AHA: Americans should reduce their calorie intake to combat obesity and cardiovascular disease

Reaching for that chocolate chip cookie? Think twice. The American Heart Association (AHA) just released the strictest guidelines ever for added sugars, recommending Americans limit their diet to 100 calories (6 teaspoons) for women and 150 calories (nine teaspoons) for men each day.

To combat risks of obesity and cardiovascular disease the AHA recommends Americans strictly limit their intake of added sugars with a diet that incorporates fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, lean protein and healthy amounts of mono-and-poly unsaturated fats. PistachioHealth (www.PistachioHealth.com), suggests pistachios as a healthy snack time alternative to a sugary-snack, packing more than 30 different vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. Additional health benefits include:

Low blood sugar: University of Toronto research showed when a handful of pistachios were eaten with a high glycemic index, food like white bread, pistachios helped blunt the rise in blood sugar and reduced hunger-stimulating hormones.

Appetite and consumption control: Pistachios are a good source of protein and fiber, increasing the feeling of fullness, making snackers feel fuller, longer. They are also a mindful snack as they are the only in shell snack nut, taking longer to eat so they slow consumption time and reduce calorie intake.

The Skinny Nut: Pistachios are one of the lowest calorie, lowest fat nuts and offer more per serving than any other nut. With just 170 calories and 13 grams of fat per ounce, pistachios are a perfect snack for weight management.

According to the 2001-04 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), average added sugar intake for Americans was 355 calories (22 teaspoons per day) an increase of nearly 20 percent in just three decades. Several studies from the AHA have linked high amounts of sugar intake, to insulin resistance, hypertension, high triglycerides and type II diabetes. The bottom line: There is sufficient evidence to link excessive sugar intake to obesity and cardiovascular disease.