Almonds can help lower blood cholesterol, according to a new Canadian study. When people with high cholesterol ate about one ounce of almonds a day, they lowered their LDL ("bad") cholesterol by an average of 4%; 2 ounces, by 9%. At the same time, their HDL ("good") cholesterol rose slightly. Many other studies have found similar effects for various kinds of nuts, which are all rich in cholesterol- lowering fats. The trick is to eat nuts in place of other foods, as these people did. Almonds have 165 calories per ounce, so it would be easy to gain weight if you simply added them to your daily fare.

-- UC Berkeley Wellness Letter, November 2002. P. 1.