General Article Vegetarians 'have lower heart risk'

Topic Selected: Dietary Choices
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The results come from a small study that looked at how different dietary patterns related to the prevalence of metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of disorders, including raised blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar, which increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The research was conducted in 773 members of the Seventh-day Adventist faith, a Christian denomination that places emphasis on staying healthy and limiting intake of meat. The researchers found that 35% of participants who considered themselves vegetarian were less likely to have metabolic syndrome or its associated risk factors than non-vegetarians.

This relatively small study is of limited value due to both its size and the fact that it assessed a very specific group of people who may not be representative of the population as a whole. Also, it only looked at people at one point in time, meaning that we cannot tell if their past behaviours influenced the prevalence of metabolic synd...

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