April 19, 2024

30-Year Study Finds Eating Two Servings of Avocados a Week Linked to Lower Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

A 30-year research study of more than 110,000 health specialists discovered that individuals who consumed at least two servings of avocado a week had a lower danger of cardiovascular illness compared to those who seldom ate avocados.
Changing animal items like butter, cheese, or bacon with avocado was also connected with a lower threat of heart disease occasions.

Consuming two or more portions of avocado weekly was associated with a lower threat of cardiovascular disease, and substituting avocado for specific fat-containing foods like butter, cheese, or processed meats was related to a lower risk of cardiovascular illness events, according to new research released today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, an open access, peer-reviewed journal of the American Heart Association.
Avocados contain dietary fiber, unsaturated fats particularly monounsaturated fat (healthy fats) and other favorable elements that have been associated with good cardiovascular health. Medical trials have actually previously discovered avocados have a positive influence on cardiovascular danger factors consisting of high cholesterol.

Scientists think this is the first, large, potential research study to support the favorable association in between higher avocado consumption and lower cardiovascular events, such as coronary heart disease and stroke.
” Our research study offers additional proof that the consumption of plant-sourced unsaturated fats can improve diet plan quality and is a crucial part in heart disease avoidance,” stated Lorena S. Pacheco, Ph.D., M.P.H., R.D.N., lead author of the study and a postdoctoral research study fellow in the nutrition department at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston. “These are particularly notable findings because the intake of avocados has actually increased steeply in the U.S. in the last 20 years, according to information from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.”
For 30 years, scientists followed more than 68,780 females (ages 30 to 55 years) from the Nurses Health Study and more than 41,700 males (ages 40 to 75 years) from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. They determined avocado consumption from a survey item that asked about the quantity taken in and frequency. One serving equaled half of a half or an avocado cup of avocado.
The analysis discovered:

For 30 years, researchers followed more than 68,780 women (ages 30 to 55 years) from the Nurses Health Study and more than 41,700 males (ages 40 to 75 years) from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. All research study individuals were complimentary of cancer, coronary heart illness and stroke at the start of the research study and living in the United States. They calculated avocado consumption from a questionnaire product that asked about the quantity taken in and frequency. One serving equaled half of an avocado or a half cup of avocado.
“Although no one food is the solution to consistently eating a healthy diet plan, this study is proof that avocados have possible health benefits.

After considering a large range of cardiovascular risk factors and general diet, study individuals who consumed at least two servings of avocado weekly had a 16% lower risk of heart disease and a 21% lower threat of coronary cardiovascular disease, compared to those who never ever or hardly ever ate avocados.
Based on statistical modeling, replacing half a serving daily of margarine, butter, egg, yogurt, cheese or processed meats such as bacon with the very same quantity of avocado was connected with a 16% to 22% lower threat of cardiovascular disease occasions.
Replacing half a serving a day of avocado for the comparable quantity of olive oil, nuts and other plant oils revealed no fringe benefit.
No significant associations were noted in relation to stroke danger and how much avocado was eaten.

The studys results supply additional assistance for healthcare experts to share. Offering the suggestion to “change particular spreads and saturated fat-containing foods, such as cheese and processed meats, with avocado is something doctors and other health care professionals such as signed up dietitians can do when they satisfy with clients, especially because avocado is a well-accepted food,” Pacheco stated.
The research study aligns with the American Heart Associations guidance to follow the Mediterranean diet– a dietary pattern concentrated on fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, fish and other healthy foods and plant-based fats such as olive, canola, sesame and other non-tropical oils.
” These findings are significant because a healthy dietary pattern is the foundation for cardiovascular health, nevertheless, it can be hard for many Americans to achieve and adhere to healthy eating patterns,” said Cheryl Anderson, Ph.D., M.P.H., FAHA, chair of the American Heart Associations Council on Epidemiology and Prevention.
” We desperately require techniques to improve consumption of AHA-recommended healthy diet plans– such as the Mediterranean diet– that are abundant in fruits and veggies,” said Anderson, who is teacher and dean of the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science at University of California San Diego. “Although nobody food is the solution to regularly consuming a healthy diet, this study is evidence that avocados have possible health advantages. This is appealing because it is a food product that is popular, accessible, simple and desirable to consist of in meals eaten by numerous Americans at home and in restaurants.”
2 other constraints of the research study include data collection and the composition of the research study population. The research study analyses might be affected by measurement mistakes since dietary consumption was self-reported.
Reference: 30 March 2022, Journal of the American Heart Association.10.1161/ JAHA.121.024014.
Co-authors are Yanping Li, Ph.D.; Eric B. Rimm, Sc.D.; JoAnn E. Manson, M.D., Dr.P.H.; Qi Sun, M.D., Sc.D., M.M.S.; Kathryn Rexrode, M.D., M.P.H.; Frank B. Hu, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H.; and Marta Guasch-Ferré, Ph.D
. The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, a department of the National Institutes of Health and the Harvard Chan Yerby Fellowship at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.