Viva! Health
A unique Polish study set out to investigate and compare the impact of diet on the blood fats and cholesterol in vegan and omnivorous volunteers. All participants were healthy, between 23 and 38 years old and not overweight. The aim was to discover whether diet influences the blood lipids (fats) to such an extent in healthy people that it can reduce or increase the risk of atherosclerosis – narrowing and hardening of the arteries – that leads to heart disease.
Coconut oil is everywhere these days, used in baking, smoothies and beauty treatments. Enthusiasts claim it can help you lose weight and fight all manner of illnesses. But is it really a panacea for good health or is it just the best of a bad bunch?
Previously shunned for its high saturated fat content, coconut oil has experienced a huge revival in popularity and is now found in health food shops and supermarkets across the country.
The pro-fat lobby are determined get butter, cheese and beef back on the menu. Bad science, poor journalism and commercial interests are at the heart of this issue which has left many people confused.
Saturated fat is the unhealthy type of fat we don’t need – it raises cholesterol, which increases the risk of heart disease. It’s found in meat pies, sausages, fatty cuts of meat, butter, ghee, lard, cream, hard cheese, cakes and biscuits and foods containing coconut and palm oil.
Type 2 diabetes usually follows obesity, going through several phases – impaired blood sugar control, prediabetes and then the dreaded diagnosis. An original study aimed to investigate the effects of a plant-based diet not just on weight-loss of the participants but also on their blood sugar control.
New review of evidence shows that nut consumption can keep your heart healthy!
We all know nuts are a great source of protein, healthy fats, vitamins and minerals but it turns out, they can also help protect our hearts. A new review of all studies conducted in the past 25 years on nut consumption and heart and circulatory health revealed that if you make nuts a regular part of your diet, it can lower your risk of fatal and non-fatal coronary heart disease, heart attack and sudden death.
The Italian Society of Human Nutrition published their position paper and it’s good news
With the rapidly growing popularity of plant-based diets, more and more scientists are looking at their health effects and issuing official statements. The latest in line is the Italian Society of Human Nutrition – they did a thorough probing of scientific studies on vegetarian and vegan diets and published a paper officially endorsing such diets as healthy and nutritionally adequate for everyone and all life stages.
A study shows a plant-based diet offers protection whilst a meat-based one can contribute to damage
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) occurs when fat is deposited in the liver due to causes other than excessive alcohol use. It’s considered to be one of the symptoms of metabolic syndrome, which also includes obesity, insulin resistance (pre-diabetic stage), elevated fat levels in the blood and high blood pressure. It comes as no surprise that it’s been linked to unhealthy diets and increasingly younger people develop this condition.
By Elena Holmes BSc, PGDip Nutritional Therapy, MSc Nutritional Therapy (pending)
‘Where do you get your protein?’ ‘But what about iron?’ ‘Are you sure you get enough calcium?’ – I challenge any vegan to say that no one has asked them at least one of these questions before.
A new review of evidence shows how fantastic plant foods are for your heart
New study shows how a healthy vegan diet can cut your risk of type 2 diabetes in half
This was the first study to distinguish not just between animal and plant-based diets but also between healthy and unhealthy plant-based diets. Healthy foods included wholegrains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, pulses, vegetable oils, tea and coffee; whilst unhealthy foods included animal products, fruit juices, sweetened beverages, refined grains (white bread, cornflakes etc.), potatoes, sweets and desserts.
Scientists say there’s still no clear evidence that fish oils are healthful
Dairy and other animal fats have been shown to put you at risk of heart disease and stroke
Dairy products contain varying amounts of fat but a considerable portion of it is always saturated fat. This study investigated the link between dairy fat intake and the incidence of heart disease and stroke among 220,000 people whose diets and health were followed for decades.
Phthalates are man-made chemicals used as plasticisers in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) materials such as food packaging, flooring and some medical equipment and are added to cosmetics and personal care products as solvents, fixatives and adhesives. They are also very prone to leaching into the environment and entering our food chain. Phthalates are classified as endocrine-disrupting chemicals – they can affect your hormones –and have been linked to adverse health effects, especially in infants, children and adolescents.
The results of a large scale, 25 year study of the Swedish population has revealed some interesting facts. The study began in 1986 and in the first seven years the fat intake and cholesterol levels of the participants slightly decreased in line with the dietary recommendations for reduced fat intake. However, from 2004 on, the scientists observed a significant change – the intake of fat, especially animal fat, increased, and so did the cholesterol levels.
Jamie Oliver has forced Turkey Twizzlers off the school menu – a junk food made up of
The Royal College of Physicians’ report on diet and heart disease in 1976
The Vegetarian & Vegan Foundation's senior health campaigner, Amanda Woodvine, explains why the world just keeps on getting fatter...
Obesity is now the most important nutritional disease in the Western world. And in even the poorest countries it is increasing at an alarming rate.
A recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that vegan women have significantly more omega-3 fats (the good fats we are constantly being told to eat) in their blood than fish-eaters, meat-eaters, and lacto-ovo vegetarians. Vegan men had slightly lower levels than vegan women but the same pattern was observed in the other groups as well and was thought to be linked to female hormones influencing the metabolism to a certain extent. An astonishing 14,422 men and women aged 39 to 78 participated in this study.
One of the arguments used to promote oily fish is that it provides the long chain omega-3 fats EPA and DHA important for health. Omega-3 from plants (ALA) is converted in the body to EPA and DHA but conversion rates may be low. However, new research indicates that vegetarians convert ALA at a better rate than fish-eaters. This may explain why fish-eaters and non fish-eaters have a smaller than expected difference in omega-3 levels.
