Eating like a goat can seriously lower cholesterol. To be clear, doctors are not advising people to follow the unique eating habits of GOATs such as Lionel Messi, LeBron James, and Tom Brady.
More than ever, health experts are recommending sticking to a plant-based diets or vegetarian diets to avoid a long list of health issues.
The authors define vegetarian diets as eating meat products less than once per month. Cholesterol is a fatty substance resembling wax that is present in every cell in the human body.
Medical researchers did a deep review of nearly 50 studies on the topic and discovered that vegetarians are known for consuming vegetables, fruits, and nuts such as cashews and almonds.
Green foods and nuts contain components, including “soluble fiber, soy protein, and plant sterols” that help the body maintain a low cholesterol level.
High cholesterol is a silent killer that is often undiagnosed. When cholesterol builds up in a person’s arteries, it reduces blood flow, “which causes angina or even a heart attack if a blood vessel gets blocked completely.”
High cholesterol increases the risk of dangerous illnesses, including coronary heart disease, strokes, and vascular diseases.
According to the results of the research that was published in Medical News Today, vegetarians, or green eaters, have a lower intake of saturated fat.
Dr. Yoko Yokoyama, from Keio University in Fujisawa, who led the study, discovered that vegetarians had 29.2 milligrams less total cholesterol per deciliter than meat eaters.
Researchers wrote: “Those [individuals] who have followed vegetarian dietary patterns for longer periods may have healthier body compositions as well as better adherence to a vegetarian diet, both of which may have an effect on blood lipids.”
Co-author Susan Levin, director of nutrition education at the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D.C. added: “To make any form of health care work and to truly power economic mobility, we have to get healthy. The first place to start is by building meals around nutrient-packed, plant-based foods, which fit into nearly every cultural template, taste preference, and budget. As a dietitian, my take-home message is to encourage anyone to start making dietary changes early on in his or her life.”
Dr. Levin told Medical News Today: “It’s easier to maintain optimal health than it is to change your diet at age 60 or 75, although, to be clear, it’s never too late to make healthful lifestyle changes.”
The authors went through 8385 studies and selected only 30 observational studies and 19 clinical trials that analyzed the effects of at least four weeks of a vegetarian diet.
