A new study recently published in the Journal of the American Heart Association has given us another solid reason to support one of our favorite snacks.

最近《美国心脏协会期刊》刊登了一项新研究成果，它为我们最爱的，某样零食又提供了坚实的理论依据。

The wholesome treat? Almonds.

这样健康的食物是什么呢？那就是杏仁。

During the study two groups of participants who all had high LDL (bad cholesterol) levels each followed a healthy diet for 12 weeks. During the first six weeks, one group enjoyed a 1.5-ounce portion of almonds for a snack, while the other group ate a carbohydrate-rich muffin for a snack. Aside from the snack, the two groups had the same diet. The groups switched snacks for the second six weeks but again otherwise followed the same diet.

在这项研究中有两组受试者，他们的低密度脂蛋白（一种有害的胆固醇）含量都很高，且每位受试者都要遵循为期十二周的健康饮食安排。在头六周里，一组将分量为1.5盎司的杏仁作为零食，而另一组的零食则是碳水化合物含量充足的麦芬蛋糕。除零食上的差别外，两组的饮食保持一致。在第二个六周，两组的零食安排会互换，而其他饮食仍然相同。

Researchers found that when the two groups snacked on the almonds rather than the muffins, they reduced both their LDL and total cholesterol levels. Plus, eating the almonds raised their HDL (good cholesterol) levels, while eating the muffin decreased HDL levels.

研究人员发现当两个小组的零食不是麦芬蛋糕而是杏仁时，他们的低密度脂蛋白和总胆固醇量都有所下降。此外，食用杏仁增加了他们的高密度脂蛋白（一种有益的胆固醇），而食用麦芬蛋糕却会减少这种脂蛋白。

What’s more is that even though overall body weight did not change when participants were snacking on almonds versus muffins, their belly fat and waist circumference went down.

他们还发现当受试者零食吃的是杏仁时，虽然总体重没有变化，但他们腹部的脂肪和腰围却都会减少。

And get this: both the muffin and the portion of almonds contained nearly the same number of calories (273 and 253, respectively) and both diets had the same overall number of calories. This evidence shows strong support for the argument that it’s the quality of calories that make for a healthy diet, not just quantity. The fact that almonds are rich in protein, fiber, and vitamin E —nutrients muffins score much lower in—most likely played a role in the results of this study. So next time you reach for a snack, think: nutrient-rich!

另外，同样分量的麦芬蛋糕与杏仁所含的卡路里基本相同（它们分别含273和253卡路里）而且这项研究中两组受试者的饮食安排在卡路里总量上保持一致。这强有力地证明了一个说法：决定饮食健康与否的并不是卡路里含量，而是所含卡路里的质量。杏仁富含蛋白质、纤维和维生素E，而麦芬蛋糕中的这些营养物质含量远不及杏仁。正是这点极有可能使得实验有这样的结果。因此下次你要吃零食时，想一想，要选营养丰富的哦！