A new study, developed by a team of scientists from Pennsylvania State University (USA), affirms that the consumption of an avocado a day as part of a moderate-fat diet can help reduce bad cholesterol in all those people overweight or obese. Keeping LDL cholesterol (or bad cholesterol) at bay can therefore become a very satisfactory job if we are lovers of this fruit native to Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador .
For their research, the experts had the participation of 45 healthy, overweight or obese people, aged between 21 and 70 years. The volunteers followed a typical American diet, that is, with a high fat content, for two weeks. After this time, they carried out three types of diets: a low-fat one without avocado, another moderate-fat one without avocado and finally, a moderate-fat diet but with the exception of including a daily avocado in the intake.
The results of their analyzes revealed that LDL cholesterol was lower in the diet that included avocado compared to the other two diets that did not have this fruit. In addition, the analyzed blood samples also showed a reduction in total cholesterol and triglycerides.
The conclusions of the study, which have been published in the Journal of the American Heart Association , show that the substitution of the saturated fatty acids , present in many diets, for the unsaturated ones in avocados, lead us to a heart-healthy diet , since both its best fats and the micronutrients and bioactive components it has, can substantially help reduce the risk of heart disease.
