Macro partitioning
Adopting vegetarian or vegan diets significantly improves cardiometabolic risk factors, including lower total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, blood pressure, BMI, and fasting glucose, compared to omnivorous diets.
To improve heart health and metabolic markers, shift your diet towards plant-based sources (vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains) and reduce or eliminate animal products. Expect improvements in cholesterol, blood pressure, and weight management, though you should monitor nutrient status, particularly B12.
Overall, vegetarian and vegan diets are significantly associated with better lipid profile, glycemic control, body weight/BMI, inflammation, and lower risk of ischemic heart disease and cancer.
Why this rating
The paper is an umbrella review of reviews/meta-analyses, but notes 'average' quality and 'high heterogeneity' across included studies.
Source
Cardiovascular health and cancer risk associated with plant based diets: An umbrella review
Angelo Capodici et al. · PLoS ONE · 2024
DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0300711
More from this paper
- Vegetarian and vegan diets are associated with a lower risk of ischemic heart disease and cancer, as well as lower mortality from cardiovascular diseases, compared to omnivorous diets.Moderate
- Vegetarian diets do not significantly reduce the risk of gestational diabetes or hypertension in pregnant women compared to omnivorous diets.Moderate
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