tips
Cashew butter has some of the same heart-healthy advantages as whole cashews, but some manufacturers create unhealthy trans fatty acids when they hydrogenate the butter to make it creamier and easier to spread. Check health food stores and the natural food section of your local supermarket for cashew butters that need to be stirred before use.
Warnings
Even though cashews have plenty of healthy nutrients, a 1 oz. serving contains 163 calories. Stick with dry roasted varieties of cashews and avoid cashew products that are coated with salt, sugar or chocolate. Rather than sitting in front of the television with a bowel of cashews, think of the nuts as a garnish to sprinkle on low-fat yogurt, salads or casseroles.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Nuts and Your Heart: Eating Nuts for Heart Health
- USDA National Nutrient Database: Cashews
- National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute: Coronary Heart Disease Explained
- American Heart Association: Healthy Diet Goals
- MayoClinic.com: Cholesterol: Top Five Foods to Lower Your Numbers
- Cleveland Clinic: The Whole Truth and Nutting But the Truth
