Not all plant-based diets reduce diabetes and obesity risk: Study
A recent study has shown that not all plant-based diets reduce diabetes risk and weight gain. In its findings, only the one low in processed foods and sugar decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes by 24%. The research, featured in the journal Diabetes & Metabolism, examined the diets of over 113,000 participants. Lead author Alysha Thompson, a doctoral student at Queen's University Belfast, emphasized the importance of this data as it shows which plant-based diet is healthy for consumption.
Here are the findings of this study
The majority of those in the top 25% consumed a plant-based diet low in desserts, sugary drinks, refined grains, and sweets. The poorest 25% of people ate a lot more of those unhealthful plant-based foods. Individuals who consumed the most fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and minimal amounts of unhealthy foods decreased their risk of diabetes by 24% when compared to those in the lowest tier.
Unhealthy plant-based diet increases diabetes risk
Conversely, the study discovered that individuals who consumed an unhealthy plant-based diet filled with sweets, desserts, refined grains, and sugary drinks, faced a 37% higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Co-author Tilman Kühn, a lecturer from the Institute for Global Food Security at Queen's University Belfast, explained that obesity was a "key mediator underlying greater type two diabetes risk among individuals following unhealthful plant-based diets." The least healthy plant-based diets were also linked to increased levels of triglycerides.
Antidiabetic mechanisms of healthy plant-based diets
The effect of a healthy plant-based diet against type 2 diabetes is due to its influence on various antidiabetic mechanisms like blood sugar, lipid levels, and lower body fatness. Co-author Aedín Cassidy, a professor at Queen University Belfast's Institute for Global Food Security, underscored the role played by the liver and kidney in reducing diabetes risk. Cassidy stated that this is the first study to demonstrate improvements in metabolism, liver, and kidney function due to a healthy plant-based diet.
Future research on plant-based diets and diabetes
Although the study didn't lay a direct cause and effect, Duane Mellor, a dietitian and senior teaching fellow at Aston Medical School in Birmingham, found the findings "interesting." Mellor noted that the analysis explored how liver health and other measures of inflammation might be connected to diet and type 2 diabetes. He suggested that this research could lay the groundwork for future studies to determine if a healthy plant-based diet can indeed lower the risk of this disease.
