If nuts are a super-food, then almonds are a super-super-food. New research has discovered that the nuts help reduce the risk of heart disease by keeping arteries healthy. Almonds increase the amount of antioxidants in the bloodstream, reduce blood pressure and improve blood flow.
And these benefits can be seen within a month of snacking on 50g of almonds a day, researchers at Aston University in Birmingham have found. They added the nuts to the diets of one group of men, while the rest carried on with their normal diets, which didn’t include almonds.
Those who ate the almonds for a month had higher levels of antioxidants in their blood, better blood flow and lower blood pressure.
Almonds are full of healthy fats and vitamin E, and could be a key ingredient in the Mediterranean diet.
And the take-home message – aside from eating almonds every day – is that it’s never too late to start. As beneficial effects can be seen within a month, they could help you as well, said lead researcher Prof Helen Griffiths.
