A Vegetable Diet Saves Lives

Confirming what most of us already knew, a recent study concludes a vegetable diet can save your life by significantly reducing hardening of arteries. Hardening of the arteries or atherosclerosis frequently afflicts middle age adults and senior citizens. The new study shows that it may be possible to reduce the risk of atherosclerosis by 38 percent with a vegetable diet.

The study used specially bred mice that rapidly develop atherosclerosis. These mice were bred to have elevated low-density lipoprotein or LDL, known as ‚”bad cholesterol.” Half of the mice were fed at least 30 percent of their diet from freeze-dried broccoli, green beans, corn, peas and carrots.

Of the mice fed the vegetable diet of 30 percent of total caloric intake, plaques in the blood vessel were 38 percent smaller than those of the mice without the vegetable diet. Lead researcher, Michael Adams, C.V.M., said ‚”This suggest how a diet high in vegetables may help prevent heart attacks and strokes.”

This study was sponsored by General Mills Company. Co-researchers were Deborah Golden, B.S., Haiying Chen, Ph.D., Thomas Register, Ph.D., all with Wake Forest University. Additional researchers were Eric T. Gugger, Ph.D., with Bell Institute of Health and Nutrition, General Mills Company. Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center contains NC Baptist Hospital and Wake Forest University Health Sciences.

Health practitioners have long recommended a diet rich in vegetables, fruits, and grains to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

The conclusions below are courtesy of the United States website, My Pyramid.gov:

Why is a fruit and vegetable diet important?

Eating vegetables provides health benefits — people who eat more fruits and vegetables as part of an overall healthy diet are likely to have a reduced risk of some chronic diseases. Vegetables provide nutrients vital for health and maintenance of your body.

• Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables as part of an overall healthy diet may reduce risk for stroke and perhaps other cardiovascular diseases.
• Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables as part of an overall healthy diet may reduce risk for type 2 diabetes.
• Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables as part of an overall healthy diet may protect against certain cancers, such as mouth, stomach, and colon-rectum cancer.
• Diets rich in foods containing fiber, such as fruits and vegetables, may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.
• Eating fruits and vegetables rich in potassium as part of an overall healthy diet may reduce the risk of developing kidney stones and may help to decrease bone loss.
• Eating foods such as vegetables that are low in calories per cup instead of some other higher-calorie food may be useful in helping to lower calorie intake.
• Click here for more information to prevent cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cancer.

For further information on vegetable nutrition, fact sheets, and to create a healthy balanced diet plan using the correct amounts of fruit, grains, meat and vegetables, see the new USDA food pyramid guide: http://www.mypyramid.gov

For nutrients found in specific vegetables (or any food), search the USDA National Nutrient Database online.