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(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A handful of walnuts could go a long way to keeping your heart healthy, especially when eaten along with a meal that's high in saturated fat.
Italian researchers chalk the heart-protecting affects up to a component in walnuts called arginine. Arginine is responsible for producing nitric oxide, a gas that helps keep the arteries flexible so they can allow enough blood to pass through to the heart.
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Eating foods high in saturated fat disturbs the arteries' natural ability to produce nitric oxide, which in turn reduces the flexibility of the arteries and prevents adequate blood flow.
The investigators arrived at this finding after comparing artery flexibility among volunteers -- half with normal cholesterol levels and half with slightly elevated levels -- after they consumed high-fat meals supplemented with either walnuts or olive oil, which has also been thought to promote heart healthiness. While both walnuts and olive oil helped reduce inflammation in the face of the high-fat meals, only the walnuts produced the effect on artery flexibility.
"Each time we eat a high-fat meal, the fat molecules trigger an inflammatory reaction that, among other ill effects, reduces the elasticity of the arteries," writes study author Emilio Ros, M.D., Ph.D. "Over time, this repeated damage is thought to contribute to hardening of the arteries and, in turn, to heart disease. Our latest research shows that eating walnuts helps to maintain the elasticity of the arteries."
The authors note walnuts also contain a plant form of omega-3 fatty acid. Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish have been shown to protect the heart in numerous studies. These researchers now plan to see if the same holds true for the plant variety.
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, who offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
SOURCE: Journal of the American College of Cardiology, published online Oct. 9, 2006
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