Walnuts not only lower bad LDL cholesterol levels -- they also have been shown in recent studies to lower levels of endothelin, a natural chemical in the body that causes inflammation and plague build up in the arteries -- conditions known to cause heart disease. In a six-and-a-half-month study of 100 hamsters fed meal mixed with ground English walnuts -- the kind most commonly found in grocery stores -- heart artery endothelin was found to be suppressed. The amount of walnuts the hamsters consumed daily equal about three to eight human handfuls. Scientists note that more studies need be conducted on human subjects before the direct effect of walnut consumption on blood vessels can be fully confirmed.
