Do you enjoy receiving the Go Pistachio! Nutrition News e-zine each quarter? Do you have a colleague that would find the information just as helpful? If so, forward this edition of the e-zine to them and you’ll be entered to win a $100 Nike gift certificate! We’ll award the certificate in mid-May to one lucky e-zine subscriber who has shared Go Pistachio! with other health professionals.

PistachioHealth.com is excited to launch a new partnership with RD411.com – a leading resource for registered dietitians. Through this partnership, RD411.com will make pistachio health fact sheets available to their readers, inform RDs about free continuing education credits offered on PistachioHealth.com and offer a chance to win a free gift basket to new subscribers of the Go Pistachio! Nutrition News e-zine.

At a time when imported foods are taking up more supermarket shelf space than ever before, consumers want to know where their food is grown and processed. The number of farmers’ markets increased by 13 percent in the past year and local farmers can now be found selling directly to many supermarket chains. In a University of California, Davis study, researchers found that after price, flavor, healthfulness and appearance, shoppers expressed interest in locally grown items. There is no current definition of what constitutes “local,” but retail chains, from Wal-Mart to Whole Foods, have created their own criteria. For many consumers, products that are grown in the U.S. seem to provide the assurance they seek.

Production of pistachios in the U.S. has grown rapidly as California is a leading worldwide producer of pistachios. The Mediterranean climate of California’s San Joaquin Valley provides the perfect conditions for growing these tasty treats. With growing interest among consumers about where their food originates, it’s never been better to be grown in the United States.

With the pace of life today, Americans can often be found complaining of sluggishness, being tired and lacking overall energy. A 2009 HealthFocus survey found that 50 percent of respondents were concerned about fatigue and 38 percent said it’s a key health issue. In fact, tiredness impacted more individuals than stress, poor sleep, weight issues or high cholesterol.

The food industry is responding with new products marketed or positioned as optimal for “fuel” or “energy.” Consumers, however, may not understand that many of these foods are not necessary, nor do they solve their energy crisis. In fact, some may actually make the problem worse.

To maintain optimal energy levels throughout the day, it’s recommended to divide total caloric intake into three meals, plus two or three snacks. Meals and snacks should contain complex carbohydrates, protein and/or unsaturated fats that are digested more slowly, providing fuel for energy. As an example, pistachios with a piece of fresh or dried fruit will help provide longer-lasting energy than many of the foods marketed as high energy, but which are comprised of rapidly-digested, simple carbohydrates.

PistachioHealth.com will be attending the following health professional meeting.

7th Annual Nutrition and Health Conference,
sponsored by Dr. Andrew Weil:
May 10-12, 2010
Atlanta, Georgia

PistachioHealth.com will sponsor an exhibit booth and presentation by James Painter, PhD, RD. The presentation will cover behavioral eating and the Pistachio Principle, discussing how to use environmental cues, like pistachio shells, to slow consumption.

A recent Journal of Nutrition article reported that pistachios provide more heart-health benefits when compared to an isocaloric, low-fat diet. The study included 28 hypercholesterolemic adults who followed three different dietary interventions: low-fat (25 percent of calories from fat) without pistachios; moderate fat (30 percent of calories from fat) with one serving of pistachios; and moderate fat (34 percent of calories from fat) with two servings of pistachios. After four weeks on the dietary interventions that included pistachios, it was noted that levels of lutein, gamma-tocopherol and alpha- and beta-carotene were higher and oxidized LDL was lowered, when compared to the low-fat intervention. The authors conclude that a heart healthy diet that has moderate amounts of fat may be healthier than a low-fat diet.

Research published in the peer-reviewed journal Nutrition found that a Mediterranean diet with pistachios provided more potential health benefits than a regular Mediterranean diet without pistachios. The pistachios-Med diet decreased blood glucose by eight percent, reduced triglycerides by 19 percent, total cholesterol by 22 percent, LDL-cholesterol by 24 percent and increased vasodilation by more than 30 percent.

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