Vegetarian Diets Associated with Lower Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

by | Apr 21, 2020 | 2019, Cardiovascular Health, Vegetarianism

Written by Angeline A. De Leon, Staff Writer.  Compared to a non-vegetarian diet, vegetarian diets were associated with significantly lower levels of cardiovascular disease risk factors among the non-Hispanic whites. 

fruits and vegetablesAmong non-Hispanic white individuals, the leading cause of death is cardiovascular disease (CVD) 1. Over the years, research has uncovered a link between dietary patterns and CVD risk, with some studies reporting that vegetarian diets, compared to non-vegetarian diets, are associated with lower levels of obesity, hypertension, and other CVD risk factors, as well as lower rates of diabetes and dyslipidemia 2,3. The vegetarian diet is suggested to have a protective effect on systolic blood pressure (SBP) and non-high-density-lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) 4. Compared with non-vegetarians, individuals following a vegetarian lifestyle also appear to exhibit lower levels of fasting blood glucose (FBG), total cholesterol (TC), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) 5,6. Research now suggests that there may a significant inverse association between the degree to which a diet is characterized as plant-based and all-cause mortality, CVD risk factors, and CVD mortality 7. While a previous study found evidence for the association between lower CVD risk and a vegetarian diet in an African American cohort 2, findings have not been confirmed in the non-Hispanic white population. Thus, in a 2019 study 8 published by the Journal of Nutritional Science, researchers sought to replicate findings in the latter population group, looking at CVD outcome in relation to a vegan (VG), lacto-ovo-vegetarian (LOV), and pesco-vegetarian (PV) diet.

A total of 650 non-Hispanic white individuals (253 men and 397 women) (aged 30 years and older) participated in a cross-sectional cohort study. Participants completed a semi-quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ), based on which they were classified into four different dietary patterns: VG, LOV, PV, or non-vegetarian (NV). Anthropometric measurements, including body mass index (BMI), were taken, along with blood pressure (BP). Fasting blood samples were also collected and analyzed to determine FBG, TC, HDL-C, triglyceride (TAG) levels, and other lipid profile parameters. Dietary pattern-specific prevalence ratios (PR) of CVD factors were calculated.

Among participants, 8.3% were VG, 44.3% LOV, 10.3% PV, and 37.1% NV. PRs for prevalent hypertension were significantly lower among the vegetarian groups, compared to NV (0.46 for VG [95% Confidence Interval: 0.25 to 0.83), 0.57 for LOV [95% CI: 0.45 to 0.73], 0.62 for PV [95% CI: 0.42 to 0.91]). PRs for high TC were also significantly lower for VG (0.77 [95% CI: 0.55 to 1.07]), LOV (0.72, [95% CI: 0.59 to 0.88]), and PV (0.87, [95% CI: 0.66 to 1.16]) compared to NV. Relative to the NV group, PRs for high LDL-C were also lower among the vegetarian groups (0.77 for VG [95% CI: 0.54 to 1.12], 0.72 for LOV [95% CI: 0.58 to 0.89], 0.74 for PV [95% CI: 0.53 to 1.05]). Finally, PRs for obesity (PRs ranging from 0.31 to 0.37) and abdominal adiposity (PRs ranging from 0.39 to 0.71) were also relatively lower for the vegetarian groups vs. non-vegetarian group.

Findings confirm that a vegetarian dietary pattern is associated with lower prevalence of CVD factors, as compared to non-vegetarian diets, in non-Hispanic white individuals. In the present study, VG, LOV, and PV were linked to lower risk of hypertension, high cholesterol, and high LDL-C, as well as lower obesity and abdominal adiposity, with the observed relationships remaining generally consistent even after adjusting for BMI.  Thus, adopting a plant-based dietary pattern appears to have significant potential cardio-protective benefits. However, additional studies are needed to identify which specific vegetarian foods are most beneficial for reducing CVD and whether each of the three vegetarian diets is equally effective. It should be considered that the current study is limited by a 1-3-year gap between the time of dietary classification for patients and the time of clinical data collection.  As well, the number of subjects in the vegetarian groups was relatively low. Finally, it would be valuable to replicate findings in populations with existing CVD conditions or in those at higher risk for it.

Source: Matsumoto S, Beeson WL, Shavlik DJ, et al. Association between vegetarian diets and cardiovascular risk factors in non-Hispanic white participants of the adventist health study-2. Journal of Nutritional Science. 2019; 8: e6. DOI: 10.1017/jns.2019.1.

© The Author(s) 2019. This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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Posted April 21, 2020.

Angeline A. De Leon, MA, graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2010, completing a bachelor’s degree in psychology, with a concentration in neuroscience. She received her master’s degree from The Ohio State University in 2013, where she studied clinical neuroscience within an integrative health program. Her specialized area of research involves the complementary use of neuroimaging and neuropsychology-based methodologies to examine how lifestyle factors, such as physical activity and meditation, can influence brain plasticity and enhance overall connectivity.

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