Plant-based vs. meat-based diets: Going vegan linked to better cardiovascular health in identical twin study
![doctor fruits vegetables vegetarian diet. Embracing a plant-based diet can improve a person’s cardiovascular health, according to a new commentary published in the American Journal of Cardiology.[1] The article, titled “Are We What We Eat? The Moral Imperative of the Medical Profession to Promote Plant-Based Nutrition,” also highlights multiple reasons that choosing plant-based nutrition over animal-based food can be viewed as being better for society as a whole.](/sites/default/files/styles/top_stories/public/2022-12/microsoftteams-image_12.png.webp?itok=RWBskBIY)
Following a vegan diet for a small period of time can make a big impact on a person’s cardiovascular health, according to new research published in JAMA Network Open.[1]
The study focused on 22 pairs of healthy identical twins. The mean age was just shy of 40 years old. More than 75% of participants were women.
While one twin from each pair followed a plant-based vegan diet for 8 weeks, the other twin followed an omnivorous diet for 8 weeks. Meals were provided for the first four weeks, and participants were tasked with acquiring their own meals for the final four weeks.
Researchers made sure both twins consumed a healthy amount of vegetables, legumes, fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds. Weight loss was not the study’s primary goal.
“Although weight loss was not discouraged, our diet design did not include a prescribed energy restriction and was not intended to be a weight loss study,” wrote first author Matthew J. Landry, PhD, RDN, a nutrition specialist with the University of California, Irvine, and colleagues. “Participants were told to eat until they were satiated throughout the study.”
Overall, following a vegan diet as opposed to an omnivorous diet was associated with a mean decrease in LDL-C of 13.9 mg/dL after 8 weeks. Vegan diets were also linked to a mean decrease of 2.9 μIU/mL in fasting insulin and a mean decrease of nearly 2 kg in body weight compared to omnivorous diets.
“Vegans also experienced a larger, but nonsignificant, absolute median decrease in fasting high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, vitamin B12, glucose, and trimethylamine N-oxide levels at 8 weeks from baseline compared with omnivores,” the authors wrote.
One key takeaway from the group’s research was that dietary satisfaction was lower among vegan participants, suggesting it may be harder to follow such a diet.
“We believe lower dietary satisfaction in the vegan group may have been attributable to the strictness of the vegan diet, creating more barriers for people to follow the vegan diet guidelines,” the authors wrote. “Some people may find a less restrictive diet preferable for LDL-C–lowering effects. Future studies assessing health benefits of less strict plant-based diets will be necessary to assess these benefits, especially in a study model limiting additional biases (eg, in twins).”
Click here to read the full analysis in JAMA Network Open.
Michael has more than 18 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.