Vegetarians have a 32% lower risk of hospitalizations and deaths from heart disease than people who eat animal products like meat and fish. These are the findings of scientists from Oxford University who published their work in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition..

Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death in developed countries. Because of this, 65,000 people die every year in the UK alone, according to a press release from the university..

"

In the largest study on nutrition and heart disease, about 45,000 people in England and Scotland took part, of which 34% were vegetarians. Volunteers recruited since the 1990s answered questions about their health and lifestyle. They talked in detail in particular about nutrition and physical activity.. About 20,000 participants also kept records of their blood pressure and regularly donated blood to check their cholesterol levels.. Observations continued until 2009.

The researchers were able to calculate a 32% risk reduction after adjusting for the following factors: age, physical activity, smoking, alcohol use, education level, and socioeconomic status.

"

During the entire study, scientists recorded 1235 incidences of cardiovascular disease, including 169 deaths and 1066 hospitalizations..

Vegetarians have lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels. In addition, they were not overweight and were less likely to have diabetes, although this did not have a direct effect on the results.. Excluding body mass index data from the analysis, it can be argued that vegetarians are still 28% less at risk of developing heart disease..

global science. en.