Why pistachio nuts work in a weight-loss diet (and pretzels don't)

[Turkish Juicer]

If you are trying to lose weight by following a not-too-strict diet, a bowl of salty snacks can undermine your success. Pistachio nuts are a better choice, according to an article that researchers at the UCLA Center for Human Nutrition published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition.

Most scientists will tell you that you lose weight by consuming fewer calories than you burn, and that's the end of the story. But a growing minority say that the type of calories consumed is also important. Their motto is "A calorie is not a calorie". The more serious popular weight loss diets are partly based on this principle.

In the new appriach the wrong kind of calories tend to come from quickly absorbed carbohydrates. Epidemiologists notice that people who consume carbohydrates in the form of crisps, potato products and soft drinks put on weight more easily than the clever people who manage to eliminate these foods from their diet.

Salty snacks like pretzels also contain these extra-fattening carbohydrates. The nutritional values are reproduced below on the right.

The researchers wanted to know what the best kind of snack is for dieters: food containing healthy fats or food with a high carbohydrate content. Studies show that a diet containing lots of healthy fats in the form of olive oil or nuts is healthy, but because 'fat' has a bad name, many dieters avoid all foods that contain fat. The researchers' intention was to find out whether this is a correct assumption.



The researchers put two dozen test subjects on a diet that provided 500 kcals fewer per day than they burned for a period of 12 weeks. Every evening the subjects ate 220 kcal in the form of 56 g salted pretzels. An equal-sized group of subjects followed an identical diet, but ate 240 kcal in the form of 53 g pistachio nuts every evening. The nutritional values are shown above on the left.

The researchers discovered that the cardiovascular health improved in the pistachio group. The concentration of triglycerides [in other words fat] in their blood went down, as you can see in the figure below.





The figure above shows how the subjects' BMI changed throughout the 12 weeks that the experiment lasted. In the pretzel group the average BMI dropped from 30.9 to 30.3; in the pistachio group the drop was from 30.1 to 28.8.

In terms of kilograms this means: the pistachio group went from 86.0 to 82.3 kg, losing 3.7 kg; the pretzel group went from 85.5 to 92.8 and lost 2.7 kg. So the pistachio group lost a kilogram more than the pretzel group.

Source: J Am Coll Nutr. 2010 Jun;29(3):198-203.

ergo-log

[Brick]

Pistachio group burnt more calories opening the fvcking things

[bdos]

Pistachio group burnt more calories opening the fvcking things

Hahaha yes!

[mockery]

this is like beating a dead horse in this forum

FATS MAKE U LOSE WEIGHT

[austinite]

Love pistachios!

[jimmyinkedup]

Good post. Also when bulking one of my main additions is simply to add more nuts to my diet. Calorie dense with many benefits. Pistachios make it easier to fit them in because of their somewhat lower fat content than other nuts but I eat a variety. Alomond walnuts and pistachios seem to be my favs. Occasionally macadamia nuts as well.

[Soar]

this is like beating a dead horse in this forum

FATS MAKE U LOSE WEIGHT

I try telling this to my roommate but he insists he's right. Lol

[--->>405<<---]

im a big nut man..

[Back In Black]

im a big nut man..

That'll be the HCG . I'm not, anymore!

[--->>405<<---]

That'll be the HCG. I'm not, anymore!

u better get on it dude! unless u wanna look like a 10 yr old version of urself in a year or 2.. LOL

[Back In Black]

u better get on it dude! unless u wanna look like a 10 yr old version of urself in a year or 2.. LOL

Meh, they're shrinking anyway and I'm not bothered. My cock hasn't grown since I was 10 so it's all gonna look in proportion in a couple of weeks when they finally disappear on cycle

[--->>405<<---]

LOL.. u need to get into the HRT forum and get a lesson in the importance of HCG 's role in TRT and proper testicular function outside of producing testosterone ! dont bury ur head in the sand BIB!

[Back In Black]

LOL.. u need to get into the HRT forum and get a lesson in the importance of HCG 's role in TRT and proper testicular function outside of producing testosterone ! dont bury ur head in the sand BIB!

It's not buried mate i have read about it but HCG is not prescribed over here. It's definitely something ill consider introducing but at the moment, financial constraints mean that won't be very soon. In fact, if things don't change soon I'll be a trying a restart and not returning to TRT for a while. We'll see.

Anyway, pistachio's, my Mrs put them in a rocky road the other day!

[--->>405<<---]

dang it u need to get those docs with the program! over here not only can we get it prescribed but my insurance also pays for it! i certainly hope ur financial constraints work themselves out properly! and soon!

rocky road! i thought u were cutting?? actually what are u doing?

[Back In Black]

dang it u need to get those docs with the program! over here not only can we get it prescribed but my insurance also pays for it! i certainly hope ur financial constraints work themselves out properly! and soon!

rocky road! i thought u were cutting?? actually what are u doing?

Ah, I never said I ate any! I did try it but it was way too sweet for even my sweet tooth. I know it always seems like I'm cutting too, right!? I'm priming, a very basic carb cycling that has seen me drop a few lbs in the last month but not many. The prime stops on Friday and then the fun begins, very lean bulk aided by a little AAS