To avoid becoming overweight, which can make you more susceptible to serious health problems, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, you should eat a sensible diet that contains a limited amount of fat. While pistachio nuts are high in fat, most of the fat is heart-healthy type. Additionally, according to David J. Baer Ph.D. with the Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, scientific research indicates that the fat from pistachio nuts is poorly absorbed through the gastrointestinal tract, which means that adding pistachios to your diet can support weight management.
Fat and Calories
Twenty to 35 percent of your calories should come from fat. Based on a 2,000-calorie diet, this means you should consume 44 to 78 g of fat daily. Most of this fat should be unsaturated, which is a healthy fat. One 49-piece serving of pistachios contains about 157 calories and 13 g of fat, of which only 1.5 g are saturated, or unhealthy, fat.
Considerations
Among nuts, pistachios are one of the most nutritious and least fattening. One reason for this is that pistachios are typically served in shells, and the act of taking them out of their shells can cause you to eat them slowly, allowing your body to signal satiety before you eat too many. Another reason is that the empty shells act as a reminder of how much you have eaten. A pile of shells may cue you to stop eating the nuts before you might remember to stop eating nuts without shells.
Heart Health
Pistachios offer heart-health benefits, which are important especially if you are overweight or if you have other heart risk factors. A study performed at Pennsylvania State University and published in September 2008 in the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" indicates that eating pistachios can lower your cholesterol level when combined with a diet low in fat. In the study, participants with the greatest cholesterol reduction ate two servings of pistachios daily. If you have high cholesterol, talk to your doctor about whether eating pistachios as part of a lower-fat diet may benefit you.
More Pistachio Benefits
There is evidence that eating pistachios as part of a heart-healthy diet may carry other benefits as well, reports EurekAlert. The nuts may lower your stress levels as well as your blood pressure, which can reduce your risk of stroke and heart attack, according to a 2008 Pennsylvania State University study. A University of Toronto study led by Dr. Cyril Kendall and Dr. David Jenkins showed that when pistachios are eaten with carbohydrates, they may help decrease the spike in blood sugar that can otherwise occur due to the carbohydrates. These benefits can make pistachios a sensible, non-fattening addition to your diet.
References
- EurekAlert; Nutrition research unveiled this week shows pistachios are smart for the heart; A'ndrea Elyse Messer; April 8, 2008
- "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; Effects of pistachios on cardiovascular disease risk factors; Sarah K Gebauer et al; Sept. 2008
- EurekAlert; Pistachios deliver weight management support, heart health benefits; Kelly Plowe, M.S.; April 11, 2011
- MayoClinic.com; Fat Grams: How to Track Your Dietary Fat; Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.; March 26, 2011
