Research: Avocados Can Lower Cholesterol and Cardiovascular Risk

Liputan6.com, Jakarta Avocado one of the fruits that have benefits for the body because it is healthy. A person who eats at least two or more servings of avocado per week will help lower the risk of cardiovascular disease.

The idea was created because of the publication of a study in the Journal of the American Heart Association. Launching the Times of Oman page, Sunday (4/24/2022), avocados contain dietary fiber, monounsaturated fats especially monounsaturated (healthy fats) and other beneficial components that have been linked to cardiovascular health.

Previous clinical trials have found that avocados have a positive impact on cardiovascular risk factors including high cholesterol.

“Our study provides further evidence that intake of plant-sourced unsaturated fats can improve diet quality and is an important component in the prevention of cardiovascular disease,” said study lead author Lorena S. Pacheco. Pacheco is also a research associate in the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health in Boston.

Researchers believe this is the first large prospective study to support a positive association between higher avocado consumption and lower cardiovascular events, such as coronary heart disease and stroke.

“This is a particularly important finding because avocado consumption has increased markedly in the US in the last 20 years, according to data from the US Department of Agriculture,” he added.

For 30 years, the researchers followed more than 68,780 women aged 30-55 from the Nurses’ Health Study and more than 41,700 men aged 40-75 from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study.

All study participants were free of cancer, coronary heart disease and stroke at study entry and resided in the United States.

The investigators documented 9,185 events of coronary heart disease and 5,290 strokes over more than 30 years of follow-up.

Researchers assessed the participants’ diet using a food frequency questionnaire administered at the start of the study and every four years.

They calculated avocado intake from questionnaire items that asked the amount and frequency of consumption. One serving is equivalent to half an avocado or half a cup of avocado.

The results, after taking into account various cardiovascular risk factors and overall diet, study participants who ate at least two servings of avocado each week had a 16 percent lower risk of cardiovascular disease and a 21 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease compared with participants who never or rarely ate. avocado.

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