Pistachios Helps Lower Stress in Diabetics

Eating pistachios helps reduce stress in people with type-2 diabetes, a new research shows.

In the study, the researchers determined the effects of pistachios to standardized stress task responses in type-2 diabetics. The study participants were given meals that contained the same amount of calories.

A typical American diet has 36 percent fat and 12 percent saturated fats. The participants were randomly assigned to one of the two test diets for two weeks. participants were oberved inthe four-week study.

The tests conducted were standard heart-healthy diet containing 27 percent fat and 7 percent saturated fat, and a diet containing two daily servings or three ounces of pistachios.

According to the researchers, the pistachio diet contained 33 percent fat and 7 percent saturated fat, and half of the nuts consumed each day were salted, and half were unsalted. The team measured the blood pressure of the participants and total peripheral vascular resistance at rest along with the two stress tests. The tests were done after each four-week diet period.

"In adults with diabetes, two servings of pistachios per day lowered vascular constriction during stress and improved neural control of the heart," lead researcher Sheila G. West, professor of biobehavioral health and nutritional sciences, said in a press release. "Although nuts are high in fat, they contain good fats, fiber, potassium and antioxidants. Given the high risk of heart disease in people with diabetes, nuts are an important component of a heart healthy diet in this population."

"After the pistachio diet, blood vessels remained more relaxed and open during the stress tests," West said.

According to West, the team found systolic blood pressure during sleep to be affected by pistachios. "Average sleep blood pressure was reduced by about 4 points and this would be expected to lower workload on the heart."

The study results also showed that despite feeling stressed during the tests, the findings showed that the pistachio diet significantly lowered their bodies' responses to stress.

"If sustained with longer term treatment, these improvements in sleep blood pressure, vascular response to stress and vagal control of the heart could reduce risk of heart disease in this high risk group," West said.

The findings are published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.