Why is a whole food plant-based diet the optimal diet

for health and longevity? 

​

Most of today’s common chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes and obesity as well as certain types of cancers are caused by our lifestyle. It’s estimated that up to 80% of all premature deaths from those diseases could be prevented, partly by simple diet changes (20,22),. Although poor diet is not the only contributor to those diseases, it is a dominating contributor, along with a sedentary lifestyle, overweight, smoking and drinking. A high intake of sodium, meat, saturated fat, processed foods and sugary beverages are strongly linked to poor health and disease. Contrary to this, a whole food plant-based diet, which is filled with fiber, complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, good sources of protein and plenty of antioxidants (more than in any other diet!), are scientifically proven to be in favor of disease prevention and longevity. Here follows some more details and facts which will help you understand why this way of eating is the optimal way for health and longevity.  

​

 

THE KEY TO HEALTHY WEIGHT

Basing your diet on plants means you will eat a voluminous diet, a very nutritionally dense diet, but not a very calorie dense diet. This is the key too keep a healthy weight. On a whole food plant-based diet you can eat a lot, feel full and satisfied; yet feel light and energised at the same time. All the fiber from the plants will prevent your blood sugar from going on a roller coaster, which means you will feel more stable throughout the day and at less risk for craving sugary snacks. Stable blood sugar levels help with weight management. There are many fad diets out there that may help with weight loss short term, but none of them are as powerful, sustainable and as health promoting in the long term, as a plant-based diet. The diet that can BOTH help maintain a normal body weight, AND is full of protective and vital nutrients, that is the ultimate diet! Although a plant-based diet is very beneficial for people with weight problems, a plant-based diet should not be seen as a quick fix for weight loss. A plant-based diet is the optimal diet for health and longevity and should be seen as a long term lifestyle choice.

 

 

PROTECTION AGAINST DIABETES 

People who eat a completely plant-based diet have shown to have around 62% less risk of developing diabetes type 2, and lacto-ovo vegetarians a 38% less risk, compared to non-vegetarians, after adjusting for BMI and other confounding factors (1). Eating meat at least once a week, in comparison to never eating meat, has been associated with an 74% increase in the odds of developing diabetes type 2 (25) and even just substituting 5% of total energy intake from vegetable protein for animal protein, has been associated with an 23% reduced risk of diabetes type 2 (26). For people who are already diagnosed with pre-diabetes, or diabetes type 2, a whole food plant-based diet can be an efficient tool in the treatment of insulin resistance, which is the underlying problem of diabetes type 2. After just a few weeks, or even days, of eating a whole food plant-based diet the blood sugar will start stabilize and the insulin sensitivity will increase. The diet change may help mange the disease so well that medications may not be needed, or may even be taken off if currently used. The American Diabetes Association recommends a plant-based diet as a healthful eating pattern (2), and there is mounting evidence that supports the use of a plant-based diet as a tool for type 2 diabetes prevention and management (28).  

 

 

PROTECTION AGAINST HEART DISEASE 

Studies have shown that plant-eaters have around 32% reduced risk of developing and dying from ischemic heart disease, such as heart attacks and strokes, than omnivores (5,6, 19). Nearly 50% of all death from cardiovascular diseases could be prevented by better food choices, such as increased intake of nuts and seeds, fruit and vegetables and decreased intake of sodium, processed meat and sugary drinks (18). A whole food plant-based diet is filled with nutrients that have proven to reduce the risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, chronic inflammation and high blood glucose levels; all these factors are contributing to the risk of developing atherosclerosis and heart disease. A whole-food plant based diet is also minimal in saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein, which are all associated with increased risk of heart disease (12). Furthermore, a low fat whole food plant-based diet is the only diet that has been proven to reverse heart disease (3, 23). And among people who already have severe cardiac events, a low fat whole food plant-based diet, has shown to be protective against further cardiac events (4, 24).

 

 

PROTECTION AGAINST CANCER

World Cancer Research Fund and The American Institute for Cancer Research states in their recommendations for cancer prevention that people should eat mostly food of plant origin. We should eat much more fruit, vegetables, whole grains and beans, and at the same time we should decrease our intake of red meat and avoid all processed meats, as well as limit our intake of sugary drinks, energy dense foods, salt and alcohol (7, 27). The World Health Organization has even classified red meat and processed meats as carcinogens, and the cancer risk increases with the amount of meat consumed (8). Many of our most common cancers today, such as colorectal, prostate, breast, stomach, pancreatic and kidney cancer, have all been connected to meat and animal products. There are many hypotheses to why that is, and the most convincing ones are that meat contains animal protein, saturated fat and carcinogenic compounds such as heme iron (naturally found in meat) or compounds formed during the process or cooking of meat e.g. heterocyclic amines (HCA) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) (9). Meat also lacks protective compounds such as fiber and antioxidants. Therefore, to minimize our risks of cancer we should instead focus on eating health-promoting foods; i.e. plenty of plants! The more fiber people eat, the less cancer they tend to have. People who eat plant-based diets are around 40% less likely to develop cancer than meat eaters (10,11).

 

Dietary guidelines for cancer prevention 

​

​

FOR A HEATLHY GUT FLORA

Most of our immune system is found in our colon and is built up by a complex microbiota profile. A diet rich in fiber (fiber is only found in plant foods!) leads to a more diverse and richer microbiota, as fiber is simply food for the gut and colon bacteria (14). When we eat a lot of fiber we feed the bacteria, and in turn when the bacteria metabolize the fiber, it releases lots of healthy compounds, which ultimately leads to a stronger immune system. A healthy micro flora is associated with less overall inflammation, less risk of heart disease, colon cancer, diabetes and different digestive diseases, and of course common problems such as constipation. People who eat mainly plant-based have a reduced abundance of pathobiots, and a greater abundance of protective species in their micro flora (13).  On the contrary, a diet rich in animal protein such as red meat, leads to an increased production of disease promoting compounds in the colon, which in turn increases the risk of e.g. atherosclerosis and colon cancer (7, 15).  

 

Boost healthy gut bacteria with plant-based foods

​

​

FOR LONGEVITY AND HEALTHY AGEING

People who live on plant-based diets have been shown to live longer compared to the general population. 7-day Adventists men and women in California, who live plant-based, have around 10 and 6 years longer life expectancy, respectively (16).

People in the worlds five so-called “Blue Zones” tend to live longer and be healthier even in older ages (7-day Adventists is one of those groups). Although these people have grown up in different parts of the world, are surrounded by completely different environments and have different genes, they have a few key health factors in common. They all prioritize close family relations, they move naturally, they have tools for stress management, and they eat predominately locally grown plants. They eat on average 95% plant-based and 50-80% carbohydrates. The carbs are complex carbs such as vegetables, fruits, grains and legumes (not sugar and refined or processed foods). Beans, lentils and soy are cornerstones in their diets, and they eat meat on average only 5 times per month (17). 

​

Blue Zones Food Guideline

​

7 things that happen when you stop eating meat

​

​

​

​

​

“Your DNA isn’t your destiny. your DINNER is your destiny”

Quote from leading nutrition expert Dr. David Katz MD.

​

​

​

​

​

 

1. S. Tonstad et al. Vegetarian diets and incidence of diabetes in the Adventist Health Study-2, Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2013 April ; 23(4): 292–299

2. American Diabetes Association. Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes - 2017. Diabetes Care. 2017;40(Suppl 1):S1-S135.

3. Ornish D et al. Can lifestyle changes reverse coronary heart disease? The Lifestyle Heart Trial. Lancet. 1990 Jul 21;336(8708):129-33.

4. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., MD Updating a 12-year experience with arrest and reversal therapy for coronary heart disease (an overdue requiem for palliative cardiology). The American Journal of Cardiology: August 1, 1999Volume 84, Issue 3, Pages 339–341

5. Tao Huang et al. Cardiovascular Disease Mortality and Cancer Incidence in Vegetarians: A Meta-Analysis and Systematic Review Ann Nutr Metab 2012;60:233–240

6. Crowe FL et al. Risk of hospitalization or death from ischemic heart disease among British vegetarians and nonvegetarians: results from the EPIC-Oxford cohort study. Am J Clin Nutr. 2013 Mar;97(3):597-603

7. www.wcrf.org/int/research-we-fund/our-cancer-prevention-recommendations

8. www.who.int/features/qa/cancer-red-meat/en/

9. www.pcrm.org/health/cancer-resources/diet-cancer/facts/meat-consumption-and-cancer-risk

10. Thorogood M, Mann J, Appleby P, McPherson K. Risk of death from cancer and ischaemic heart disease in meat and non-meat eaters. Br Med J. 1994;308:1667-1670.

11. Tantamango-Bartley Y et al. Vegetarian Diets and the Incidence of Cancer in a Low-risk Population. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2013 Feb;22(2):286-94.

12. Song M, et. al. Association of Animal and Plant Protein Intake With All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality. JAMA Intern Med. 2016;176(10):1453-1463. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2016.4182

13. Nutrients 2014, 6, 4822-4838; doi:10.3390/nu6114822

14. De Filippis F et al. High-level adherence to a Mediterranean diet beneficially impacts the gut microbiota and associated metabolome. Gut 2016;65:1812-1821.

15. Koeth RA et al. Intestinal microbiota metabolism of L-carnitine, a nutrient in red meat, promotes atherosclerosis. Nature medicine. 2013;19(5):576-585.

16. Fraser GE et al. Ten years of life: Is it a matter of choice?Arch Intern Med. 2001 Jul 9;161(13):1645-52.

17. Dan Buettner. The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World's Healthiest People. 2015. www.bluezones.com

18. Micha R et al. Association Between Dietary Factors and Mortality From Heart Disease, Stroke, and Type 2 Diabetes in the United States. JAMA. 2017;317(9):912-924.

19. Timothy J Key, et al. Am J Clin Nutr 1999;70(suppl):516S–24S.

20. Potentially Preventable Deaths from the Five Leading Causes of Death – United States, 2008-2010. Published in the May 2, 2014 issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Ga.

21. Micha R et al. Association Between Dietary Factors and Mortality From Heart Disease, Stroke, and Type 2 Diabetes in the United States. JAMA. 2017;317(9):912-924.

22. Healthy Living Is the Best RevengeFindings From the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition–Potsdam Study. Arch Intern Med. 2009;169(15):1355-1362.

23. Ornish D, Scherwitz LW, Billings JH, et al. Intensive lifestyle changes for reversal of coronary heart disease. JAMA 1998. 280: 2001–2007.

24. Esselstyn CBJ, Gendy G, Doyle J, et al. A way to reverse CAD? J Fam Pract 2014; 63: 356–364.

25. Vang A, Singh PN, Lee JW, et al. Meats, processed meats, obesity, weight gain and occurrence of diabetes among adults findings from Adventist Health Studies. Ann Nutr Metab 2008; 52: 96–104.

26. Malik VS, Li Y, Tobias DK, et al. Dietary protein intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in US men and women. Am J Epidemiol 2016; 183: 715–728.

27. www.aicr.org/research/research_science_expert_report.html

28. McMacken M, ShahJ S, Journal of Geriatric Cardiology (2017) 14: 342-354

​

​

​

​