scholarly journals Vegetarian Diet - Dealing with Efficiency and Deficiency of It - A Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (41) ◽  
pp. 3592-3597
Author(s):  
Lata Kanyal Butola ◽  
Deepika Kanyal ◽  
Ranjit Ambad

BACKGROUND There is already a large amount of evidence demonstrating the health benefits of vegetarian and plant-based diets along with lower incidence of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and certain forms of cancer as well as improved lifespan. Vegetarian diets tend to be lower in fat, particularly saturated fat and higher in dietary fiber. Consuming more whole grains, legumes, nuts, soy protein along with the absence of red meat, this form of eating plan will have many benefits for the prevention and treatment of obesity and chronic health conditions, including diabetes and cardiovascular disease (CVD). Whereas an excellently-planned vegetarian or vegan diet may fulfil all nutritional needs of an individual person. It may be important to pay careful attention to certain nutrients to maintain an appropriate intake, especially if the person is on a vegan diet. Legumes, such as soy, dried beans, peas, and lentils, are also important for a vegan diet because they are great sources of sugar, protein, iron, zinc, and calcium. It is important to ingest nuts and seeds as they increase essential fat intake and help to meet the energy and protein needs. Fortified foods (including vitamin B-12, calcium, and vitamin D) must be eaten since they are the only acceptable sources for certain vitamins in the vegan diet. This article will review the evidence of the health benefits of a vegetarian diet and also address strategies for meeting the nutritional needs of those adopting a vegetarian or plantbased eating pattern, and summarize the characteristics and benefits of vegetarian diets in the general population and the possible beneficial effects of such diet on phosphate balance, insulin sensitivity, and the control of metabolic acidosis in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. KEY WORDS Nutrients, Vitamin B12, Zinc, Omega 3 Fatty Acids

2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 250-267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Marsh ◽  
Carol Zeuschner ◽  
Angela Saunders

There is now a significant amount of research that demonstrates the health benefits of vegetarian and plant-based diets, which have been associated with a reduced risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and some types of cancer as well as increased longevity. Vegetarian diets are typically lower in fat, particularly saturated fat, and higher in dietary fiber. They are also likely to include more whole grains, legumes, nuts, and soy protein, and together with the absence of red meat, this type of eating plan may provide many benefits for the prevention and treatment of obesity and chronic health problems, including diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Although a well-planned vegetarian or vegan diet can meet all the nutritional needs of an individual, it may be necessary to pay particular attention to some nutrients to ensure an adequate intake, particularly if the person is on a vegan diet. This article will review the evidence for the health benefits of a vegetarian diet and also discuss strategies for meeting the nutritional needs of those following a vegetarian or plant-based eating pattern.


2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Rudloff ◽  
Christoph Bührer ◽  
Frank Jochum ◽  
Thomas Kauth ◽  
Mathilde Kersting ◽  
...  

Abstract In Western countries, vegetarian diets are associated with lower intakes of energy, saturated fatty acids and animal protein and higher intakes of fibre and phytochemicals, compared to omnivorous diets. Whether the corresponding health benefits in vegetarians outweigh the risks of nutrient deficiencies has not been fully clarified. It should be noted that vegetarians often have a higher socioeconomic status, follow a more health-conscious lifestyle with higher physical activity, and refrain from smoking more often than non-vegetarians. The nutritional needs of growing children and adolescents can generally be met through a balanced, vegetable-based diet; however, due to their higher nutrient requirements per kilogramme of body weight, vegetarian children have a higher risk for developing nutrient deficiencies than adults. With a vegetarian diet, the mean intakes of some nutrients, such as the omega-3 fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are lower than in omnivores or those eating fish. For other nutrients, such as iron and zinc, the bioavailability from vegetable foodstuffs is reduced when the intake of phytates and fibre is high; thus, the prevalence of iron deficiency can be increased despite high vitamin C intake. In addition, vitamin B12 is only found in animal-source foods. Vitamin B12 should be supplemented in people of all age groups who follow a strict vegan diet without consuming animal products. A vegetarian diet in childhood and adolescence requires good information and supervision by a paediatrician, if necessary, in cooperation with an appropriately trained dietary specialist.


Nutrients ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 1149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Enrica Bettinelli ◽  
Elena Bezze ◽  
Laura Morasca ◽  
Laura Plevani ◽  
Gabriele Sorrentino ◽  
...  

The number of people adopting vegetarian diets is constantly increasing, and many among them are young parents who decide to share their diet with their children. The aim of this study was to investigate health professionals’ knowledge regarding the adoption of vegetarian diets from pregnancy to adolescence. A cross-sectional survey was conducted. The administered questionnaire, which was based on the recommendations of the most up-to-date guidelines, included two macro areas: The first investigated the sociodemographic and professional profile of the interviewees and the second addressed the knowledge of the participants regarding vegetarian diets. A total of 418 health professionals in Italy were interviewed, of whom 65.8% were nursing staff. Among the participants, 79.9% had not attended a nutrition course in the previous five years. A correct definition of a vegetarian/vegan diet was provided by 34.1% of the participants. The answers regarding knowledge of nutrients were correct in 20% of cases, whereas correct answers to questions assessing knowledge of the risk and benefits of a vegetarian diet and the adoption of a vegetarian diet throughout the life cycle were given by 45% and 39.4% of the participants, respectively. A significant correlation between the items of the second macro area that investigated the knowledge and dietary habits of the participants was found for seven items. The results of the study indicate that health professionals do not have complete and exhaustive knowledge about vegetarian diets and lack information on health outcomes and the adoption of a vegetarian diet throughout the different life cycles and nutrients. Improving pre- and in-service learning opportunities in vegetarian nutrition for health professionals is strongly advisable.


Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 1604
Author(s):  
Kai Wei Lee ◽  
Hong Chuan Loh ◽  
Siew Mooi Ching ◽  
Navin Kumar Devaraj ◽  
Fan Kee Hoo

The beneficial effects of a vegetarian diet on blood pressure (BP) control have been reported in previous systematic reviews; however, so far, their relative effectiveness is not well established. Here, we performed a systematic review together with trial sequential analysis to determine the effect of a vegetarian diet on the reduction of blood pressure. We searched the randomized controlled trial (RCT) through Medline, PubMed and Cochrane Central Register. Fifteen eligible RCTs with 856 subjects were entered into the analysis. The pooled results demonstrated that vegetarian diet consumption significantly lowered the systolic blood pressure (weighted mean difference (WMD), −2.66 mmHg (95% confidence interval (CI) = −3.76, −1.55, p < 0.001) and diastolic BP was WMD, −1.69 95% CI = −2.97, −0.41, p < 0.001) as compared to an omnivorous diet. In subgroup analysis, a vegan diet demonstrated a greater reduction in systolic BP (WMD, −3.12 mmHg; 95% CI = −4.54, −1.70, p < 0.001) as compared with a lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet (WMD, −1.75 mmHg, 95% CI −5.38, 1.88, p = 0.05). The vegan diet has showed a similar trend in terms of diastolic blood pressure reduction (WMD, −1.92 mmHg (95% CI = −3.18, −0.66, p < 0.001) but those with a lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet showed no changes in diastolic BP reduction (WMD, 0.00, 95% CI = 0.00, 0.00), p = 0.432). In conclusion, vegetarian diets are associated with significant reductions in BP compared with omnivorous diets, suggesting that they may play a key role in the primary prevention and overall management of hypertension.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 38
Author(s):  
Andrea Marchegiani ◽  
Alessandro Fruganti ◽  
Andrea Spaterna ◽  
Elena Dalle Vedove ◽  
Benedetta Bachetti ◽  
...  

Nutritional supplements, also known as complementary feeds, are products administered with the aim of furnishing health benefits, regardless of nutritional needs. They have been used since ancient times in veterinary dermatology, and a number of studies have focused on investigating the health benefits of some ingredients found in commercially available complementary feed for dogs. The aim of this paper is to review the literature available on the use of nutritional supplementation for the management of canine skin diseases, critically appraising the clinical efficacy of such interventions and summarizing the current state of knowledge. This review highlights how these feeds can be considered useful in the management of dermatological disorders and outlines their beneficial effects in the prevention of dietary deficiencies and treatment of diseases, alone, or in addition to conventional pharmacological therapy. In recent years, nutritional supplements have found increasing potential application in veterinary medicine, and the scientific proofs of their beneficial effects are described in this review.


2015 ◽  
Vol 114 (8) ◽  
pp. 1313-1320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yen-Feng Chiu ◽  
Chih-Cheng Hsu ◽  
Tina H. T. Chiu ◽  
Chun-Yi Lee ◽  
Ting-Ting Liu ◽  
...  

AbstractSeveral previous cross-sectional studies have shown that vegetarians have a better metabolic profile than non-vegetarians, suggesting that a vegetarian dietary pattern may help prevent chronic degenerative diseases. However, longitudinal studies on the impact of vegetarian diets on metabolic traits are scarce. We studied how several sub-types of vegetarian diets affect metabolic traits, including waist circumference, BMI, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol (TC), HDL, LDL, TAG and TC:HDL ratio, through both cross-sectional and longitudinal study designs. The study used the MJ Health Screening database, with data collected from 1994 to 2008 in Taiwan, which included 4415 lacto-ovo-vegetarians, 1855 lacto-vegetarians and 1913 vegans; each vegetarian was matched with five non-vegetarians based on age, sex and study site. In the longitudinal follow-up, each additional year of vegan diet lowered the risk of obesity by 7 % (95 % CI 0·88, 0·99), whereas each additional year of lacto-vegetarian diet lowered the risk of elevated SBP by 8 % (95 % CI 0·85, 0·99) and elevated glucose by 7 % (95 % CI 0·87, 0·99), and each additional year of ovo-lacto-vegetarian diet increased abnormal HDL by 7 % (95 % CI 1·03, 1·12), compared with non-vegetarians. In the cross-sectional comparisons, all sub-types of vegetarians had lower likelihoods of abnormalities compared with non-vegetarians on all metabolic traits (P<0·001 for all comparisons), except for HDL and TAG. The better metabolic profile in vegetarians is partially attributable to lower BMI. With proper management of TAG and HDL, along with caution about the intake of refined carbohydrates and fructose, a plant-based diet may benefit all aspects of the metabolic profile.


2021 ◽  
Vol 75 ◽  
pp. 417-425
Author(s):  
Miłosz Miedziaszczyk ◽  
Patrycja Ciabach ◽  
Edmund Grześkowiak ◽  
Edyta Szałek

There is an increasing number of people who go vegetarian. Some young parents also switch to this diet. The safety of vegetarian diets, especially vegan diets, is very important, especially during pregnancy. Unfortunately, reference publications do not provide coherent data on the safety of vegetarian diets during pregnancy. On the one hand, the vegan diet has advantages because it reduces the risk of heart disease and gestational diabetes. On the other hand, vegetarians/vegans should be aware of potential deficiencies of some nutrients (iron, zinc, vitamin B12, vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, iodine) and the clinical consequences for the fetus. For example, iron deficiency may affect cognitive abilities, behavior, intelligence and increase the risk of preterm birth and low birth weight of infants. Plant food contains non-haem iron with variable absorption. Therefore, the vegan diet should include nutrients increasing the bioavailability of iron, e.g. ascorbic acid, carotene and retinol. Due to the fact that animal food is the main source of vitamin B12, vegans are at a very high risk of vitamin B12 deficiency, which will affect the infant’s weight at birth. Low level of vitamin D, which is prevalent in animal food, is the most common deficiency among vegans and lacto-ovo vegetarians. This vitamin prevents gestational diabetes, reduces insulin resistance and guarantees normal function of the musculoskeletal system. Zinc deficiency during pregnancy may lead to preterm birth, neural tube defects or even miscarriage. In view of the clinical consequences of potential deficiencies of nutrients, the vegetarian/vegan diet should be well balanced.


2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 721-726 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhi-Hong Jian ◽  
Yi-Chen Chiang ◽  
Chia-Chi Lung ◽  
Chien-Chang Ho ◽  
Pei-Chieh Ko ◽  
...  

AbstractObjectiveThe present study assessed the effects of vegetarian and omnivorous diets on HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C), LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C), TAG and the ratio of HDL-C to total cholesterol (TC) by gender.DesignHDL-C, LDL-C, TAG and HDL-C:TC were compared among three diet groups (vegan, ovo-lacto vegetarian and omnivorous). Multivariate linear regression analysis was performed to examine factors significantly and independently associated with vegetarian status and to estimate the β value of lipid profiles for the diet groups.SettingsA cross-sectional study. Data were obtained from the Taiwanese Survey on the Prevalence of Hyperglycemia, Hyperlipidemia and Hypertension (TwSHHH).SubjectsThe study comprised included 3257 men and 3551 women.ResultsAfter adjusting for confounders, vegan and ovo-lacto vegetarian diets lowered LDL-C levels (β=−10·98, P=0·005 and β=−7·12, P=0·025, respectively) in men compared with omnivorous diet. There was a significant association between HDL-C and vegan diet (β=−6·53, P=0·004). In females, the β values of HDL-C, TAG and HDL-C:TC were −5·72 (P<0·0001), 16·51 (P=0·011) and −0·02 (P=0·012) for vegan diet, and −4·86 (P=0·002), 15·09 (P=0·008) and −0·01 (P=0·026) for ovo-lacto vegetarian diet, when compared with omnivorous diet.ConclusionsVegan diet was associated with lower HDL-C concentrations in both males and females. Because the ovo-lacto vegetarian diet was effective in lowering LDL-C, it may be more appropriate for males.


2003 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 62-81 ◽  

It is the position of the American Dietetic Association and Dietitians of Canada that appropriately planned vegetarian diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Approximately 2.5% of adults in the United States and 4% of adults in Canada follow vegetarian diets. A vegetarian diet is defined as one that does not include meat, fish, or fowl. Interest in vegetarianism appears to be increasing, with many restaurants and college foodservices offering vegetarian meals routinely. Substantial growth in sales of foods attractive to vegetarians has occurred and these foods appear in many supermarkets. This position paper reviews the current scientific data related to key nutrients for vegetarians including protein, iron, zinc, calcium, vitamin D, riboflavin, vitamin B-12, vitamin A, n-3 fatty acids, and iodine. A vegetarian, including vegan, diet can meet current recommendations for all of these nutrients. In some cases, use of fortified foods or supplements can be helpful in meeting recommendations for individual nutrients. Well-planned vegan and other types of vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of the life-cycle including during pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence. Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fibre, magnesium, potassium, folate, antioxidants such as vitamins C and E, and phytochemicals. Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than non-vegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease, lower blood cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer. While a number of federally funded and institutional feeding programs can accommodate vegetarians, few have foods suitable for vegans at this time. Because of the variability of dietary practices among vegetarians, individual assessment of dietary intakes of vegetarians is required. Dietetics professionals have a responsibility to support and encourage those who express an interest in consuming a vegetarian diet. They can play key roles in educating vegetarian clients about food sources of specific nutrients, food purchase and preparation, and any dietary modifications that may be necessary to meet individual needs. Menu planning for vegetarians can be simplified by use of a food guide that specifies food groups and serving sizes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 96-101
Author(s):  
Leidiane Lourenço Rodrigues ◽  
Rafaela Martins Santos

The relationship between the vegetarian diet and sports performance is very much investigated since there are many doubts about its results, justified by the main protein source of the diet being of vegetable origin, which, consequently, raises more attention on the levels of some vitamins and minerals, immune function, hormonal relationships and even on the nutritional needs for athletes. Immune functions are also very much emphasized, because they may present small alterations related to prolonged overtraining, causing chronic performance reduction. However, vegetarian diets associated with moderate and regulating workouts have a positive result. Vegetarians have a low level of creatine in their bodies, because this amino acid is more present in animal foods. This may affect a higher performance in supra-maximal workouts; however, a good creatine supplementation is a good alternative. Thus, this study aimed to To understand the effectiveness of vegetarian diet associated with sport performance. This work was an exploratory literature review, with a qualitative approach. Several articles were investigated from 2002 to 2018, in Scielo and Medline databases. However, it was possible to review that the aerobic capacity of vegetarian and omnivorous athletes did not present differences, and with the monitoring of routine tests and a good professional nutritionist, these results can be very well controlled.


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