Vegetarian Diet Cuts Metabolic Disease Risk

Individuals who adhere to a vegetarian diet have a lower risk of developing metabolic disease like diabetes and cardiovascular disease, according to a new study published in the journal Diabetes Care.

Researchers at Loma Linda University conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 773 adults who participated in the Adventist Health Study 2. Measuring for metabolic risk factors, they found vegetarians had lower levels of triglycerides, glucose, blood pressure and waist circumference than non-vegetarians. The only exception was cholesterol.

As reported by Reuters, the researchers found 23 out of every 100 vegetarians have at least three metabolic syndrome factors, compared with 39 out of every 100 non-vegetarians and 37 out of every 100 semi-vegetarians. Vegetarians' average BMI of 25.7 was four points lower than non-vegetarians, who had BMIs near 30.

Sources:

* Reuters: Vegetarians may be at lower diabetes, heart risk