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JUNE 2016 MUSCLE & FITNESS 47

ANDREA KAMAL/GETTY IMAGES

GET CRACKIN’

When you can already bench

your bodyweight or run a

kilometre in under five minutes,

it’s hard to imagine that the task

of popping a pistachio out of its

shell could be any more helpful

in hitting your fitness and weight

goals. But science suggests

shelling the nuts – and keeping

the shells in view – may slow

snacking and help you take in

fewer calories than you would

eating out-of-shell nuts (like

almonds or cashews).

The concept has been deemed

the “Pistachio Principle,”

and it’s the brainchild of

behavioral eating expert Dr

James Painter, a professor

at the School of Family and

Consumer Sciences at Eastern

Illinois University in the US.

In one of his behavioural

experiments at the university,

whose preliminary findings were

published in 2011 in the journal

Appetite,snackers who ate

unshelled pistachios took in 41

percent fewer calories than

those who ate nuts that had

alreadybeenshelled.(Thosewho

ate pre-shelled pistachios

consumed an average of 211

calories, while those who had to

shell their own ate an average of

125 calories.) What’s more, those

who ate in-shell nuts reported

about the same levels of fullness.

SHELL SHOCK

Thirty grams of pistachios gives you about 49 nuts – more pieces per calorie

than you’ll get from most other nuts. Here’s how pistachios stack up.

Pistachios Almonds Peanuts Walnuts Brazil nuts Cashews Hazelnuts Pecans

SERVING

SIZE

49

nuts

23

nuts

28

nuts

14

halves

6

nuts

18

nuts

21

nuts

19

halves

CALORIES 160 160 160 190 190 160 180 200

PROTEIN 6g 6g 7g 4g 4g 4g 4g 3g

CARBS 8g 6g 5g 4g 3g 9g 5g 4g

FAT 14g 14g 14g 18g 19g 13g 17g 20g

FIBRE 3g 4g 2g 2g 2g 1g 3g 3g

Source: USDA National Nutrient Database SR26

In another behavioural Eastern

Illinois study, subjects who sat at

a desk all day with a bowl of

pistachios, which was refilled

every two hours, as well as a

shell bowl, ate 18 percent fewer

calories than those whose shells

were taken away when the bowl

was refilled. Though more

research is needed, these two

studies underscore pistachios’

value as a great snack that may

help to control calories by

curbing consumption.

SNACKS EAT

SEE

SHELLS

Snacking on

pistachios may

offer visual cues

that may help curb

consumption.

MORE BENEFITS

Pistachios are higher in protein

than other popular nuts like

almonds and cashews. Fat content

is also lower than in other nuts.

Theselittlebeautiesarealsoa

good source of fibre, as well as

vitamin B6, and they contain more

potassium and vitamin K than

other nuts.

A HEARTY SNACK

These little marvels may also help

to lower your cholesterol levels. A

study published in the American

Journal of Clinical Nutrition found

that when people ate a low-

calorie diet with either 10 or 20

percent of their total calories in

the form of pistachios over four

weeks lowered their cholesterol

more than those who followed a

diet that contained no more than

30 percent of total calories from

fats. Pistachios also contain

L-arginine, an essential amino acid

that can keep artery lining more

flexible and less likely to develop

clots, plus they also contain

vitamin E, which makes it less

likely your arteries will become

clogged with plaque. Definitely a

heart-healthy snack all-round!