THE BASICS: Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet – Part 1

“I don’t mind dying.  I just don’t want it to be my fault”.

“There are two kinds of cardiologists – those that are vegan and those that haven’t read the data”.

 

Dr. Kim Williams, cardiologist and the president of the American College of Cardiology in 2015, is quoted above.  He advocates a plant-based diet with the goal of converting heart disease treatment from “event”- focused to “prevent”- focused.  He himself has eaten plant-based (no meat, no fish, no eggs, no dairy) for more than a decade.

The benefits of eating plant-based are numerous and far-reaching.  As an introduction, the following is an overview of some of the many reasons why a plant-based lifestyle might be right for you.  I have broken the list into three parts because there are just so many aspects of health that can be transformed by adopting a plant-based lifestyle.  Scientific sources are listed at the end of each article if you are interested in digging deeper into the data.

 

Prevent and reverse obesity

Obesity is a “growing” problem in Canada today. One in four adults and one in ten children are now clinically obese.  Plant-based eating has the marvelous benefit of allowing you to eat until you are satisfied without gaining weight. Reaching and maintaining your desired weight goal occurs without depriving yourself, without counting calories and without going hungry.  This is possible because plants are nutrient-dense, not energy-dense. The stretch receptors in your stomach that let you know when you are full are activated much sooner when eating plant-based foods than they are when you eat more energy-dense animal-based foods.  The result is that you feel full before you have taken in too many calories.

(See sources # 1 to 10)

 

Prevent and reverse heart disease 

“Cardiovascular disease is a toothless paper tiger that need never exist. And if it does exist, it need never progress. It is a food-borne illness. Change your food, change your life.”

Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn Jr

 

With the prevalence of heart disease in our society today it is easy to believe that heart attacks and strokes are just a normal part of aging.  The truth is that heart disease is a direct consequence of our Western way of life.  Our diets are so high in saturated fat that even ten-year-old children have fatty streaks in their arteries, the first step into cardiovascular disease.  By the age of twenty, 20% of the coronary blood vessels of people eating a Western-style diet are lined with fatty streaks and by the age of thirty many people are already forming the plaques in their blood vessels that eventually obstruct blood flow and cause devastating life-threatening events.  In contrast, the rate of heart disease in people who live in areas of the world that eat mostly plants (the Blue Zones*) is 85% lower than that of the Western world.

 

* Blue Zones are geographic areas around the world in which people have low rates of chronic disease and live longer than anywhere else.  These areas contain extremely high rates of people who live to be over 90 and 100.   Blue Zones are found in Icaria, Greece; Sardinia, Italy; Okinawa, Japan; the Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica; and the Seventh-Day Adventists in Loma Linda, Calfornia, USA.  Genetics have been found to account for only 20 to 30% of longevity.  Environmental influences, including diet and lifestyle seem to play a huge role in determining lifespan.

 

It’s not only about prevention either. Comprehensive diet and lifestyle changes have such remarkable benefits on the health of blood vessels that heart disease already present in arteries can even be reversed.

(See Sources # 11 to 27)

 

Reduce High Blood Pressure

Hypertension (high blood pressure) is the number one risk factor for death in the world, contributing to mortality from heart attacks, strokes, heart failure, aneurysms and kidney failure.  Hypertension is not an inevitable result of aging.  Dietary patterns that are high in plants and that do not contain meat have long been associated with lower blood pressure. Research performed decades ago on rural Kenyans who were eating a diet centered around whole plant foods revealed their lifelong low blood pressures.  Surprisingly, unlike the gradually rising blood pressure pattern here in the western world, the Kenyans saw theirs decrease as they grew older.  Since these original studies, other societies around the world that traditionally eat plant-based diets have been found to enjoy the benefits of healthy low blood pressures.

Another contributing factor to high blood pressure is the overabundance of sodium in the diet.  Minimizing processed foods and their baggage of high salt content will also decrease blood pressure.

(See Sources #28 to 41)

 

Prevent and reverse type 2 diabetes

It is estimated that 1 in 10 Canadians have diabetes and 1 in 5 have prediabetes (higher than normal blood sugar levels that will continue to rise to become full-blown diabetes if no action is taken).  In 2008, 1 in 10 deaths in Canadian adults was caused by diabetes.  People with diabetes are three times more likely to be hospitalized with cardiovascular disease, twelve times more likely to be hospitalized with end-stage renal disease and twenty times more likely to be hospitalized for a non-traumatic lower limb amputation compared to the general population.  On top of this, the percentage of the Canadian population that has diabetes increases every year.  Obviously, diabetes is having a huge impact on the health of Canadians.

What if there is a way to prevent this debilitating disease and perhaps even to reverse it?  Happily, the key is the adoption of a plant-based diet.  It has been known for decades that those who eat meat at least one day a week have significantly higher rates of type-2 diabetes and that the more often meat is eaten, the more the risk of type-2 diabetes increases.  Those who eat plant-based are 78% less likely to suffer from type-2 diabetes.  In addition, studies on type-2 diabetics who followed a high-carbohydrate, high-fiber diet (plant-based) for only sixteen days have shown that subjects cut their overall insulin requirements by 60% and half of them were able to get off insulin altogether.  Some of these people had been taking insulin for decades!  In another study from Finland, over 2000 men were followed for 19 years and it was determined that by replacing even one percent of calories from animal proteins with plant proteins the risk of developing type-2 diabetes was lowered by 18%.

(See Sources # 42 to 49)

 

SOURCES

Obesity
1. Berkow, S.E., Barnard, N. Vegetarian diets and weight status. Nutr Rev 2006 Apr; 64 (4); 175 – 188
2. Farmer, B., Larson, B.T., Fulgoni, V.L. 3rd, Rainville, A.J., Liepa G.U. A vegetarian dietary pattern as a nutrient-    dense approach to weight management: an analysis of the national health and nutrition examination survey 1999- 2004. J Am Diet Assoc 2011 June: 111(6): 819 – 827
3. Wang, Y., Beydoun, M.A. Meat consumption is associated with obesity and central obesity among US adults. Int J Obes (Lond) 2009 Jun: 33(6):621 – 628
4. Rosell, M., Appleby P., Spencer E., Key, T. Weight gain over 5 years in 21,966 meat-eating, fish-eating, vegetarian and vegan men and women in EPIC-Oxford. Int J Obes (Lond) 2006 Sep: 30(9): 1889-1396
5. Duncan, K.H., Bacon, J.A.,Weinsier,R.L.. The effects of high and low energy density diets on satiety, energy intake, and eating time of obese and nonobese subjects. Am J Clin Nutr. 1983 May; 37(5):763-767.
6. Ledikwe, J.H., Rolls, B.J., Smiciklas-Wright,Hl, Mitchell, D.C., Ard, J.D., Champagne, C., Karanja, N., Lin, P.H., Stevens, V.J., Appel, L.J. Reductions in dietary energy density are associated with weight loss in overweight and obese participants in the PREMIER trial. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 May; 85(5):1212-1221.
7. Pérez-Escamilla, R., Obbagy, J.E., Altman, J.M., Essery, E.V., McGrane, M.M., Wong, Y.P., Spahn, J.M., Williams, C.L. Dietary energy density and body weight in adults and children: a systematic review. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2012 May; 112 (5):671-684.
8. Rebello, C.J., Liu, A.G., Greenway, F.L., Dhurandhar, N.V. Dietary strategies to increase satiety. Adv Food Nutr Res. 2013; 69:105-82.
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10. Rolls, B.J. Dietary strategies for weight management. Nestle Nutr Inst Workshop Ser. 2012; 73:37-48.

Heart Disease
11. Strong JP, McGill HC Jr. The pediatric aspects of atherosclerosis. Journal of Atherosclerosis Research. 1969; 9(3):251-265
12. Strong, J.P. et al, Early Atherosclerosis Present in Virtually All Americans. JAMA. Feb, 1999
13. McMahan, C.A., Gidding, S.S., Malcom, G.T., Tracy, R.E., Strong, J.P., McGill Jr., H.C. Pathobiological
determinants of atherosclerosis in youth risk scores are associated with early and advanced atherosclerosis. Pediatrics 2006 118(4):1447 – 1455.
14. McGill Jr., H.C., Herderick, E.E. Atherosclerosis in youth. Minerva Pediatr 2002 54(5):437-447.
15. Ornish, D., Brown, S.E., Scherwitz, L.W. et al. Can lifestyle changes reverse coronary heart disease? The Lifestyle Heart Trial. Lancet 1990 Jul 21; 336(8708):129-133.
16. Ornish D., Scherwitz, L.W., Billings, J.H., et al. Intensive lifestyle changes for reversal of coronary heart disease. JAMA 1998 Dec 16; 280(23):2001-2007.
17. de Lorgeril, M., Salen, P., Martin, J.L., Monjaud, I., Delaye, J., Mamelle, N. Mediterranean diet, traditional risk factors, and the rate of cardiovascular complications after myocardial infarction: final report of the Lyon Diet Heart Study. Circulation 1999 Feb; 99(6):779-785.
18. Key, T.J., Fraser, G.E., Thorogood, M., et al. Mortality in vegetarians and non-vegetarians: a collaborative analysis of 8300 deaths among 76,000 men and women in five prospective studies. Public Health Nutr 1998 Mar;1(1):33-41.
19. Appleby, P.N., Thorogood, M., McPherson, K., Mann, J.I. Associations between plasma lipid concentrations and dietary, lifestyle and physical factors in the Oxford Vegetarian Study. J Hum Nutr Diet 1995 Oct; 8(5):305-314.
20. Fraser, G.E. Vegetarian diets: what do we know of their effects on common chronic diseases? Am J Clin Nutr 2009; 89(5):1607S-1612S.
21. Olshansky, S.J., Passaro, D.J., Hershow, R.C., et al. A potential decline in life expectancy in the United States in the21st century. N Engl J Med. 2005; 352(11):1138-1145.
22. Chiuve, S.E., McCullough, M.L., Sacks, F.M., Rimm, E.B. Healthy lifestyle factors in the primary prevention of coronary heart disease among men: benefits among users and nonusers of lipid-lowering and antihypertensive medications. Circulation. 2006 Jul 11; 114(2):160-167.
23. Esselstyn Jr, C.B., Gendy, G. et al. A way to reverse CAD? July, 2014. J Family Practice 63(7).
24. Poulain, M., Mario Pes, G., Grasland, C., Carru, C. et al. Identification of a geographic area characterized by extreme longevity in the Sardinia island: the AKEA study. Sep 2004; 39(9): 1423-1429. Doi: 10.1016/j.exger.2004.06.016.
25. Salaris, L., Poulain, M., Samaras, T.T. Height and survival at older ages among men born in an inland village in Sardinia (Italy), 1866-2006. 2012; 58(1): 1 – 13. Doi: 10.1080/19485565.2012.666118.
26. Willcox, B.J., Willcox, D.C., He, Q., Curb, J.D., Suzuki, M. Siblings of Okinawan centenarians share lifelong mortality advantages. Apr 2006; 61(4): 345-354. Doi: 10.1093/gerona/61.4.345.
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High Blood Pressure
28. Go, A.S., Bauman, M.A., Coleman King, S.M., Fonarow, G.C., Lawrence, W., Williams, K.A., Sanchez, E.; American Heart Association; American College of Cardiology; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An effective approach to high blood pressure control: a science advisory from the American Heart Association, the American College of Cardiology, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Hypertension. 2014 Apr; 63(4):878-885.
29. Donnison, C. (1929). Blood Pressure in the African Native: Its bearing upon the aetiology of hyperpiesia and arteriosclerosis. Lancet, 213(5497), 6-7.
30. Walker, A.R., Walker, B.F.. High high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol in African children and adults in a population free of coronary heart disease. Br Med J. 1978;2(6148):1336-1337.
31. Morse, W., & Beh, Y. (1937). Blood Pressure Amongst Aboriginal Ethnic Groups Of Szechwan Province, West China. The Lancet, 229(5929), 966-968
32.Takahashi, Y., Sasaki, S., Okubo, S., Hayashi, M., Tsugane, S. Blood pressure change in a free-living population-based dietary modification study in Japan. J Hypertens. 2006 Mar;24(3):451-458.
33. Appel, L.J., Brands, M.W., Daniels, S.R., Karanja, N., Elmer, P.J., Sacks, F.M.; American Heart Association. Dietary approaches to prevent and treat hypertension: a scientific statement from the American Heart Association. Hypertension. 2006 Feb;47(2):296-308.
34. Sacks, F.M., Kass, E.H. Low blood pressure in vegetarians: effects of specific foods and nutrients. Am J Clin Nutr.1988 Sep;48(3 Suppl):795-800.
35. Le, L.T., Sabaté, J. Beyond meatless, the health effects of vegan diets: findings from the Adventist cohorts. Nutrients. 2014 May 27;6(6):2131-2147.
36. Nwankwo, T., Yoon, S.S., Burt, V, Gu, Q. Hypertension among adults in the United States: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2011-2102. NCHS Data Brief, 2013. Oct (133):1-8373. Appel, 37. L.I.,Anderson, C.A., Compelling evidence for public health action to reduce salt intake. N Engl J Med. 2010Feb 18;362(7):650-652.
38. Bibbins-Domingo, K., Chertow, G.M., Coxson, P.G., Moran, A., Lightwood, J.M., Pletcher, M.J., Goldman, L. Projected effect of dietary salt reductions on future cardiovascular disease. N Engl J Med. 2010 Feb 18; 362(7):590-599.
39. Delahaye, F.. Should we eat less salt? Arch Cardiovasc Dis. 2013 May;106(5):324-332.
40. Freis, E.D.. Salt, volume and the prevention of hypertension. Circulation. 1976 Apr;53(4):589-595.
41. Celermajer, D.S., Neal, B.. Excessive sodium intake and cardiovascular disease: a-salting our vessels. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2013 Jan 22;61(3):344-345.

Diabetes
42.Tonstad, S., Stewart, K., Oda, K, Batech, M., Herring, R.P., Fraser, G.E. Vegetarian diets and incidence of diabetes in the Adventist Health Study-2. Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2013 Apr;23(4):292-299
43. Goff, L.M., Bell, J.D., So, P.W., Dornhorst, A., Forst, G.S. Veganism and its relationship with insulin resistance and intramyocellular lipid. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2005 Feb;59(2):291-298.
44. Ahmadi-Abhari, S., Luben, R.N., Powell, N. Dietary intake of carbohydrates and risk of type 2 diabetes: the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer-Norfolk study. Journal of Nutrition, 2014
45. Satija, A., Shilpa, N., et al. Plant-Based Dietary Patterns and Incidence of Type 2 Diabetes in US Men and Women: Results from Three Prospective Cohort Studies. 2016 June; 13(6).
46. Snowdon, D.A., Phillips, R.L.. Does a vegetarian diet reduce the occurrence of diabetes? Am J Public Health 1985 May;75(5):507-12.
47. Vang, A., Singh, P.N., Lee, J.W., Haddad, E.H., Brinegar, C.H. Meats, processed meats, obesity, weight gain and occurrence of diabetes among adults: findings from Adventist Health Studies. Ann Nutr Metab 2008;52(2):96-104.
48. Barnard, N.D., Cohen, J., Jenkins, D.J., et al. A low-fat vegan diet improves glycemic control and cardiovascular risk factors in a randomized clinical trial in individuals with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care 2006 Aug;29(8):1777-1783.
49. Virtanen, H.E., Voutilainen, S., Mursu, J. et al. Intake of different dietary proteins and risk of type 2 diabetes in men: the Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study. Br J Nutr. 2017 Mar;117(6):882-893.

 

 

 

Promoting a healthy adventurous lifestyle powered by plants and the strength of scientific evidence.

My name is Debra Harley (BScPhm) and I welcome you to my retirement project, this website. Over the course of a life many lessons are learned, altering deeply-rooted ideas and creating new passions.

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