Plant based, whole foods "diet"

MuddyEquestrian

Hey everyone,

I've been considering a plant based diet for a while now. I've done lots of research and think it's a great approach to overall better health. What are your opinions on the lifestyle? I know most westerners (as a whole population) think it's pretty extreme, but the positive results of clinical studies are overwhelming. Have any of you done this? doing it now? What are your general thoughts on it?

Thanks in advance for your replies!

neanderthin

Overwhelming............compared to what?

My diet is mostly a plant based diet but I also consume animal proteins, with fish leading the pack. I'm also a big proponent of wild game meats.......not excluding those hard to find ones like oysters and clams. Personally consuming a completely veg based diet, which I did, was a waste of time, considering the yummy factor of the said omitted protein varietals. lol

MuddyEquestrian

Overwhelming............compared to what?

My diet is mostly a plant based diet but I also consume animal proteins, with fish leading the pack. I'm also a big proponent of wild game meats.......not excluding those hard to find ones like oysters and clams. Personally consuming a completely veg based diet, which I did, was a waste of time, considering the yummy factor of the said omitted protein varietals. lol

Thanks for your reply! Overwhelming as in those who did a complete plant based diet drastically changed their overall health as in CRP levels, LDL, HDL, BP, HR etc...I am also a big wild game consumer but the more I read about animal proteins, even those aren't looking so appetizing!

neanderthin

Sounds like your buying the story........we lose quite a few that way. The low carb diet reverses metS which includes a cluster of degenerative diseases.....at least that's what the studies show....bottom line live a healthy active lifestyle with any decent natural diet you want and your chances of living a long healthy life is good.....at least that's what the blue zone eludes too.........If your a vegan, good for you, but it's not a healthier diet.

MuddyEquestrian

Sounds like your buying the story........we lose quite a few that way. The low carb diet reverses metS which includes a cluster of degenerative diseases.....at least that's what the studies show....bottom line live a healthy active lifestyle with any decent natural diet you want and your chances of living a long healthy life is good.....at least that's what the blue zone eludes too.........If your a vegan, good for you, but it's not a healthier diet.

Can I ask why you think it isn't healthier? I guess I'm "buying into" the fact that not consuming overly processed, sugar and excess fat ridden foods can actually improve your health. It seems pretty logical to me. It seems like you're buying into the traditional food pyramid way of thinking, which for a long time has been followed but has been corrected many times, and for good reason.

neanderthin

Sounds like your buying the story........we lose quite a few that way. The low carb diet reverses metS which includes a cluster of degenerative diseases.....at least that's what the studies show....bottom line live a healthy active lifestyle with any decent natural diet you want and your chances of living a long healthy life is good.....at least that's what the blue zone eludes too.........If your a vegan, good for you, but it's not a healthier diet.

Can I ask why you think it isn't healthier? I guess I'm "buying into" the fact that not consuming overly processed, sugar and excess fat ridden foods can actually improve your health. It seems pretty logical to me. It seems like you're buying into the traditional food pyramid way of thinking, which for a long time has been followed but has been corrected many times, and for good reason.

What makes you think all people that consume animal protein consume overly processed sugary foods with excessive fats. I've never been a proponent of the food pyramid, especially considering they keep changing their minds every 5 years on which processed grain product their going to have at the core of the nutrient bandwagon. lol

jesswait

Do you mean a plant based diet as far as the majority of your calories will come from fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes? Or do you mean a 'vegetarian' or 'vegan' diet? If you are considering being a vegan or vegetarian, a word of caution is to make sure to look up information and talk to long term vegans so that you are getting proper nutrients, specifically B12 and Calcium.

Some good sites for recipes are;
http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/
http://www.theppk.com/
http://www.veganbaking.net/
http://happyherbivore.com/

As far as my opinion goes; I think people in the Western world do eat entirely too much animal products. I was a vegetarian for years, and a vegan for a while. I am currently neither but I won't get into that. If it's something you are considering, try it out and see how you feel.

takumaku

In your opinion, what is a plant based diet? I am a vegetarian and I eat a lot of plants, beans, and whole, unprocessed grains (spelt, wheat berries, etc.). My lifestyle is this way because I strive to eat a lot of low glycemic foods to prevent insulin spikes.

ubermensch13

Do any of you have any peer reviewed scientific journal articles to support any of the claims here? I'd like to see and read them.

brazerbramon

The problem with eating meat these days is that most of our supply comes from factory farms that force their animals to eat the wrong feed, inject numerous chemicals/antibiotics, and are outright cruel to the cattle. These factors cause the meat to be fattier and not natural. Then, we as consumers, ingest these chemicals/antibiotics and fattier meats. Causing known and unknown problems to our bodies.

I personally don't eat chicken, red meat, or pork. But I would recommend to anyone who does, to eat certified organic and local as much as possible.

http://www.forksoverknives.com/,
this is a great documentary. Check it out.

gingerveg

There are a lot of us here (vegetarian/vegans). I'm assuming that is what you are talking about?

RiverDancer68

The problem with eating meat these days is that most of our supply comes from factory farms that force their animals to eat the wrong feed, inject numerous chemicals/antibiotics, and are outright cruel to the cattle. These factors cause the meat to be fattier and not natural. Then, we as consumers, ingest these chemicals/antibiotics and fattier meats. Causing known and unknown problems to our bodies.

I personally don't eat chicken, red meat, or pork. But I would recommend to anyone who does, to eat certified organic and local as much as possible.

http://www.forksoverknives.com/,
this is a great documentary. Check it out.

What he said :drinker: I am an ethical vegetarian, but have found the way I feel to be much improved in the process!

Sarauk2sf

Do any of you have any peer reviewed scientific journal articles to support any of the claims here? I'd like to see and read them.

Me also. I am a vegetarian so I am not trying to push any agenda when I say that I am not aware of any specific health benefits of eating a vegetarian or vegan diet over an omnivorous one. Either can be healthy and either can be unhealthy. Vegetarians, and especially a vegans, have to be more conscious of what they eat to get the appropriate macro and micronutrients (B12 springs to mind the most for vegans) but it is definitely do-able.

ETA: before this thread turns into the usual sh!tstorm of veg*ns v meat eaters, I would advise you to also pose your questions to groups specifically created for this type of diet.

gingerveg

Do any of you have any peer reviewed scientific journal articles to support any of the claims here? I'd like to see and read them.

Here are quite a few articles, literature reviews, and studies:

Effects of vegetarian diets on aging and longevity
Walter, Paul; Rosado, Jorge L; Sanchez-Castillo, Claudia P.
Nutrition Reviews 55. 1 (Jan 1997): S61-5; discussion S65-8.
If we look at mortality rates as an index for longevity in more detail,2 there is a very large study in which 27,530 vegetarian and nonvegetarian Seventh Day Adventists living in California were followed.31 After 21 years of follow-up, those whose food habits were mostly vegetarian were found to have lower age-specific mortality rates than those with more omnivorous eating practices.

Nutrition Reviews; Apr 2006, Vol. 64 Issue 4, p175-188, 14p, 2 Charts
Berkow, Susan E., Barnard, Neal
The increasing global health problems of overweight and obesity are associated with coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, osteoarthritis, and certain cancers, among other health concerns. Vegetarian diets are associated with reduced body weight, lower incidence of certain chronic disease, and lower medical costs compared with non-vegetarian diets.


British Journal of Cancer; 10/31/2005, Vol. 93 Issue 9, p1057-1061, 5p
Chen, Y. C., Chiang, C. I., Lin, R. S., Pu, Y. S., Lai, M. K., Sung, F.-C.
This study suggests that the intake of the low fat local vegetarian food has a protective effect against prostate carcinoma for thin men in this study population


Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter; Oct 2009, Vol. 27 Issue 8, p7-7, 1/2p
The article reports on the study of the relationship between cancer and nutrition in Great Britain. The study showed that vegetarians are less likely to develop diseases like cancer compared to meat-eaters. The study also found out that fish-eaters are less prone to prostate cancer and cervical cancer was also more likely to strike vegetarians and meat eaters.

Better Nutrition; May2003, Vol. 65 Issue 5, p40, 5p, 2 Color Photographs
Downey, Michael
The single biggest step men can take to live longer is to adopt a vegetarian diet

Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners; Mar 2010, Vol. 22 Issue 3, p134-139, 6p,
Sticher, Megan A., Smith, Christine B., Davidson, Susan
Conclusions: A carefully planned vegetarian diet with adequate supplementation may be effective for primary prevention of heart disease. The vegetarian diet is cost effective, safe, and relatively easy to implement.

Journal of Sports Sciences; Oct2010, Vol. 28 Issue 12, p1261-1268, 8p
TRAPP, DENISE, KNEZ, WADE, SINCLAIR, WADE
Regular exercise is a vital component of a healthy lifestyle, although it can increase oxidative stress. As a typical vegetarian diet comprises a wide range of antioxidant-rich foods, it is plausible that the consumption of these foods will result in an enhanced antioxidant system capable of reducing exercise-induced oxidative stress. In addition, a relationship between a vegetarian diet and lower risks of cardiovascular disease and some cancers has been established.

Journal of the American Dietetic Association; Jun2003, Vol. 103 Issue 6, p748-765, 18p
Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than nonvegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease; vegetarians also show lower blood cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer.

Nutrition Reviews63. 1 (Jan 2005): 1-8.
Blood Pressure Regulation and Vegetarian Diets
Berkow, Susan E; Barnard, Neal D.
Abundant evidence supports the BP-lowering effect of a vegetarian diet. Vegetarian diets are high in fruits, vegetables, legumes, and nuts. As a result, they have a relatively high polyunsaturated to saturated fat ratio, are relatively low in total fat, and have a high potassium, magnesium, and fiber content. The protective effect of these foods likely is mediated by their tendency to reduce body weight and modulate blood viscosity, along with the BP-lowering properties of individual nutrients. This effect appears to be independent of BMI, sodium intake, and other lifestyle factors such as exercise and alcohol consumption. The benefits of a well-balanced vegetarian diet, both for maintaining a healthy BP and lowering BP in hypertensives, deserve further consideration.


For Kidney Disease, A Vegetarian Diet
Diabetes Forecast 64. 4 (Apr 2011): 24.
A small study in people with kidney disease compared two diets providing the same amount of protein and phosphorus. It found that phosphorus levels dropped when participants followed a vegetarian diet. When those same people ate meat, phosphorus levels soared. The researchers suspect the disparity is due to sources of protein: A vegetarian diet contains a different form of phosphorus.

Vegetarian Dietary Patterns Are Associated With a Lower Risk of Metabolic
Syndrome: The Adventist Health Study 2
Rizzo, Nico S, PHD; Sabaté, Joan; Jaceldo-Siegl, Karen; Fraser, Gary E, MD, PHD. Diabetes Care34. 5 (May 2011): 1225-7.
CONCLUSIONS-A vegetarian dietary pattern is associated with a more favorable profile of MRFs and a lower risk of MetS. The relationship persists after adjusting for lifestyle and demographic factors.

The contribution of vegetarian diets to health and disease: A paradigm shift?
Sabate, Joan. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition78. 3S (Sep 2003): S502-S507.
Recent scientific advances seem to have resulted in a paradigm shift: diets largely based on plant foods, such as well-balanced vegetarian diets, are viewed more as improving health than as causing disease, in contrast with meat-based diets.

Nut consumption, vegetarian diets, ischemic heart disease risk, and all-cause mortality: Evidence from epidemiologic studies
Sabate, Joan. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition70. 3S (Sep 1999): 500S-503S.
Perhaps one of the most unexpected and novel findings in nutritional epidemiology in the past 5 y has been that nut consumption seems to protect against ischemic heart disease (IHD). Frequency and quantity of nut consumption have been documented to be higher in vegetarian than in non-vegetarian populations.

Effects of a long-term vegetarian diet on biomarkers of antioxidant status and cardiovascular disease risk.
Szeto YT ; Kwok TCY ; Benzie IFF
Nutrition (NUTRITION), 2004 Oct; 20(10): 863-6 (45 ref)
CONCLUSIONS: A long-term vegetarian diet is associated with markedly higher fasting plasma AA concentrations and lower concentrations of TAG, UA, and hsCRP. Long-term vegetarians have a better antioxidant status and coronary heart disease risk profile than do apparently healthy omnivores. Plasma AA may act a useful marker of overall health status.

Vegetarian diets and cancer risk.
Messina, Virgin
Oncology Nutrition Connection (ONCOL NUTR CONNECT), 2012 Summer; 20(3): 3-10 (76 ref)
Major health organizations, including the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR), encourage adoption of plant-based diets to lower cancer risk. Vegetables, fruits, legumes and whole grains are the core of plant based and vegetarian diets, and are rich of vitamins and minerals, photochemical, antioxidants, and fiber, all of which may play important roles in cancer prevention.

RiverDancer68

Do any of you have any peer reviewed scientific journal articles to support any of the claims here? I'd like to see and read them.

Me also. I am a vegetarian so I am not trying to push any agenda when I say that I am not aware of any specific health benefits of eating a vegetarian or vegan diet over an omnivorous one. Either can be healthy and either can be unhealthy. Vegetarians, and especially a vegans, have to be more conscious of what they eat to get the appropriate macro and micronutrients (B12 springs to mind the most for vegans) but it is definitely do-able.

ETA: before this thread turns into the usual sh!tstorm of veg*ns v meat eaters, I would advise you to also pose your questions to groups specifically created for this type of diet.

I'll just say that I agree with you...I know plenty of unhealthy vegans/vegetarians...Oreos are vegan btw! Unless you do the research and are fully aware of what you need to eat in order to support a healthy, balanced diet, then you can end up as unhealthy as someone eating junk/fast food daily.

neanderthin

Do any of you have any peer reviewed scientific journal articles to support any of the claims here? I'd like to see and read them.

Here are quite a few articles, literature reviews, and studies:

Effects of vegetarian diets on aging and longevity
Walter, Paul; Rosado, Jorge L; Sanchez-Castillo, Claudia P.
Nutrition Reviews 55. 1 (Jan 1997): S61-5; discussion S65-8.
If we look at mortality rates as an index for longevity in more detail,2 there is a very large study in which 27,530 vegetarian and nonvegetarian Seventh Day Adventists living in California were followed.31 After 21 years of follow-up, those whose food habits were mostly vegetarian were found to have lower age-specific mortality rates than those with more omnivorous eating practices.

Nutrition Reviews; Apr 2006, Vol. 64 Issue 4, p175-188, 14p, 2 Charts
Berkow, Susan E., Barnard, Neal
The increasing global health problems of overweight and obesity are associated with coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, osteoarthritis, and certain cancers, among other health concerns. Vegetarian diets are associated with reduced body weight, lower incidence of certain chronic disease, and lower medical costs compared with non-vegetarian diets.


British Journal of Cancer; 10/31/2005, Vol. 93 Issue 9, p1057-1061, 5p
Chen, Y. C., Chiang, C. I., Lin, R. S., Pu, Y. S., Lai, M. K., Sung, F.-C.
This study suggests that the intake of the low fat local vegetarian food has a protective effect against prostate carcinoma for thin men in this study population


Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter; Oct 2009, Vol. 27 Issue 8, p7-7, 1/2p
The article reports on the study of the relationship between cancer and nutrition in Great Britain. The study showed that vegetarians are less likely to develop diseases like cancer compared to meat-eaters. The study also found out that fish-eaters are less prone to prostate cancer and cervical cancer was also more likely to strike vegetarians and meat eaters.

Better Nutrition; May2003, Vol. 65 Issue 5, p40, 5p, 2 Color Photographs
Downey, Michael
The single biggest step men can take to live longer is to adopt a vegetarian diet

Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners; Mar 2010, Vol. 22 Issue 3, p134-139, 6p,
Sticher, Megan A., Smith, Christine B., Davidson, Susan
Conclusions: A carefully planned vegetarian diet with adequate supplementation may be effective for primary prevention of heart disease. The vegetarian diet is cost effective, safe, and relatively easy to implement.

Journal of Sports Sciences; Oct2010, Vol. 28 Issue 12, p1261-1268, 8p
TRAPP, DENISE, KNEZ, WADE, SINCLAIR, WADE
Regular exercise is a vital component of a healthy lifestyle, although it can increase oxidative stress. As a typical vegetarian diet comprises a wide range of antioxidant-rich foods, it is plausible that the consumption of these foods will result in an enhanced antioxidant system capable of reducing exercise-induced oxidative stress. In addition, a relationship between a vegetarian diet and lower risks of cardiovascular disease and some cancers has been established.

Journal of the American Dietetic Association; Jun2003, Vol. 103 Issue 6, p748-765, 18p
Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than nonvegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease; vegetarians also show lower blood cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer.

Nutrition Reviews63. 1 (Jan 2005): 1-8.
Blood Pressure Regulation and Vegetarian Diets
Berkow, Susan E; Barnard, Neal D.
Abundant evidence supports the BP-lowering effect of a vegetarian diet. Vegetarian diets are high in fruits, vegetables, legumes, and nuts. As a result, they have a relatively high polyunsaturated to saturated fat ratio, are relatively low in total fat, and have a high potassium, magnesium, and fiber content. The protective effect of these foods likely is mediated by their tendency to reduce body weight and modulate blood viscosity, along with the BP-lowering properties of individual nutrients. This effect appears to be independent of BMI, sodium intake, and other lifestyle factors such as exercise and alcohol consumption. The benefits of a well-balanced vegetarian diet, both for maintaining a healthy BP and lowering BP in hypertensives, deserve further consideration.


For Kidney Disease, A Vegetarian Diet
Diabetes Forecast 64. 4 (Apr 2011): 24.
A small study in people with kidney disease compared two diets providing the same amount of protein and phosphorus. It found that phosphorus levels dropped when participants followed a vegetarian diet. When those same people ate meat, phosphorus levels soared. The researchers suspect the disparity is due to sources of protein: A vegetarian diet contains a different form of phosphorus.

Vegetarian Dietary Patterns Are Associated With a Lower Risk of Metabolic
Syndrome: The Adventist Health Study 2
Rizzo, Nico S, PHD; Sabaté, Joan; Jaceldo-Siegl, Karen; Fraser, Gary E, MD, PHD. Diabetes Care34. 5 (May 2011): 1225-7.
CONCLUSIONS-A vegetarian dietary pattern is associated with a more favorable profile of MRFs and a lower risk of MetS. The relationship persists after adjusting for lifestyle and demographic factors.

The contribution of vegetarian diets to health and disease: A paradigm shift?
Sabate, Joan. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition78. 3S (Sep 2003): S502-S507.
Recent scientific advances seem to have resulted in a paradigm shift: diets largely based on plant foods, such as well-balanced vegetarian diets, are viewed more as improving health than as causing disease, in contrast with meat-based diets.

Nut consumption, vegetarian diets, ischemic heart disease risk, and all-cause mortality: Evidence from epidemiologic studies
Sabate, Joan. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition70. 3S (Sep 1999): 500S-503S.
Perhaps one of the most unexpected and novel findings in nutritional epidemiology in the past 5 y has been that nut consumption seems to protect against ischemic heart disease (IHD). Frequency and quantity of nut consumption have been documented to be higher in vegetarian than in non-vegetarian populations.

Effects of a long-term vegetarian diet on biomarkers of antioxidant status and cardiovascular disease risk.
Szeto YT ; Kwok TCY ; Benzie IFF
Nutrition (NUTRITION), 2004 Oct; 20(10): 863-6 (45 ref)
CONCLUSIONS: A long-term vegetarian diet is associated with markedly higher fasting plasma AA concentrations and lower concentrations of TAG, UA, and hsCRP. Long-term vegetarians have a better antioxidant status and coronary heart disease risk profile than do apparently healthy omnivores. Plasma AA may act a useful marker of overall health status.

Vegetarian diets and cancer risk.
Messina, Virgin
Oncology Nutrition Connection (ONCOL NUTR CONNECT), 2012 Summer; 20(3): 3-10 (76 ref)
Major health organizations, including the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR), encourage adoption of plant-based diets to lower cancer risk. Vegetables, fruits, legumes and whole grains are the core of plant based and vegetarian diets, and are rich of vitamins and minerals, photochemical, antioxidants, and fiber, all of which may play important roles in cancer prevention.

These are what most people look to for proof but correlations abound in prospective, observational, meta-analysis type studies like these. It's a no brainer that consuming a mostly natural plant based diet, which doesn't include grain will be a healthy one, and one I do adhere to, but I believe that the addition of fish, eggs primarily have additional health benefits, not to mention taste. jmo.

Sarauk2sf

Do any of you have any peer reviewed scientific journal articles to support any of the claims here? I'd like to see and read them.

Here are quite a few articles, literature reviews, and studies:

Effects of vegetarian diets on aging and longevity
Walter, Paul; Rosado, Jorge L; Sanchez-Castillo, Claudia P.
Nutrition Reviews 55. 1 (Jan 1997): S61-5; discussion S65-8.
If we look at mortality rates as an index for longevity in more detail,2 there is a very large study in which 27,530 vegetarian and nonvegetarian Seventh Day Adventists living in California were followed.31 After 21 years of follow-up, those whose food habits were mostly vegetarian were found to have lower age-specific mortality rates than those with more omnivorous eating practices.

Nutrition Reviews; Apr 2006, Vol. 64 Issue 4, p175-188, 14p, 2 Charts
Berkow, Susan E., Barnard, Neal
The increasing global health problems of overweight and obesity are associated with coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, osteoarthritis, and certain cancers, among other health concerns. Vegetarian diets are associated with reduced body weight, lower incidence of certain chronic disease, and lower medical costs compared with non-vegetarian diets.


British Journal of Cancer; 10/31/2005, Vol. 93 Issue 9, p1057-1061, 5p
Chen, Y. C., Chiang, C. I., Lin, R. S., Pu, Y. S., Lai, M. K., Sung, F.-C.
This study suggests that the intake of the low fat local vegetarian food has a protective effect against prostate carcinoma for thin men in this study population


Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter; Oct 2009, Vol. 27 Issue 8, p7-7, 1/2p
The article reports on the study of the relationship between cancer and nutrition in Great Britain. The study showed that vegetarians are less likely to develop diseases like cancer compared to meat-eaters. The study also found out that fish-eaters are less prone to prostate cancer and cervical cancer was also more likely to strike vegetarians and meat eaters.

Better Nutrition; May2003, Vol. 65 Issue 5, p40, 5p, 2 Color Photographs
Downey, Michael
The single biggest step men can take to live longer is to adopt a vegetarian diet

Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners; Mar 2010, Vol. 22 Issue 3, p134-139, 6p,
Sticher, Megan A., Smith, Christine B., Davidson, Susan
Conclusions: A carefully planned vegetarian diet with adequate supplementation may be effective for primary prevention of heart disease. The vegetarian diet is cost effective, safe, and relatively easy to implement.

Journal of Sports Sciences; Oct2010, Vol. 28 Issue 12, p1261-1268, 8p
TRAPP, DENISE, KNEZ, WADE, SINCLAIR, WADE
Regular exercise is a vital component of a healthy lifestyle, although it can increase oxidative stress. As a typical vegetarian diet comprises a wide range of antioxidant-rich foods, it is plausible that the consumption of these foods will result in an enhanced antioxidant system capable of reducing exercise-induced oxidative stress. In addition, a relationship between a vegetarian diet and lower risks of cardiovascular disease and some cancers has been established.

Journal of the American Dietetic Association; Jun2003, Vol. 103 Issue 6, p748-765, 18p
Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than nonvegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease; vegetarians also show lower blood cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer.

Nutrition Reviews63. 1 (Jan 2005): 1-8.
Blood Pressure Regulation and Vegetarian Diets
Berkow, Susan E; Barnard, Neal D.
Abundant evidence supports the BP-lowering effect of a vegetarian diet. Vegetarian diets are high in fruits, vegetables, legumes, and nuts. As a result, they have a relatively high polyunsaturated to saturated fat ratio, are relatively low in total fat, and have a high potassium, magnesium, and fiber content. The protective effect of these foods likely is mediated by their tendency to reduce body weight and modulate blood viscosity, along with the BP-lowering properties of individual nutrients. This effect appears to be independent of BMI, sodium intake, and other lifestyle factors such as exercise and alcohol consumption. The benefits of a well-balanced vegetarian diet, both for maintaining a healthy BP and lowering BP in hypertensives, deserve further consideration.


For Kidney Disease, A Vegetarian Diet
Diabetes Forecast 64. 4 (Apr 2011): 24.
A small study in people with kidney disease compared two diets providing the same amount of protein and phosphorus. It found that phosphorus levels dropped when participants followed a vegetarian diet. When those same people ate meat, phosphorus levels soared. The researchers suspect the disparity is due to sources of protein: A vegetarian diet contains a different form of phosphorus.

Vegetarian Dietary Patterns Are Associated With a Lower Risk of Metabolic
Syndrome: The Adventist Health Study 2
Rizzo, Nico S, PHD; Sabaté, Joan; Jaceldo-Siegl, Karen; Fraser, Gary E, MD, PHD. Diabetes Care34. 5 (May 2011): 1225-7.
CONCLUSIONS-A vegetarian dietary pattern is associated with a more favorable profile of MRFs and a lower risk of MetS. The relationship persists after adjusting for lifestyle and demographic factors.

The contribution of vegetarian diets to health and disease: A paradigm shift?
Sabate, Joan. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition78. 3S (Sep 2003): S502-S507.
Recent scientific advances seem to have resulted in a paradigm shift: diets largely based on plant foods, such as well-balanced vegetarian diets, are viewed more as improving health than as causing disease, in contrast with meat-based diets.

Nut consumption, vegetarian diets, ischemic heart disease risk, and all-cause mortality: Evidence from epidemiologic studies
Sabate, Joan. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition70. 3S (Sep 1999): 500S-503S.
Perhaps one of the most unexpected and novel findings in nutritional epidemiology in the past 5 y has been that nut consumption seems to protect against ischemic heart disease (IHD). Frequency and quantity of nut consumption have been documented to be higher in vegetarian than in non-vegetarian populations.

Effects of a long-term vegetarian diet on biomarkers of antioxidant status and cardiovascular disease risk.
Szeto YT ; Kwok TCY ; Benzie IFF
Nutrition (NUTRITION), 2004 Oct; 20(10): 863-6 (45 ref)
CONCLUSIONS: A long-term vegetarian diet is associated with markedly higher fasting plasma AA concentrations and lower concentrations of TAG, UA, and hsCRP. Long-term vegetarians have a better antioxidant status and coronary heart disease risk profile than do apparently healthy omnivores. Plasma AA may act a useful marker of overall health status.

Vegetarian diets and cancer risk.
Messina, Virgin
Oncology Nutrition Connection (ONCOL NUTR CONNECT), 2012 Summer; 20(3): 3-10 (76 ref)
Major health organizations, including the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR), encourage adoption of plant-based diets to lower cancer risk. Vegetables, fruits, legumes and whole grains are the core of plant based and vegetarian diets, and are rich of vitamins and minerals, photochemical, antioxidants, and fiber, all of which may play important roles in cancer prevention.

Thank you for these studies. The problem with many of them is that they do not look at controlled diets and the 'way of eating' for both groups. People who are vegans and vegetarians are often more health conscious than the average meat eater. A good majority of vegetarians are such for health reasons. So it stands to reason that their diet would be healthier than the average meat eaters diet. I may have missed one or two, but I only see one study that would be specific to a vegetarian diet v a omnivorous one (the kidney disease one) assuming people are paying attention to their diet. The others show correlation.