According to a scientific study done on obese individuals, those who ingested 53 g. of pistachios as an afternoon snack as part of a weight-loss programme had considerably lower triglyceride levels than those who consumed an afternoon snack of pretzels with a similar caloric value.
Adding pistachios to the Mediterranean diet model enhanced blood sugar levels, the function of the endothelium (the “lining” of the blood vessels), as well as indicators of inflammation and oxidative stress, according to a different study in healthy men between the ages of 21 and 24.
In addition to improving total and excellent HDL cholesterol levels in healthy adults, research by the Turkish scientist Kocyigit A. and his colleagues also demonstrated that Pistacia Vera pistachios have considerable antioxidant advantages.
Finally, a study by Sheridan MJ and his colleagues found that regular pistachio eating raises levels of the beneficial HDL cholesterol, which is a crucial finding given how challenging it is to boost this lipoprotein’s levels by dietary changes.
It is important to note that most scientific study uses roasted pistachios rather than raw ones.
This basically indicates that roasting does not negatively affect the product’s nutritional quality, so as to “strike” it of its positive effects, even though it somewhat lowers the content of pistachios’ antioxidant components, such as certain anthocyanins and flavonoids.