Why Women Should Eat A Diet Rich In Vegetable Protein

Postmenopausal women who ate high levels of vegetable protein had a lower risk of premature death, cardiovascular disease, and dementia-related death than women who ate less vegetable protein, according to a new study. ..

The study was published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, an open access journal of the American Heart Association.

Previous studies have shown an association between lean meat-rich diets and risk of cardiovascular disease, but the data are sparse and not conclusive for certain types of protein, the study authors said. Stated.

In this study, researchers analyzed data from more than 100,000 postmenopausal women (ages 50-79) who participated in the National Women’s Health Initiative study between 1993 and 1998. Participants were eggs, dairy products, chicken, lean meat, seafood, tofu, nuts, beans and beans when they registered for the survey. A total of 25,976 deaths occurred during the study period (6,993 deaths from cardiovascular disease, 7,516 deaths from cancer, and 2,734 deaths from dementia).

The researchers focused on the levels and types of proteins that women reported consuming, and divided them into groups to compare those who ate the least and those who ate the most. The median total energy intake from animal protein in this population was 7.5% in the lowest quintile and 16.0% in the highest quintile. The median total energy intake from plant proteins in this population was 3.5% at the lowest quintile and 6.8% at the highest quintile.

Among the main findings:

-Women with the highest vegetable protein intake have a 9% lower risk of death from all causes and risk of death from cardiovascular disease compared to postmenopausal women with the lowest vegetable protein intake Was 12% lower, 21%. Low risk of dementia-related death.

-High consumption of processed lean meat increases the risk of dying from dementia by 20%.

High intakes of raw meat, eggs, and dairy products increase the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease by 12%, 24%, and 11%, respectively.

-High egg intake increases the risk of cancer death by 10%.

However, high egg intake reduces the risk of dying from dementia by 14%, and high poultry intake reduces the risk by 15%.

Wei Bao, MD, Ph.D., Principal Research Author, Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. Said:

“It may be related to how people cook and eat eggs. Eggs are boiled, scrambled eggs, pouched, baked, squeezed, fried, shirred, soft-boiled eggs. Can be cooked, pickled, or combined with other foods. In the form of fried eggs, often with other foods such as bacon. The analysis carefully considers many potential confusion factors. However, it is still difficult to completely withdraw eggs, other foods normally consumed with eggs, or even other foods-dietary factors associated with egg consumption are cardiovascular and cancer deaths. May lead to an increased risk of. ”

Researchers have noted that replacing whole lean meat, eggs, or dairy products with nuts reduces the risk of death from all causes by 12% to 47%, depending on the type of protein replaced with nuts.

“It is important to note that dietary protein is not consumed alone. Therefore, the interpretation of these findings can be difficult and should be based on the consideration of the entire diet, including different cooking methods. “” Said Yangbo Sun, MD. , Co-author of the study, postdoctoral fellow at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, and now an assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center.

The analysis also found that the women who ate the most animal proteins such as meat and dairy products were white, likely to be highly educated and earned, were smokers of the past, drank more alcohol, and were physically Active also revealed that the ability is likely to be low. In addition, these women were more likely to have type 2 diabetes, a family history of heart attacks, and a higher classification of obesity index (all risk factors for cardiovascular disease) at the start of the study.

“Our findings confirm the need to consider dietary protein sources in future dietary guidelines,” says Bao. “Current dietary guidelines focus primarily on total protein content, and our findings show that there may be different health effects associated with different types of protein foods. I will. ”

2020-2025 The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Ministry of Health and Welfare (HHS) jointly issued dietary guidelines for Americans that eat a variety of protein foods, including low-fat meat, low-fat poultry, eggs, and seafood. Recommended. Soy products containing beans, peas, lentils, nuts, seeds, and at least 8 ounces of cooked seafood per week.

The AHA’s 2020 Dietary Cholesterol and Cardiovascular Risk Recommendations state that limiting intake is still wise given the relatively high cholesterol content in egg yolks. A healthy person can contain up to one whole egg or equivalent per day.

The study was observational based on self-reported data at the start of the study and had some limitations, including a lack of data on how proteins were cooked. In addition, the findings may not apply to young women and men.