Red meat consumption has been tied to increased risks of diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancers, and mortality. A couple of preliminary studies pointed out that reducing red meat consumption and including more protein from plant sources can aid longevity.

The studies presented at the American HeartaSSOCIATION’S Epidemiology and Prevention, Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Scientific Sessions 2020 have demonstrated that higher percentage of calories from plant protein in the diet is associated with a lower risk of dying.

Upon studying over 37,000 individuals, those who had been following a diet enriched with plant protein were at a 27% reduced risk of all-cause mortality and 29% reduced risk of dying from coronary heart disease compared to those who ate very little plant proteins.

The key findings of these studies:

  • Swapping 5% of daily calories from animal protein with an equivalent amount of plant protein reduced the risk of all-cause mortality and coronary heart disease by half.
  • Swapping 2% of daily calories from processed meat protein with an equivalent amount of plant protein reduced the risk of dying by about 32%.
  • Substituting a serving of red or processed meats with nuts, whole grains, dairy, and legumes was found to reduce coronary heart disease in men by 47%.
  • Replacing a daily serving of any kind of red meat with an equivalent amount of nuts was associated with a 17% lower risk of dying from a heart attack.
  • Swapping one serving of red meat with whole grains resulted in a 48% reduced risk of dying of heart attack in men
  • Even partial replacement of red meat with plant-based proteins could significantly reduce rates of coronary heart diseases in the nation.

"It isn't enough just to avoid red meat—it's also about what you choose to eat in place of red meat. Healthy plant proteins like nuts, legumes, and whole grains contain more than just protein—they include other beneficial nutrients such as healthy fats, antioxidant vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals (compounds derived from plants), which have been associated with lower risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and some cancers," MedicalXpress quoted the study’s lead investigator Zhilei Shan, M.D., Ph.D., postdoctoral research fellow in the department of nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.

Red meat
Based on what the World Health Organization has to say about consumption of red meat, California might decide to put red meat on cancer-alert list. Flickr
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