What Are Plant-Based Diets? 

Plant-based diets have become popular recently for both health and environmental reasons.¹ The different types of plant-based diets are known to be rich in nutrients, micronutrients, and fiber, yet low in calories and saturated fat. Plant-based diets are generally divided into six categories: vegetarian, vegan, raw vegan, lacto-vegetarian, ovo-vegetarian, and lacto-ovo-vegetarian. Vegetarian diets restrict the use of any animal products such as meat, poultry, fish, and seafood. Vegan diets abstain from all types of animal products including eggs and dairy products, with raw vegan diets excluding any foods cooked at high temperature. Lacto-vegetarian diets allow use of dairy products while ovo-vegetarian diets allow use of eggs. The pescatarian diet is also often considered a plant-based diet that allows the consumption of fish.  

Do Plant-Based Diets Improve Metabolic Health? 

Research has consistently shown that plant-based diets are beneficial for cardiometabolic health.^2–5 For instance, meta-analyses have found that vegetarian diets are associated with lower systolic and diastolic blood pressures, lower risk of diabetes, lower incidence and mortality from cardiovascular disease, and improved lipid profile, glycemic control, and weight.

How Do Plant-Based Diets Improve Metabolic Health? 

Obesity, sedentary lifestyle, and lack of consumption of fruits and vegetables are among the various risk factors associated with poor cardiometabolic health.^6,7 Additionally, eating an unhealthy diet consisting of high sodium intake, low potassium intake, high saturated and trans-fat intake, and high alcohol consumption are known to be associated with higher blood pressure and greater risk of cardiovascular disease.^8,9 Diabetes also shares similar risk factors, with studies showing that consuming a diet focusing on non-starchy vegetables, whole foods over processed foods, and reducing added sugars and refined grains are beneficial for glycemic control.¹⁰ Plant-based diets are low in saturated (“unhealthy”) fatty acids and generally lower in calories while rich in polyunsaturated (“healthy”) fatty acids, dietary fibers, potassium, and other healthful vitamins.^2,3,5 Dietary fibers are known to associated with improved blood pressure and glycemic parameters.^2,11–16 Additionally, potassium in abundantly found in plant-based diets which are shown to decrease blood pressure. Higher content of healthy fats such as polyunsaturated fatty acids can lower risk of cardiovascular disease, and the generally lower calorie content of plant-based diets can help facilitate healthy weight loss.⁵

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