Individuals who consumed large amounts of meat protein have a 60 percent increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). According to new research published April 3 in the International Journal of Epidemiology, individuals who consume nuts and seeds experienced a reduced CVD risk.
“Current evidence suggests that plant and animal proteins are intimately associated with specific large nutrient clusters that may explain part of their complex relation with cardiovascular health,” wrote lead author Gary E. Fraser, MD, PhD, of Loma Linda University in California, and colleagues. “We aimed at evaluating the association between specific patterns of protein intake with cardiovascular mortality.”
The researchers used health data of more than 81,000 men and women from the Adventist Health Study. The diet of study participants was assessed between 2002 and 2007 using a food frequency questionnaire.
“While dietary fats are part of the story in affecting risk of cardiovascular disease, proteins may also have important and largely overlooked independent effects on risk,” Fraser said in a statement.
The researchers noted 2,276 deaths occurred during an average follow-up of nine years. The study subjects who consumed large amounts of meat protein had a 60 percent increase of CVD prevalence, while individuals who consumed large amounts of proteins from nuts and seeds, experienced a 40 percent reduction.
No significant associations were found for grains, processed foods, legumes, fruits and vegetable protein factors. Study subjects with vegetarian diets did not change the results for CVD outcomes.
“Associations between the ‘meat’ and ‘nuts and seeds’ protein factors and cardiovascular outcomes were strong and could not be ascribed to other associated nutrients considered to be important for cardiovascular health,” the researchers concluded. “Healthy diets can be advocated based on protein sources, preferring low contributions of protein from meat and higher intakes of plant protein from nuts and seeds.”
The study was a joint project of researchers from Loma Linda University School of Public Health in California and AgroParisTech and the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique in Paris.
As a senior news writer for TriMed, Subrata covers cardiology, clinical innovation and healthcare business. She has a master’s degree in communication management and 12 years of experience in journalism and public relations.