As time passes, the benefits of a plant-based diet continue to come to light. To date, evidence has shown that eating fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and legumes benefits the human body in a wide variety of ways. From decreasing the risk of cardiovascular disease, helping people drop pounds, to decreasing blood pressure and lowering the risk of all-cause mortality– there are many benefits. The latest study, published in Diabetes Care, shows that middle-aged adults that eat more plant-based foods and less animal products decrease their risk of developing type-2 diabetes.
The study analyzed data from nearly 12,000 people who were enrolled in the ARIC study (a multi-site cohort study originally started in 1989 but is ongoing). Three indices were established to determine the degree to which participants adhered to a plant-based diet:
- Overall plant-based diet
- Healthy plant-based diet
- Unhealthy plant-based diet
Healthy plant-based foods included:
Unhealthy plant-based foods included:
- Fruit juices
- Refined grains
- Potatoes
- Sweets and sugar-sweetened
- Low-calorie or diet beverages
For each index, the study group was divided into quintiles (brackets of 25%) based on their adherence. The data showed that after adjusting for sociodemographic and energy intake, adults in the highest 25% for plant-based diet adherence had a lower risk for developing diabetes than those in the lowest 25%.
“Our findings support recommendations to prioritize plant foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, legumes, coffee and tea while moderating intakes of animal-source foods, especially red meat,” said Valerie Sullivan, PhD, MHS, RDN, assistant scientist in the Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology and Clinical Research and in the department of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Sullivan said adults in the highest 25% for adherence to an overall or healthy plant-based diet continued to have a lower risk for developing diabetes than those in the lowest 25% even after removing all animal foods except for red meat from the index score. “This suggests that the protective association between a plant-based diet and diabetes risk was mostly driven by higher plant food and lower red meat intake,” Sullivan said.
This is not new information. We all know eating more whole plants and cutting processed and high fat products e.g. red meats, butter, cream, and bacon, leads to overall improved health and reduces not just diabetes, but cardiovascular risks, obesity, cancer. This just reaffirms the data. Next time you’re at the store make sure your basket is filled with fruits and vegetables. Leave the starch, cookies, and processed foods alone. Your body will thank you with more energy, and a healthier, longer life.
-https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27299701/
-https://biolincc.nhlbi.nih.gov/studies/aric/
-https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/science/atherosclerosis-risk-communities-aric-study
-https://www.everydayhealth.com/diet-nutrition/scientific-benefits-following-plant-based-diet/
-https://www.healio.com/news/endocrinology/20240313/eating-more-plantbased-foods-may-lower-diabetes-risk