Plant-based diets are a hot topic on many people’s lips nowadays. What started as a woo-woo trend has evolved and grown into a natural movement, and it’s not hard to see why. Eating a plant-based diet has benefits that go on for days. It lowers your impact on the planet, you lose weight, your skin glows, and now new studies published by The American Heart Association Journal have found that plant-based diets can prevent and even reverse heart disease by as much as 52%.
One study published by The American Heart Association began in 1985. It followed 4946 participants aged between the ages of 18 and 30 for 32 years. The results were conclusive. The consumption of a high-quality plant-based diet starting in young adulthood lowered your chances of cardiovascular disease by 52%.
The study reported 289 incidences of cardiovascular disease among the participants who ate a meat-centred diet over the 32 years. Those who presented with heart disease then swapped to a plant-centred diet saw significant reversals in their condition.
A separate study published by the AHA Journal followed 123 330 postmenopausal women from 1993 through 2017. The study reported an 11% decrease in risk of cardiovascular disease, 14% decreased risk of coronary heart disease, and 17% decreased risk of heart failure. The women were 62 at the time the study began. The participants who followed a plant-centred diet known as the portfolio diet were found to be better protected against any cardiovascular event, proving that it’s never too late to start.
Although plant-based diets have become very trendy in the last couple of years, the health benefits have long been known by those in nutrition. According to a report by the British Heart Foundation, the first study on the effects of plant-based diets on heart health was carried out in the 1980s. The control group of 22 people all presented with heart disease, and of the original 22, four saw a reversal in their disease.
The study was too small to be conclusive. A similar study was carried out in 2014 with 198 participants. Of the initial number, 177 stuck to the plant-based diet, and all said they had a reduction in cardiovascular disease symptoms. Of the 177 participants, 22% had disease reversal confirmed by doctors. This study shows the profound effect that a plant-based diet can have on heart health, but it is worth noting that participants also cut out sugars and processed foods.
A Plant-Based Diet Doesn’t Mean Vegetarianism or Veganism
While the research shows the benefits of eating a plant-based diet, it doesn’t suggest that strict vegetarianism is the only way to reap the rewards of heart health. The lead researcher of the first study on young adults, Dr. Choi, stated that “We think that individuals can include animal products in moderation from time to time, such as non-fried poultry, non-fried fish, eggs and low-fat dairy.” The study’s lead author on postmenopausal women stated that they found a dose-effect with the diet, which means that you could add one heart-healthy piece of food to your diet at a time, and you would still see heart benefits.
According to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), Dr. Dean Ornish has been practising a heart-healthy diet with his patients for over 30 years. He promotes a plant-based, low-fat diet as the primary key to reversing heart disease. His studies over the years found that his participants who stuck to his plan reversed their heart disease by 85%. It’s worth noting that Dr. Ornish also suggests light aerobic activity and stress management techniques.
In the Lifestyle Heart Trial, a long-term study conducted by the American College of Cardiologists, 91% of participants who followed a plant-based diet reported fewer angina attacks. The plant-based study group also showed a 73% decrease in coronary events.
Researchers followed 84136 women over a 26-year period in the Nurses Health Study and found that those who avoided red meat had a significantly lower risk of heart disease than those who did not. A similar study of male surgeons found those who ate red meat were 24% more likely to suffer from heart disease than those who did not.
There is little doubt that plant-centred diets are beneficial to heart health. These studies show that the benefits can happen quickly and at any stage of life. Swapping meat out of your diet can help prevent, manage and even reverse cardiovascular disease in men and women of any age.
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