An update of the evidence relating to plant‐based diets and cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and overweight

Abstract

Recent findings from meta-analyses, European cohorts and randomised controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the relationship between plant-based dietary regimes (i.e. those with an emphasis on plant foods, such as vegetarian, vegan, Mediterranean or combination diets), and the incidence of, or risk factors for, cardiovascular disease (CVD), type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity are considered in this review. Evidence from meta-analyses of epidemiological studies indicates that those following plant-based dietary regimes have around 20-25% lower risk of developing CVD and a similar reduced risk of developing T2D. Evidence from RCTs indicates that those following plant-based dietary regimes have lower total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol and blood pressure, and modest reductions in inflammatory and endothelial markers. Higher intake of plant foods has been associated with lower incidence of obesity, lower BMI and smaller waist circumference. For weight loss, it seems that following a plantbased dietary regime results in weight loss comparable to that achieved on conventional reduced calorie diets, but with better overall weight management. The totality of evidence indicates there are benefits for cardiovascular health, risk of developing T2D and weight management from following a plant-based dietary regime. From a nutritional perspective, plant-based diets tend to be lower in saturated fatty acids, higher in unsaturated fatty acids and fibre, and lower in energy density than typical 'Western' diets. These qualities may be at the core of the health benefits reported and/or it may be simply a greater proportion of plant foods in the diet that is beneficial in its own right.

Atrial fibrillation risk factor management with a plant‐based diet: A review

“…[59][60][61] A review of long-term studies in vegans and vegetarians has shown a lower prevalence of overweight and obesity compared with nonvegetarians and vegans from a similar background. 62,63 According to Appleby and Key, vegetarians usually have a lower BMI than otherwise comparable nonvegetarians, with differences typically in the range of 1-2 kg/m 2 across all adult age groups. 62 Plant-based diets may not only prevent overweight and obesity, but also promote weight loss.…”

Mung Bean Protein Supplement Improves Muscular Strength in Healthy, Underactive Vegetarian Adults

“…Vegetarian and vegan diets have been found to be protective against cardiovascular disease, showing a 24% to 40% reduction in mortality versus omnivores [9,10,11]. This is largely attributed to reduced body mass index (BMI), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and total cholesterol levels, and blood pressure in vegetarians and vegans versus their omnivore counterparts [12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24]. In addition, both lacto-ovo vegetarian and vegan diets are associated with a decreased incidence and risk for numerous types of cancers [25], and epidemiological evidence supports protection against metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes mellitus through decreases in fasting blood glucose and cholesterol levels in those following vegetarian diets [17,22,26,27,28,29,30,31,32].…”

Plant-based snacking: research and practical applications of pistachios for health benefits

“…Systematic reviews and meta-analyses of RCTs suggest beneficial effects on blood pressure, endothelial function and on markers of glucose and insulin metabolism (19,30) . For comprehensive reviews of the health effects of pistachio nuts, see Bullo et al (9) Plant-based diets Plant-based diets, which emphasise plant foods but do not necessarily fully exclude animal foods (31) , have become centre stage both for nutritional health and climactic/sustainability reasons. An evidence-based focus on one of nature's unprocessed, plant food snacks is therefore timely.…”