Vegetarian diets lower LDL-C, HbA1c in overweight/obese adults

Adherence to vegetarian diets leads to a significant decrease in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), total cholesterol (TC), and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels, reports a study.

A team of investigators conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine the effects of vegetarian diets on blood lipids and glucose homeostasis in adults with overweight or obesity. They searched the databases of Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Library through October 2021. Obese or overweight patients were included in the studies of the vegetarian diet for metabolic control.

Seven trials, including a total of 783 obese or overweight adults, met the eligibility criteria. Data analysis revealed that those who followed a vegetarian diet had significant reductions in LDL-C (weighted mean difference [WMD], ‒0.31, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], ‒0.46 to ‒0.16), TC (WMD, ‒0.37, 95 percent CI, ‒0.52 to ‒0.22), and HbA1c (WMD, ‒0.33, 95 percent CI, ‒0.55 to ‒0.11).

In addition, vegetarian diets resulted in an elevated effect on blood triglycerides (WMD, 0.29, 95 percent CI, 0.11‒0.47) but had no significant effects on high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, fasting plasma glucose, and Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance in obese and overweight adults.

These results suggest that vegetarian diets are a “promising therapeutic strategy for improving the metabolic dysfunction in overweight or obese individuals,” the investigators said. “However, further large-scale clinical trials are required to confirm the validity of these findings.”