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.
根据《美国医学协会杂志》上一篇最新发表的研究报告，我们有足够的理由吃自己最爱的一种零食。
The wholesome treat? Almonds.
这健康美味的款待是什么呢？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.
这项研究中的两组成员都有较高的低密度脂蛋白水平，每个参与者都连续十二周坚持健康饮食。
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.
前六个星期，其中一组成员的零食是1.5盎司每份的杏仁，而另一组的零食是碳水化合物含量较高的松饼。
Aside from the snack, the two groups had the same diet.
除了零食不同之外，两组饮食是一样的。
The groups switched snacks for the second six weeks but again otherwise followed the same diet.
后六个礼拜，两组交换了零食，但其他饮食仍是一样的。
Researchers found that when the two groups snacked on the almonds rather than the muffins, they reduced both their LDL and total cholesterol levels.
研究表明，两组人都把杏仁作为零食时，他们的低密度脂蛋白水平和整体的胆固醇水平都下降了。
Plus, eating the almonds raised their HDL (good) cholesterol levels, while eating the muffin decreased HDL levels.
另外，吃杏仁可以提高身体的高密度脂蛋白水平，而吃松饼会降低身体的高密度脂蛋白水平。
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.
另外，尽管参与研究的实验者在吃杏仁和松饼期间体重并没有变化，但腹部脂肪少了，腰围也小了。
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.
还有就是，松饼和1.5盎司一份的杏仁所含热量几乎是相等的（分别是273卡路里和253卡路里），而且两种饮食方式的总热量也是相同的。
This evidence shows strong support for the argument that it’s the quality of calories that make for a healthy diet, not just quantity.
这一实验表明，决定饮食健康与否在于热量的品质而非摄入热量的多少。
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!
杏仁含有丰富的蛋白质、纤维和维生素E，而松饼则相应含量较低，研究结果很有可能受此影响。所以说下一次你找零食吃的时候，想一想，要吃营养含量高的！
