Postmenopausal women who abandon meat rather than plant-based alternatives are less likely to die prematurely, research has found.
Eating nuts instead of red meat, poultry, dairy, eggs and fish was associated with a lower risk of premature death in an iconic study.
Meanwhile, eating nuts instead of eggs reduced the chance of dying in the study by 47%, while switching red meat and dairy to eating nuts reduced the risk of premature death by a 11 and 12%, respectively.
Research by the American Heart Association also found that vegan women who use nuts for food protein are 56% less likely to die from cardiovascular disease.
Although the study did not examine the reason for the link, the researchers hope the results will encourage older women to consider incorporating more nuts into their diet instead of other proteins.
Scroll down to see the video
Postmenopausal women who abandon meat preferentially for plant-based alternatives are less likely to die prematurely, research has found.
The study recruited 102,521 postmenopausal women with a mean age of 63 between 1993 and 1998, and followed their life and health for 18 years.
During that time, nearly 26,000 women died, with 6,993 people dying of cardiovascular disease, 7,516 women dying of cancer and 2,734 deaths attributed to dementia.
Periodic follow-ups and questionnaires revealed that, on average, about one-sixth of a women’s diet is protein.
The researchers disaggregated the provenance of most of their proteins and found that more than two-thirds (68.6%) were of animal origin, such as meat, eggs and dairy products.
The analysis revealed that women who eat the highest amount of animal protein are more likely to be white, well-educated, and rich.
They are also more likely to be past smokers, drink heavily, and live sedentary lifestyles with little physical activity.
This culminated in the studied cohort of women with higher rates of type 2 diabetes and higher BMI, all of whom are risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
In contrast, women who get more plant protein also consume fewer calories a day, eat less saturated fat, and have more fiber in their diet.
The study also found that even making small changes to a person’s diet can make a dramatic difference as replacing only five percent of animal protein with plant-derived foods reduced the risk of premature death. by 14 percent.
“Substitution of animal protein for vegetable protein was associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease mortality, and dementia mortality,” the researchers write in their study.
“Replacing whole red meat, eggs or dairy products with nuts was associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality.”
The lead author, Dr. Wei Bao, of the University of Iowa, said: “Our findings support the need to consider dietary protein sources in future dietary guidelines.
Current dietary guidelines focus primarily on the total amount of protein. Our findings show that there may be different health influences associated with different types of protein foods.
Other findings from the study are that those who eat more processed red meat, such as sausages and bacon, have a 20% higher risk of dying from dementia.
Eating nuts instead of red meat, poultry, dairy, eggs and fish was associated with a lower risk of premature death in an iconic study. Replacing eggs with nuts reduced the risk by 47%, while switching red meat and dairy to nuts reduced the risk of premature death by 11 and 12%, respectively. In the picture, a roast of walnuts
Higher consumption of unprocessed meat, eggs and dairy products was also associated with a 12%, 24% and 11% higher risk of death from cardiovascular disease, respectively.
Egg lovers are also 24% more likely to die of cardiovascular disease and 10% more likely to die of cancer.
However, people who eat more eggs have a 14% lower risk of dying from dementia.
“It is not clear in our study why eggs were associated with an increased risk of death from cardiovascular and cancer,” Dr. Bao said.
It could be related to the way people cook and eat eggs. Eggs can be boiled, stirred, heated, baked, fried, fried, fried, pickled or in combination with other foods.
“In the United States, people usually eat eggs in the form of fried eggs and often with other foods like bacon.
“Although we have carefully analyzed many possible confounding factors in the analysis, it is still difficult to completely eliminate whether eggs, other foods that are normally consumed with eggs, or even non-dietary factors related to egg consumption, can lead to an increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease and cancer “.
The researchers said the findings, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, may not apply to younger women or men.
HOW SHOULD A BALANCED DIET BE?
Meals should be based on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, ideally wholegrain, according to the NHS
• Eat at least 5 servings of a variety of fruits and vegetables each day. It counts all fresh, frozen, dried and canned fruit and vegetables
• Make basic meals with potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other carbohydrates with starch, ideally whole grains
• 30 grams of fiber a day: it’s the same as eating all of the following: 5 servings of fruits and vegetables, 2 whole grain cookies, 2 thick slices of wholemeal bread and big baked potato with the skin on
• Have some dairy or dairy alternatives (such as soy drinks) by choosing low-fat, low-sugar options
• Eat beans, legumes, fish, eggs, meat and other proteins (including two servings of fish each week, one of which should be oily)
• Choose unsaturated oils and greases and consume in small amounts
• Drink 6-8 cups / glasses of water a day
• Adults should have less than 6 g of salt and 20 g of saturated fat for women or 30 g for men a day
Source: NHS Eatwell Guide