X-Message-Number: 25734
Date: Sun, 27 Feb 2005 20:39:36 -0800 (PST)
From: Doug Skrecky <>
Subject: macadamia nuts increase exercise tolerance

[...and lower cholesterol, body weight, stroke risk...
Too bad macadamia nuts are so darned expensive.  8(  ]

Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol. 2004 Dec;31 Suppl 2:S37-8.
Serum lipid effects of a monounsaturated (palmitoleic) Fatty Acid-rich diet
based on macadamia nuts in healthy, young Japanese women.
  Summary 1. Recent studies have identified potential beneficial effects
of eating nuts,  most of which have substantial amounts of monounsaturated
fatty acids (MUFA). Macadamia nuts consist of 75% fat by weight, 80% of
which is MUFA (palmitoleic acid). 2. To examine variations in serum lipid
levels in response to a high-MUFA diet based on macadamia nuts, 3 week
interventions of macadamia nuts, coconuts and butter were determined in
young, healthy Japanese female students. 3. After 3 weeks intervention,
serum concentrations of total cholesterol and low-density
lipoprotein-cholesterol were significantly decreased in the macadamia nut
and coconut diets and bodyweight and body mass index were decreased in
the group fed macadamia nuts, although there were no statistically
significant changes in the group fed butter

Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2004;13(Suppl):S48.
Macadamia or olive oil enriched diets induce changes in heart structure
and function similar to regular exercise in rats.
  Background- Previously, we found that the hearts of rats fed olive oil
as a sole fat source developed non-pathological hypertrophy, characterised
by larger left ventricular volumes, increased cardiac outputs, and a
greater resistance to ischaemic stress. These changes are similar to
those observed in 6-week exercis trained rats on a standard rat chow
(SRC) diet. Objectives- to determine if dietary macadamia and olive oil
(oleic acid rich), generate similar adaptations in heart physiology, and
to test if such changes translate into an endurance advantage. Design-
Rats were divided into 3 groups of 12 rats. Each group received one of
three diets differing only in oil source. One group received a control
diet (SRC), one group received a diet containing extra virgin olive oil,
and one group received a diet containing macadamia oil. Each diet group
of rats was further divided into two subgroups of 6 rats, one subgroup
being run-trained for 30min/day run at 0.8km/h for 5 days on a treadmill.
The other subgroup was left untrained. All rat  were run challenged to
exhaustion on the 6th day and rested on the 7th. After 7 weeks of diet
with or without exercise training, rats underwent in vivo echocardiography
to calculate cardiac function. Hearts were then isolated and
perfused to examine tolerance to 20 min of ischemia followed by 30 min of
reperfusion. Outcomes- Improved cardiac structure, endurance performance
in vivo and recovery after ischaemia in animals fed macadamia or olive
oil, compared to the control diet. Exercise did not appear additive to
diet although macadamia fed animals had the highest exercise endurance
times. Conclusions- These findings suggest macadamia oil confers similar
beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system to those seen with olive
oil. These favourable events resemble (but are not amplified by) those
evoked by regular exercise in rats.

J Hypertens Suppl. 1986 Oct;4(3):S449-52.
Dietary prevention of stroke and its mechanisms in stroke-prone
spontaneously hypertensive rats--preventive effect of dietary fibre and
palmitoleic acid.
  Previously it was reported that dietary protein, some amino acids and
potassium are effective in preventing stroke in stroke-prone spontaneously
hypertensive rats (SHRSP). The present study revealed that other dietary
factors could also prevent cerebral lesions, and the mechanism of this
effect was studied. In SHRSP given 1% NaCl in their drinking water, a diet
containing 10% active fibre (powdered brown seaweed converted to K+ form)
significantly lowered blood pressure (BP) and markedly reduced the
incidence of stroke (0 versus 100% in controls on the 30th
day of experiment). Since the faecal to urinary sodium (Na) excretion
ratio was increased in this group and a similar increase in faecal Na
content was noted in SHRSP given a diet containing 10% alginic acid, the
inhibition of intestinal Na absorption by alginic acid in the seaweed
fibre was considered to be a possible preventive mechanism. Among SHRSP
given various fatty acids, a diet containing 1% palmitoleic acid (POA)
significantly improved the survival rate, with concomitant
reduction in the incidence of stroke in spite of their excess NaCl intake
through 1% NaCl water for drinking. Since neither BP nor urinary Na
excretion was changed by POA which had high affinity for the vascular
wall, the preventive effect was ascribed to the possible direct metabolic
improvement of vascular smooth muscle cells.

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