1:58

about 65%

2:00

lower risk than non-vegetarians, and

2:04

this despite higher homocysteine due

2:06

to lower vitamin B12 intake, which

2:08

is what may have led to the higher stroke risk in

2:10

the previous study. Overall,

2:13

if you do a systematic review of all the major

2:15

studies, a comprehensive meta-analysis

2:17

found a significant protective effect of

2:19

a vegetarian diet versus the incidence

2:22

and or mortality from ischemic heart disease

2:24

and incidence from total cancer, with

2:27

a vegan diet conferring about twice the reduced

2:29

risk cancer-wise. You

2:31

can also look at it the other way. What

2:33

if you decide to stop eating vegetarian

2:36

and start eating meat? The

2:38

Adventist Health study looked at that and

2:40

found that compared to those who stayed vegetarian,

2:43

those who started eating meat suffered a 231% increased

2:45

risk of gaining weight, 166% increase

2:51

in the risk of developing diabetes, 152% increased

2:55

risk of having a stroke, and 146%

2:58

increased risk of being diagnosed with heart disease.

3:01

And if you keep eating meat, you may cut your lifespan

3:03

by three and a half years, so better

3:06

to not just cut out meat, but

3:08

cut it out for good.

3:10

But it's not all or nothing. Even

3:12

just cutting down may help. A

3:14

food pattern that emphasizes plant-derived

3:17

foods was found to be associated with a reduced

3:19

risk of all-cause mortality, meaning living

3:22

a significantly longer life. So

3:24

there are multiple benefits, even eating

3:27

in the direction of a more plant-based diet,

3:29

but what about any risks? Despite

3:31

concerns for protein deficiency, adequate

3:34

amounts of protein, which means 0.8 grams

3:36

per kilogram body weight, about 50 grams a

3:38

day, can be consumed on a solely

3:40

plant-based diet, as seen among

3:42

the other billion-plus people around the world

3:45

who don't eat meat. Vitamin

3:47

B12 deficiency, on the other hand, is a very real

3:49

concern without a regular, reliable

3:52

source, and I have videos on how to

3:54

do that, either through supplements or fortified

3:57

foods. One benefit, you

3:59

don't hear much about it.

5:11

on

6:00

alcohol, avoiding alcohol entirely is

6:02

a more effective and ironically easier

6:05

for a problem drinker. Paradoxically

6:08

asking patients to make a large change

6:11

may be more effective than making

6:13

a slow transition. Diet studies

6:15

show that recommending more significant changes increases

6:18

the changes that patients actually accomplish.

6:22

It may help to replace the common advice,

6:24

all things in moderation with big changes,

6:27

but get big results. Success

6:30

breeds success. After a few

6:32

days or weeks of major dietary changes,

6:35

patients are more likely to see improvements

6:38

in weight, blood sugar levels, improvements

6:40

that reinforce the dietary changes.

6:43

Furthermore, they may enjoy other health

6:45

benefits of plant-based eating that may give them

6:47

further motivation. Those

6:50

who choose to eat plant-based for their health say it's

6:52

mostly for general wellness and disease prevention,

6:55

or to improve their energy levels or immune function.

6:58

They felt it gave them a sense of control

7:01

over their health, helps you feel better emotionally,

7:04

improves your overall health, and makes you feel better.

7:07

Most felt it was very important for maintaining

7:09

their health and well-being. For the minority,

7:11

they used it for a specific health problem.

7:14

It was mostly for cholesterol

7:17

or weight loss, followed by high blood

7:19

pressure and diabetes. With most reporting,

7:21

they felt it helped a great deal. But

7:24

others choose plant-based diets for other

7:27

reasons like animal welfare or global warming.

7:29

It looks like they're more likely to be

7:31

eating things like vegan donuts, sugary

7:34

fatty foods compared to those eating

7:37

plant-based because of religious

7:39

or health reasons. The

7:42

vegan-as-vegan could bake

7:44

a cake using soda instead of

7:46

eggs, with frosting covered in marshmallow

7:48

fluff and chocolate syrup, topped with

7:51

Oreos with a side of Doritos, dipped

7:53

in vegan bacon grease,

7:56

but fruit for dessert in

7:58

the form of Pop-Tarts and

7:59

and crispy cream pies. This

8:02

is a vegan meal. Yes,

8:06

plant-based diets have been recommended to reduce the risk

8:08

of type 2 diabetes. However,

8:10

not all plant foods are necessarily

8:12

beneficial. Like in that pro-vegetarian

8:15

scoring system, you got points for eating

8:18

potato chips and french fries just because

8:20

they were, you know, technically plant-based.

8:23

But Harvard researchers wanted to examine the association

8:25

of not only an overall plant-based

8:27

diet, but both healthy and unhealthy

8:30

versions. So they created the same kind of pro-vegetarian

8:33

scoring systems weighted towards any sort

8:35

of plant-based foods and against animal

8:37

foods, and then also

8:39

created a healthful plant-based diet index

8:42

where at least some whole plant foods

8:44

took precedence and Coca-Cola

8:46

was no longer considered a plant. Then

8:49

lastly they created an unhealthful

8:52

plant-based diet index by sending

8:54

positive scores to processed

8:56

plant-based junk and negative scoring healthier

8:59

foods and animal foods. And then they found that a more

9:01

plant-based diet in general was

9:03

good for reducing diabetes risk, but

9:05

eating especially healthy plant-based foods

9:08

did better, nearly cutting risk in

9:10

half, while those eating more unhealthy

9:13

plant foods did worse. Now,

9:16

but is that because they were also eating more

9:19

animal foods? People often

9:21

eat burgers with their fries, so they

9:23

separated out the effects of healthy plant

9:26

foods, less healthy plant foods

9:28

and animal foods. And healthy

9:30

plant foods were protectively associated,

9:32

animal foods were detrimentally associated,

9:35

and less healthy plant foods were more

9:38

neutral when it came to diabetes risk.

9:40

Higher diabetes risk with more and more animal

9:43

foods, no protection whatsoever

9:45

with junky plant foods, and lower

9:47

and lower diabetes risk associated

9:50

with more and more healthy whole plant

9:52

foods in the diet. So

9:55

they conclude that yes, plant-based diets are associated

9:57

with substantially lower risk of developing

9:59

type 2 diets. but it may

10:01

not be enough to just lower the intake of animal

10:03

foods, but also less

10:06

healthy plant foods as well. We

10:10

would love it if you could share with us your stories about

10:13

reinvention of your health through evidence-based nutrition. Go to

10:15

nutritionfacts.org slash testimonials. We

10:18

may be able to share it on social media to help

10:20

inspire others. If

10:23

you'd like to see any graphs, charts,

10:25

graphics, images, or studies mentioned

10:27

here, go to the Nutrition Facts Podcast landing page, there

10:30

you'll find all the detailed information you need, plus

10:33

links to all the sources we cite for each

10:35

of these topics. My

10:38

last two books were How to Survive a Pandemic and

10:40

my How Not to Diet Cookbook. Get

10:43

ready this year for the launch of How Not to Age.

10:46

And of course, all the proceeds for the sales

10:48

of all my books goes directly to charity.

10:51

Nutritionfacts.org is a non-profit, science-based public

10:53

service where you can sign up for free

10:55

daily updates and the latest in nutrition research,

10:58

with bite-sized videos and articles uploaded

11:00

nearly every day.

11:03

Everything on the website is free. There are

11:05

no ads, no corporate sponsorships, no

11:07

kickbacks, it's strictly non-commercial, not selling

11:09

anything. I just put it up as a

11:11

public service, as a labor of love, as a tribute to my grandmother,

11:16

whose own life was saved with evidence-based

11:18

nutrition.