veganism

Posted on Diet

Vegans’ intake of protein and essential amino acids is adequate but ultra-processed foods are needed

The study concluded that textured soy protein and plant-based protein supplements were the main ultra-processed products determining adequate protein intake for Brazilian vegans. The research involved 774 men and women.
Textured soy protein and plant-based protein supplements were the main ultra-processed products that determined adequate protein intake for vegans.

Their findings show that, on average, the participants consumed the recommended amount of proteins and essential amino acids and that their diet consisted mainly of unprocessed and minimally processed foods. However, participants who consumed proportionally lower levels of industrialized products such as protein supplements and textured soy protein were more likely to exhibit inadequate protein intake, suggesting a significant reliance on nutrients from ultra-processed proteins for this population.

Coined by researchers at the same university’s School of Public Health (FSP-USP), the term “ultra-processed products” refers to industrially formulated edible substances synthesized from fractionated ingredients and blended with chemical additives (colours, aromas, emulsifiers, thickeners etc.) to enhance their palatability.

“Our results contradict the stigma that a vegan diet can’t provide the amount of protein and essential amino acids a person needs and show that a vegan diet can be nutritionally adequate. Moreover, the vegans in the study consumed ultra-processed products less than the general population,” said Hamilton Roschel, head of the Applied Physiology and Nutrition Research Group at FM-USP’s Center for Lifestyle Medicine.

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“Animal food products are known to be generally more dense in protein and essential amino acids. For example, meat, milk and eggs contain more protein per gram than rice or beans. It was therefore important to investigate whether this requirement was met by diets consisting solely of plant protein,” Roschel said.

This was the main reason for investigating whether a vegan diet affords adequate protein and acceptable levels of essential amino acids.

The study also found a significant correlation between adequate protein intake and consumption of ultra-processed products. “Although this group consumed a small amount of ultra-processed products, some participants appeared to rely on them to meet their protein needs. This is partly because unprocessed foods are generally less dense in protein, which paved the way for the so-called meat substitute industry, whose market share is growing,” Roschel said.

Meat substitutes consist of plant protein processed to mimic different types of meat, such as vegan hamburgers, sausages, and nuggets. Cheese substitutes, such as soy, pea, rice, or potato protein, are also available. Both are considered ultra-processed products.

It is worth noting that consumption of ultra-processed products is associated with a heightened risk of weight gain, diabetes, hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases, depression, some types of cancer, and premature death. Not all the effects of plant-based ultra-processed products are known, but recent evidence suggests they, too, maybe unhealthy.

The researchers concluded that textured soy protein (TSP) and plant-based protein supplements were the main ultra-processed products that determined adequate protein intake for Brazilian vegans.

“Although they tend to be classified as ultra-processed products, TSP and protein supplements aren’t necessarily unhealthy, which can’t be said of ultra-processed products that contain high levels of fat, sugar, sodium, preservatives and artificial additives, for example,” Roschel said.

As a broad category, Ultra-processed products are considered unhealthy in many studies, but there is robust evidence that soy-derived foods do not harm human health. “TSP is an important source of protein and essential amino acids for vegans, even though it’s classified as ultra-processed. Ultra-processed products vary considerably in formulation, and despite the consensus that they should generally be avoided, it isn’t reasonable to ignore the clear differences between them,” he said.

As the researchers note, the same can be said about plant-based protein supplements, “an evidence-based strategy to support muscle health also associated with protein adequacy” in different contexts, such as when unprocessed and minimally processed foods do not supply sufficient protein or when a clinical condition requires a different kind of nutritional management. “In these contexts, plant-based protein plays an important role and should not be overlooked,” Roschel said.

“Our findings don’t show that ultra-processed products are good, and the findings should not be used to encourage their consumption. However, it would be wrong to close one’s eyes to their significant differences and the importance of their role in specific contexts.

Posted on Diabetes

Vegan diets boost weight loss, and lower blood sugar in adults with overweight or type 2 diabetes

A 12-week vegan diet may result in clinically meaningful weight loss and improve blood sugar control in overweight adults and those with type 2 diabetes, according to a meta-analysis of 11 randomised trials involving almost 800 participants (aged 18 or older), being presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Maastricht, Netherlands (4-7 May). The study is by Anne-Ditte Termannsen and colleagues from the Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen, Denmark.

However, vegan diets that are rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and seeds, with no all animal derived foods, did not affect blood pressure or triglycerides (a type of fat in the blood) compared to other diets.

For this study, the researchers conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of all relevant English language randomised trials, published up to March 2022, comparing the effect of vegan diets to other types of diets on cardiometabolic risk factors – body weight, body mass index [BMI], blood sugar levels, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (so-called ‘bad cholesterol’), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides.

Vegan diets were compared with either passive control groups (participants continuing normal diet with no dietary changes) or active control groups (participants following other dietary interventions such as Mediterranean diets, different diabetes diets, or portion-controlled diets).

Data were analysed for 11 studies involving 796 individuals (average age ranging from 48 to 61 years) with overweight (BMI of 25 kg/m2 or over) or type 2 diabetes. The trials lasted for at least 12 weeks (average duration 19 weeks) and considered weight loss of at least 5 kg (11lbs) clinically meaningful.

Analyses found that compared with control diets, vegan diets significantly reduced body weight (effect average -4.1 kg) and BMI (-1.38 kg/m2). But the effects on blood sugar level (-0.18 %-points), total cholesterol (-0.30 mmol/L) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (-0.24 mmol/L) were rather small.

Further analyses found even greater reductions in body weight and BMI when vegan diets were compared with continuing a normal diet without dietary changes (-7.4 kg and -2.78 kg/m2 respectively), than compared with other intervention diets (-2.7 kg and -0.87 kg/m2).

“This rigorous assessment of the best available evidence to date indicates with reasonable certainty that adhering to a vegan diet for at least 12 weeks may result in clinically meaningful weight loss and improve blood sugar levels, and therefore can be used in the management of overweight and type 2 diabetes”, says Termannsen. “Vegan diets likely lead to weight loss because they are associated with a reduced calorie intake due to a lower content of fat and higher content of dietary fibre. However, more evidence is needed regarding other cardiometabolic outcomes.”

Posted on Diet

The growth of veganism

‘Vegan’ became something of a dirty word. Disregarded as a fad, this diet is trickling down into the mainstream. Being vegan is now taken as a serious lifestyle which has a number of health and environment benefits as well as being a progressive movement to a sustainable way of life. The surging interest in veganism is making it impossible for businesses to ignore — plant-based food sales in the UK increased by 1500% between 2016–2017.

Research reported by the Vegan Society revealed that:

  • 56% of adults in the UK practice vegan buying behaviours
  • 19% have cut down on buying meat and are checking cosmetics and toiletries for animal-testing
  • 13% actively choose meat-free or dairy-free meals when eating out
  • 51% are happy to see vegan food in shops and restaurants

Although not all of us are transitioning to veganism, many of us are becoming flexitarian as well as becoming more mindful of the benefits and are willing to try vegan options. Perhaps because of this, the mindset towards vegans has drastically improved, with 43% of people saying they respected vegans for their lifestyle.

However, is it just being conscious of the environment and what we’re putting into our bodies that’s causing the surge in popularity? Looking at the results of 2018’s Veganuary, a movement that challenges people to sign up for a month of vegan eating, the top reason for people signing up was animal rights concerns (43%). This was followed by 39% of people who signed up for health reasons, and 10% who said it was for environmental reasons.

The Independent suggests that going vegan can be attributed to other reasons. The increase of Google searches of the word ‘vegan’ has grown in line with searches for ‘Instagram’ — in a world where we love to take photos of our meals and share them on social media, it’s not difficult to believe that Instagram has helped circulate numerous brightly-coloured vegan dishes to help improve its previously ill-held reputation of being nothing but leaves.

Vegan Food & Living put together many vegan food trends for 2018:

  • Edible flowers, to make your meal Instagram-worthy!
  • Veggie chips, such as parsnip chips and sweet potato chips, make for a healthier option than normal potato.
  • Fermented foods, while they might not conjure the most delicious image to mind, are coming into food trends in a big way. Think colourful kimchi and nutty-flavoured tempeh.
  • Vegan desserts, bringing back ice-cream and cakes in vegan-friendly ways. Ben and Jerry’s have released three delicious vegan-friendly ice creams: Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Chunky Monkey, and Peanut Butter and Cookies are all sure to be a hit with vegans and non-vegans alike!  

It would appear that the next step for businesses and eateries is to provide more food-on-the-go options for vegans. A recent survey found that 91% of vegans are having a tough time finding to-go meal options. The market is certainly there, and restaurants and supermarkets are slowly picking up on the potential gains to be made by catering to veganism.

A new study was brought to the public eye by The Guardian, outlining that the “five-a-day” notion for fruit and vegetable consumption is, sadly, not entirely accurate. In fact, the study from the Imperial College London advises 10-a-day! The now-recommended 800g of fruit and veg daily would help reduce heart disease, strokes and premature deaths. Picking up a few vegan meals throughout the week, or switching to a vegan diet entirely, would certainly help hit this healthy target.

If you’ve developed an interest in a healthy vegan or flexitarian lifestyle, growing your own vegetables is a fun and rewarding way or eating your own food. Even a small garden can house a few home-grown herbs and fruits! You can grab some growbags and manure and start cultivating your own supply of tomatoes for a home-made tomato sauce, or cucumbers for the freshest salad you’ll ever taste!

Proteins are still important though — a vegan diet has loads to choose from, and you can grow some in your garden alongside the veggies. Think beans and seeds, like sunflower seeds or soybeans.

Why not mix things up and challenge yourself with a new diet? You might absolutely love it! Who wouldn’t want environmental and health benefits?

Sources:

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/apr/01/vegans-are-coming-millennials-health-climate-change-animal-welfare

https://www.vegansociety.com/whats-new/news/vegan-lifestyle-winning-hearts-and-minds-across-britain-survey-shows

https://www.plantbasednews.org/post/5-surprising-studies-that-prove-veganism-is-growing-around-the-world

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/veganism-rise-uk-why-instagram-mainstream-plant-based-diet-vegans-popularity-a8296426.html

http://www.veganfoodandliving.com/top-10-vegan-food-trends-in-2018/

https://www.vegansociety.com/whats-new/news/new-survey-shows-9-10-vegans-want-more-%E2%80%98grab-and-go%E2%80%99-food-options

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/feb/23/five-day-10-portions-fruit-veg-cut-early-death

http://www.theflamingvegan.com/view-post/Tips-for-Growing-Your-Own-Vegan-Food

https://www.verdict.co.uk/vegan-facts-results-veganuary-show-dietary-trend-popular/

Posted on Multiple Sclerosis

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS AND A VEGAN DIET UPDATE




Image result for MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS AND A VEGAN DIET UPDATE




I became a vegan the first day of 2019. Though multiple sclerosis does not have a cure, having a vegan diet has helped me in the long run. I absolutely love eating vegan as it makes me feel good. Additionally, it allows me to preform many of the tasks I had difficulties with prior to 2019.




Posted on Diabetes

Vegan diet ‘helps people better manage type 2 diabetes’




Healthy eating as a vegan

Healthy eating as a vegan

Going vegan “can ‘significantly improve’ mental health, reduce diabetes and lower weight,” reports the Daily Mirror.

Researchers summarised the results of 11 studies which looked at the effects of a plant-based diet on adults with type 2 diabetes.

The researchers said they found evidence of improved mental wellbeing, quality of life, diabetes control and weight loss. However, the studies included in their review were quite small, with only 433 participants in total. This casts doubt on the strength of the evidence. Only 3 of the included studies looked at mental health or quality of life.




Vegan or plant-based diets are becoming more popular. While vegans exclude all animal products from their diet, including dairy products and eggs, the researchers defined a plant-based diet as one where 10% or less of daily calories came from animal products. It’s likely that most plant-based diets are lower in calories than diets that include meat or high-fat dairy products, which could account for the reported weight loss and improved diabetes control.

A healthy diet is likely to improve diabetes control, but this study does not show convincingly that a vegan diet is superior to other healthy diets for people with diabetes. And you don’t have to go vegan to improve the quality of your diet.

Find out more about healthy eating and type 2 diabetes.

Where did the story come from?

The researchers who carried out the review were from the University of London, the University of Northampton and East Sussex NHS Healthcare Trust. The review was published in the peer-reviewedmedical journal BMJ Open Diabetes Research and Care, which is free to read online.




The Independent, The Times, the Daily Mirror and the Mail Online all reported the results enthusiastically, without much criticism of the weight of the evidence.

What kind of research was this?

This was a systematic review of controlled trials of plant-based diets for adults with type 2 diabetes. The researchers wanted to summarise the effects of this type of diet on the wellbeing of these patients.

A systematic review is a good way to get an overview of the state of research on any topic. However, the results are only as good as the previously published studies on the subject.

What did the research involve?

Researchers looked for controlled trials of plant-based diets which included adults with type 2 diabetes. Only trials that lasted at least 3 weeks and reported health outcomes were included. The individual studies included control groups who either followed a non-plant-based healthy diet or who continued to follow their usual diet.

Where possible, the researchers extracted data on 18 outcomes, including quality of life, depression, dietary adherence and acceptability, HbA1c (a measure of diabetes control based on blood sugar levels), weight, cholesterol measures and use of diabetes medicine.

The researchers report that because the identified studies used diverse methods of assessing psychological wellbeing, it wasn’t possible to pool the results in meta-analysis. Similarly they considered that for all other outcomes, the studies were too small and the pooled result was likely to be imprecise. Instead, they described the results reported from each individual study.

What were the basic results?

The researchers found:

In 3 studies including 117 adults with diabetes which reported quality of life outcomes, quality of life improved in the plant-based diet groups but not in the control groups. Of these 3 studies, 1 specifically reported improvements in a psychological measure of quality of life, 1 reported decreased depression levels, and the other decreased pain symptoms (leading to the researchers’ conclusions on psychological health).

In 8 studies including 405 adults with diabetes, diabetes control measured by HbA1c was better in the plant-based diet groups than in the control groups (average HbA1c decrease 0.55% in plant-based group compared to 0.19% in control group). In another study, HbA1c was no different between groups, and 1 other study did not report levels for patients with diabetes only.

In 5 of 6 studies including 312 adults with diabetes which reported weight outcomes, people in the plant-based groups lost more weight than people in the control groups (average 5.23kg compared to 2.83kg). In the other study, weight loss was the same in both groups.

How did the researchers interpret the results?

The researchers said: “it can be concluded that plant-based diets accompanied by educational interventions can significantly improve psychological health, quality of life, HbA1c levels and weight and therefore the management of diabetes.”

Conclusion

Eating a healthy diet can help people with type 2 diabetes to manage their condition and avoid complications. This review of the evidence around plant-based diets supports this conclusion. However, it has too many limitations to tell us for sure that a vegan diet, specifically, is the best diet for people with diabetes.

We don’t know enough about the interventions or control groups in the individual studies included in the review, so we can’t see from this review exactly what was being compared with what.

For example, if the plant-based diets were lower in calories than the control group diets, it’s not surprising people lost more weight on the plant-based diet.

The review says that people in the intervention groups were given regular dietary advice and support by highly qualified healthcare professionals. We don’t know if that’s the case for people in the control groups.

There was a mix of evidence on psychological health from only 3 small studies so we can’t be sure that the diets had an effect. But if again if they did, it’s perhaps not that surprising people in the intervention groups may have felt happier if they lost more weight and were given more support to do so.

Overall, the small total numbers of people in these studies – which likely had highly variable methods, interventions, control diets and outcome assessment – suggests that too little research has been done into plant-based diets to draw firm conclusions about their effects.

A healthy diet includes lots of fresh vegetables, pulses, fruits and wholegrains. A plant-based diet needs to include plenty of these types of food, rather than relying on refined plant-based carbohydrates such as sugar and white flour, to be truly healthy.

Find out more about healthy eating for vegetarians and vegans.