Herbal diet helps against depression, diabetes and obesity

Vegetarian makes you fitter, slimmer and happier

Those who are vegetarians not only lose weight, but also improve their mental health and reduce the effects of type 2 diabetes and the risk of developing it. These are the key findings of an English analysis that examined the effects of plant nutrition.

Researchers at the University of London, the University of Northampton, and the East Sussex NHS Healthcare Trust analyzed the findings of eleven studies on herbal nutrition and its impact on health. It showed that a predominantly vegetarian diet helps to lose weight, improves mental well-being and quality of life, and is suitable for controlling type 2 diabetes. The results have recently been published in the journal "BMJ Open Diabetes Research and Care".

Those consuming less than eleven percent of their daily calories from animal foods are rewarded with both physical and mental health benefits, an English research group reports. (Image: sarsmis / fotolia.com)

No complete renunciation of needs

Herbal diets are not only becoming increasingly popular, they also seem to have a positive effect on numerous health aspects. While vegans dispense with all animal products, including dairy and eggs, the studies looked at a diet that consumes less than 11 percent of daily calories from animal products.

The positive effects of a vegetable diet

"It can be concluded that plant-based diets that are pedagogically supported can improve mental health, quality of life, HbA1c levels, and weight," the researchers summarized. Eight studies showed an improvement in HbA1c levels. This value allows us to draw conclusions about the quality of the blood glucose control in the last eight to twelve weeks. Three studies showed positive psychological effects, such as a perceived increased quality of life and the decline in depression.

Mainly vegetarian helps with weight loss

Six of the eleven studies looked at the effects of plant nutrition on body weight. Here, five out of six studies have shown that a predominantly vegetarian diet leads to weight loss. On average, the subjects lost over five kilograms of body weight as a result of the change in diet.

The English health authority comments on the results

Since the results of the investigation in the English media has been widely reported, the UK Health Authority (NHS) also commented. "Having a healthy vegetarian diet can help people with type 2 diabetes improve symptoms and avoid complications," the NHS health experts write in a press release. However, there are too many limitations in the studies to say for sure that a vegan diet is the best diet for people with diabetes.

Vegetarian does not mean healthy automatically

As the NHS reports, a healthy diet generally includes a lot of fresh vegetables, legumes, fruits and whole grains. In a herbal diet, special attention must be paid to the fact that many foods come from these categories. In contrast, refined vegetable carbohydrates such as sugar and white flour should be consumed only sparsely, so that a vegetable diet is really healthy.

Good - but not necessarily the best

The NHS emphasizes that the results suggest that a healthy vegetarian diet can help with diabetes and obesity. However, this does not mean that this diet is necessarily the best. Other nutritional styles are also proven to promote good health and to control diabetes. For example, a Mediterranean diet helps you lose weight and prevents diabetes. Overall, the number of participants in the studies is too low to make an absolute statement on the health benefits of a vegetarian diet possible. (Vb)