Eating one avocado a day — with no other dietary changes — may reduce heart disease risk in adults with obesity, according to a new study led by Penn State researchers and published in the Journal of Clinical Lipidology.
The team found that regular avocado consumption was associated with a reduced concentration of LDL particles — the proteins that transport cholesterol through the body — in the blood, by an amount that corresponds to an approximate 4% reduction in heart disease risk.
LDL particles are a separate risk factor from LDL cholesterol, the so-called "bad cholesterol." The risk posed by LDL particles is typically higher in people with abdominal obesity. When there are more protein particles carrying LDL, heart disease risk rises even if the cholesterol amount stays the same. Smaller particles can more easily penetrate artery walls and contribute to plaque buildup.
"Imagine two people with the same high levels of LDL cholesterol," said first author Janhavi Damani, a postdoctoral scholar at Penn State. "Person A carries their cholesterol in fewer, larger LDL particles, and Person B carries their cholesterol in more, smaller LDL particles. Person B's heart disease risk would be higher because their overall particle count is higher even though a test of their LDL cholesterol would look identical."
The researchers analyzed data from 786 participants in the Habitual Diet and Avocado Trial, a six-month study of adults 25 and older with large waist circumference. Half maintained their normal diet and activity; the other half were provided one avocado per day and otherwise ate as usual. Over the study, LDL particle levels in the avocado group decreased by 49 nanomoles per liter — roughly a 4% reduction in heart disease risk.
"Four percent is a modest reduction compared with the 14% to 29% lower heart disease risk associated with improving the overall diet," Damani said. "However, it is a step in the right direction."
Crucially, participants improved regardless of sex, race, ethnicity, age or body mass index — anyone with obesity could benefit. Senior author Kristina Petersen noted this study showed benefits in the real world, where diets are less predictable than in tightly controlled trials: "In the course of people's normal lives, avocado consumption still contributes to a healthier diet."
