Study touts power of plant-based diet

MrPepper11 · medicine forum beginner Joined: 02 May 2005 Posts: 44

San Francisco Chronicle
May 4, 2005

Study touts power of plant-based diet
By Tara Duggan, Chronicle Staff Writer

A new Stanford University School of Medicine study supports what
vegetarians have been saying since the invention of the lentil loaf: A
diet rich in vegetables, grains and legumes might be healthier for your
heart than a conventional meat-based low-fat diet.

Published in yesterday's Annals of Internal Medicine, the study
compares two low-fat diets, each containing identical amounts of
saturated fat and cholesterol.

Participants who followed a vegetarian diet full of whole grains and
nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables reduced their total and
low-density lipoprotein (known as LDL, or "bad") cholesterol by more
than twice as much as those who followed a more conventional low-fat
diet that simply avoided saturated fat and cholesterol-rich foods.

Previous research has demonstrated that diets high in grains, fruits
and vegetables help reduce cholesterol, but it was generally assumed
that this was because these diets naturally contain less saturated fat
and cholesterol than diets with more meat. In this study, all
participants ingested the same amounts of saturated fat and
cholesterol, no matter which diet they followed.

"We're frustrated that people are going out and getting SnackWell's
cookies," says Christopher Gardner, an assistant professor of medicine
at Stanford and the lead author of the study.

"We need a more positive message. Most studies say what to avoid. We
want to say what you can include," he says.

The study involved 120 adults between the ages of 30 and 65 with
moderately high levels of LDL. The roughly half who ate conventional
low- cholesterol foods like turkey bologna sandwiches, Weight Watchers
lasagna and low-fat chocolate chip cookies saw a 4.6 percent drop in
LDLs. The group that ate the "plant-based" diet, with foods like bean
burritos, sweet potato soup and oatmeal-carrot cookies, saw their LDL
levels drop by 9.4 percent.

"This study confirms the 'power of plant chemicals,' " says Jo Ann
Hattner, a nutrition consultant who teaches at Stanford. It
"demonstrated that plant-based foods do have the power to lower LDLs."

For one month, participants could eat and drink only specially prepared
meals, snacks and beverages. Both diets met the American Heart
Association's dietary guidelines. For the study, the plant-based diet
was meatless, yet Gardner, a 20-year vegetarian, points out that the
AHA's definition of a heart- healthy diet does not have to be
vegetarian.

"To add meat to a plant-based diet, you could have a Mediterranean
salad and put slices of chicken on it, or you could put some meat in a
stir-fry," he says.

Participants in the study were required to maintain an even weight and
follow their normal exercise routine.

Hattner says the results are not surprising because there is already
plenty of evidence that plant-based diets reduce cholesterol. She
points out, however, that the relatively short length of the study
might contribute to the dramatic results. "When you make a change in a
diet, sometimes you might have a more immediate effect," she says.

Hattner says the study supports the new U.S. dietary guidelines'
emphasis on whole grains and vegetables.

"As a nutritionist, I love to see these studies' results, as they
provide science-based recommendations for the use of natural food
sources to lower LDLs," says Hattner.

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Gardner, C. Annals of Internal Medicine, May 3, 2005; vol 142: pp
725-733. Jenkins, D. Annals of Internal Medicine, May 3, 2005; vol 142:
pp 793-795.

TC · medicine forum Guru Joined: 02 May 2005 Posts: 1814

It basically says that if you cut the higher glycemic load carbs from
your diet your blood lipids improve. So plant based unrefined carbs are
healthier than plant based refined carbs.

Now if they compared a plant based diet to an animal based diet, then
you might be able to argue one way or another regarding vegetarianism.
Until then, you are just blowing smoke.

TC

MrPepper11 wrote:

Andrew B. Chung, MD/PhD · medicine forum Guru Joined: 25 Mar 2005 Posts: 8540

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Andrew B. Chung, MD/PhD wrote:

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"Andrew B. Chung, MD/PhD" <andrew@heartmdphd.com> wrote in message
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