Pecan Facts

Eat Pecans for your health!
No trans fat!  No cholesterol!  No sodium!

•New in 2010 Neurological Protection
A new medical study, which suggests eating pecans may provide neurological protection, has been published in Current Topics in Nutraceutical Research.
The data indicates that adding pecans to your diet may delay the progression of age-related motor neuron degeneration, such as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.  The study was conducted at the University of Massachusetts and funded by the National Pecan Shellers Association.

•Heart Healthy
The FDA has approved this health claim for tree nuts, including pecans:  Scientific evidence suggests but does not prove that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease.  Over 40 studies have shown that including nuts in the diet can reduce the risk of heart disease.  In one study, women who ate 5 or more ounces of nuts per week had 1/3 fewer heart attacks than those who rarely or never ate nuts.

•Antioxidant Rich
Research from Loma Linda University published in 2006 in the Nutrition Research journal shows that adding a handful of pecans to your diet each day may inhibit unwanted oxidation of blood lipids, thus helping reduce the risk of heart  disease. Researchers suggest that this positive effect was in part due to the pecan’s significant content of Vitamin E.

Pecans rank highest among all nuts and are among the top category of foods to contain the highest antioxidant capacity.  Antioxidants have been known to slow aging and decrease the risk of cancer, heart disease and neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s.

Courtesy of the Texas Pecan Growers Association.