Many people are moving toward plant-based diets for a variety of reasons — from overall health concerns to opposition to animal cruelty and factory farming to a desire to be more planet-friendly.
A new study lends even more support to the first of those reasons, as it shows evidence that a plant-based diet significantly reduces risk of diabetes.
According to the study published in the journal Diabetes & Metabolism, participants with the most healthful plant-based diets managed to reduce their risk of type 2 diabetes by 24% over 12 years.
"Healthful plant-based diets may protect against [type 2 diabetes] via lower body fatness, but also via normoglycaemia, lower basal inflammation as well as improved kidney and liver function," the study concluded.
The study's conclusions are consistent with another similar study published recently, which found that people who eat just two servings of red meat per week could be at higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those who eat less red meat.
This, and other reasons, explain why so many people — particularly younger people — are attempting to cut down on the amount of meat they consume. One group that calls itself the Reducetarian Movement is attempting to bring awareness to the positive effects of simply reducing the amount of meat in your diet rather than cutting it out entirely.
And plant-based diets aren't just good for you — they're also good for the planet, as meat and dairy farming is a significant source of planet-overheating pollution.
One researcher at Oxford University found that if the biggest meat eaters in the United Kingdom were to switch to low-meat diets, the effect would be the equivalent of taking eight million gas-powered cars off the road.
Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the coolest innovations improving our lives and saving our planet.
Cool Picks
