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Article: Nuts, beans, vegetable compounds can help reduce heart disease risk.(Food)
- Article from:
- Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, IL)
- Article date:
- September 9, 2009
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Paddock Publications. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Karen Collins American Institute for Cancer Research
Q. Do phytosterols reduce risk of heart disease?
A. Phytosterols, also called plant sterols, are compounds with a chemical structure similar to cholesterol that occur naturally in a variety of plant foods.
For people with high blood cholesterol, phytosterols may reduce heart disease risk by decreasing absorption of cholesterol, lowering levels in the blood.
Studies show that consuming 2 grams of phytosterols daily can lower LDL ("bad") cholesterol by about 10 percent. Recently, some research has questioned whether overall heart risk is reduced, but overall recommendations for ...