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Eating pistachios can preserve your eye health, study finds Credits: Social Media
By Ellissa Bain

Eating pistachios can preserve your eye health, study finds

By Ellissa Bain

It’s time to start eating more pistachios because a new study has found the popular nut can preserve your eye health.

A member of the cashew family, pistachios come from a small tree that originated in Persia, and the small, green nuts could be the key to healthier eyes.

Pistachios
Pistachios. Credit: Kinga Krzeminska (Getty Images)

Eating pistachios can improve your eye health

The study, led by a researcher from Tufts University in Massachusetts and published in the Journal of Nutrition discovered that pistachios increase something called macular pigment optical density (MPOD) in healthy adults.

MPOD measures the levels of three pigments called carotenoids in your eyes – lutein, zeaxanthin, and meso-zeaxanthin.

These pigments are what give color to plants such as ripe tomatoes and autumn leaves. However, they are also good for your eyes. Higher MPOD protects your eye from light damage and is positively associated with eye health.

In the participants who added pistachios to their diet for 12 weeks, MPOD “significantly increased”. However, there was no change to MPOD in the group who continued their usual diet.

The study concluded that pistachio consumption could be an “effective dietary strategy for preserving eye health” as they are a good source of the two carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin.

The National Eye Institute recommends keeping your eyes healthy by eating a good diet, exercising, wearing glasses if you need them, washing your hands before touching your eyes, wearing sunglasses, taking breaks from screen time and scheduling regular appointments with your optometrist.

Young woman doing optical exam at medical clinic
Young woman doing optical exam at medical clinic. Credit: FG Trade Latin (Getty Images)

10 ways to add pistachios to your diet

If you want to add more pistachios to your diet, you don’t have to eat them whole. The nuts can be used in all kinds of ways and work in both sweet and savoury recipes.

Here are 10 ways to incorporate them into your diet:

  1. Add them to your oatmeal
  2. Sprinkle them over your salad
  3. Add them to your plain Greek yogurt
  4. Mix them into your pancake batter
  5. Add them to granola.
  6. Blend them into your smoothies
  7. Make pistachio pesto
  8. Add them to your veggie dishes
  9. Mix them into muffins
  10. Make pistachio nut butter

You only have one set of eyes, so look after them!