Having high cholesterol is like walking around with a ticking time bomb in your pocket.

If your doctor tells you that your cholesterol is high, particularly your LDL  (“bad” cholesterol) and triglycerides — and you do nothing to address it — you could set yourself up for a heart attack or stroke.

The good news is that eating the right foods can significantly lower your cholesterol in as little as three to six months.

And while that may seem like a long time, it’s a drop in the bucket compared with the months and years of healthy life you’ll gain.

There are a lot of diet plans out there to lower cholesterol.

But one of my favorite foods is outdoing them all…

Pecans: The easier route to better cholesterol

The Step 1 Diet is a set of guidelines recommended by the American Heart Association to lower cholesterol and thus the risk of heart disease in otherwise healthy people.

In a 2001 study from the School of Public Health at Loma Linda University in California, subjects eating a pecan-enriched diet lowered their LDL cholesterol by a full ten% beyond those eating a Step 1 Diet.

Another study in 2023 compared consuming pecans to the cholesterol-effects of exercise. Those results showed:

• An average drop of 5% in total cholesterol and between 6% and 9% in LDL among participants who consumed pecans;
• By contrast, a meta-analysis of exercise interventions designed to lower cholesterol reported an average reduction of 1% in total cholesterol and 5% in LDL.

Brand-new research is once again confirming the power of pecans to lower cholesterol…  

In the latest study at Penn State’s Department of Nutritional Sciences, 138 adults with one or more criteria for metabolic syndrome were assigned to one of two groups:

• In one group, participants ate two ounces of pecans per day in place of their regular snacks;
• In the other group, participants did not change their snacking habits.

After 12 weeks, the pecan snackers showed reductions in total cholesterol, as well as in LDL, HDL, and triglycerides. compared to the non-pecan snackers.

Important, too, was the fact that pecan snackers showed a reduction in the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol.

HDL is the “good” cholesterol that carries cholesterol back to the liver for removal from the body. Improving this ratio, along with reducing LDL, further reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease.

More benefits of pecans and how to enjoy them

Pecans are my favorite nut — their smooth, buttery flavor is truly unique.

A one-ounce serving of pecans contains 17% of the recommended daily value of copper, a difficult mineral to come by.

And that same one-ounce serving of pecans offers a whopping 63% of your daily dose of manganese. In combination with other minerals, manganese is essential for bone health.

Besides controlling cholesterol, other health benefits you’ll get from eating pecans include:

• better digestion
• reduced inflammation
• improved memory
• clearer skin
• stronger bones

You don’t have to resort to pulling the pecans out of your pecan pie to enjoy this delicious and healthful nut.

One of the most delicious ways to eat pecans is to roast them. It’s easy to do.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a 350° oven, spread the nuts and toast them for about five minutes. The key here is to watch them carefully since they are easily scorched. When you smell that aromatic pecan smell, they’re probably done.

Pecans add a delicious crunch to cereals, salads and yogurt. And there’s nothing wrong with eating them raw, combined with berries or dried fruit.

Sources:

Replacing other snacks with pecans may improve cholesterol, diet quality — Eureka Alert

A monounsaturated fatty acid-rich pecan-enriched diet favorably alters the serum lipid profile of healthy men and women — Journal of Nutrition

6 ways this forgotten health nut can improve your health — Easy Health Options