Could Brazil Nuts Work Like A Pill To Lower Cholesterol?

A study suggests consuming four Brazil nuts daily may lower cholesterol for up to a month. The research explores the nuts' potential as a natural dietary intervention for cardiovascular health.

A study suggests consuming four Brazil nuts daily may lower cholesterol for up to a month. The research explores the nuts' potential as a natural dietary intervention for cardiovascular health. The headline-grabbing experiment was small, involving around 10 people, and researchers measured participants' cholesterol after one, three, six, nine, and 24 hours, then again after 48 hours, five days, and 30 days. The most dramatic response came from the 20-gram group, which amounted to roughly four nuts, with average LDL cholesterol reportedly falling by about 20 milligrams per deciliter within 24 hours, dropping from approximately 85 to 65. Levels remained similarly low at the later measurements, including the 30-day mark, although the participants' LDL levels were not especially high to begin with, making the size of the decline even more striking. The study also recorded an increase in HDL, commonly called "good" cholesterol. Mic the Vegan, the nutrition-focused YouTuber known for examining research through a plant-based lens, recently took a closer look at that surprising finding. In his video, he explores studies on Brazil nuts, cholesterol, inflammation, selenium, and blood vessel function, while asking whether the results are scientifically convincing or simply too good to be true. The study was not an industry-funded project, according to Mic, and it received grant support from Brazil's National Council for Scientific and Technological Development. Nevertheless, it had clear limitations, as the group was extremely small and the trial was not randomized, meaning a single experiment of this size cannot establish that four Brazil nuts will reliably lower everyone's cholesterol for a month. A later meta-analysis examining three randomized trials found no significant overall difference in LDL cholesterol, which seems to undermine the original finding. One randomized trial involving children with obesity reported a roughly 14-point reduction in LDL, a result broadly consistent with the initial experiment, while the other trials used defatted Brazil nut flour rather than whole nuts, a distinction that may matter because removing the fat also changes the food's overall nutritional composition. Another trial included participants with elevated cardiovascular risk, around 80 percent of whom were taking statins, and the Brazil nut flour group still showed a nonsignificant trend toward a five-point reduction in LDL. Taken together, the evidence for using Brazil nuts to lower cholesterol remains intriguing but far from conclusive, with the strongest results appearing in studies involving whole nuts and participants who are not already taking powerful lipid-lowering medication. Brazil nuts are famous for their selenium content, as a single nut can contain more than the recommended daily amount, which is why they are sometimes treated almost like a supplement within vegan diets. Selenium supports antioxidant enzymes, including glutathione peroxidase, which helps neutralize peroxides that can contribute to oxidative stress, DNA damage, and the oxidation of LDL cholesterol. One proposed explanation is that selenium may influence HMG-CoA reductase, an enzyme also targeted by statin medications, although selenium supplements alone have generally not produced cholesterol reductions comparable to those seen in the Brazil nut study.

Read source: Plant Based News