Mortality in vegetarians and nonvegetarians: detailed findings from a collaborative analysis of 5 prospective studies
Open accessAbstract
We combined data from 5 prospective studies to compare the death rates from common diseases of vegetarians with those of nonvegetarians with similar lifestyles. A summary of these results was reported previously; we report here more details of the findings. Data for 76172 men and women were available. Vegetarians were those who did not eat any meat or fish (n = 27808). Death rate ratios at ages 16-89 y were calculated by Poisson regression and all results were adjusted for age, sex, and smoking status. A random-effects model was used to calculate pooled estimates of effect for all studies combined. There were 8330 deaths after a mean of 10.6 y of follow-up. Mortality from ischemic heart disease was 24% lower in vegetarians than in nonvegetarians (death rate ratio: 0.76; 95% CI: 0.62, 0.94; P<0.01). The lower mortality from ischemic heart disease among vegetarians was greater at younger ages and was restricted to those who had followed their current diet for >5 y. Further categorization of diets showed that, in comparison with regular meat eaters, mortality from ischemic heart disease was 20% lower in occasional meat eaters, 34% lower in people who ate fish but not meat, 34% lower in lactoovovegetarians, and 26% lower in vegans. There were no significant differences between vegetarians and nonvegetarians in mortality from cerebrovascular disease, stomach cancer, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, or all other causes combined.
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A pooled analysis of five cohorts found a 24% lower risk of CHD mortality (95% CI: 6%-38%) comparing vegetarians with non-vegetarians.
“A pooled analysis of five of the above cohorts found a 24% lower risk of CHD mortality (95% CI: 6%–38%) comparing vegetarians with non-vegetarians.(5)”
From Healthful and Unhealthful Plant-Based Diets and the Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in U.S. Adults (2017) · cites this paper as [5]
Prior studies have defined plant-based diets as vegetarian diets, which exclude some or all animal foods.
“With the exception of a recent investigation,(3) prior studies(4–9) have defined plant-based diets as ‘vegetarian’ diets, which constitute a family of dietary patterns that exclude some or all animal foods.”
From Healthful and Unhealthful Plant-Based Diets and the Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in U.S. Adults (2017) · cites this paper as [5]
Plant-based diets have been associated with a lower risk of various diseases, including coronary heart disease.
“Plant-based diets have been associated with a lower risk of various diseases,(1–3) including coronary heart disease (CHD),(4–9) the leading global cause of death.(10)”
From Healthful and Unhealthful Plant-Based Diets and the Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in U.S. Adults (2017) · cites this paper as [5]
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- Authors
- Key, T. J., Fraser, G. E., Thorogood, M., Appleby, P. N., Beral, V., Reeves, G., Burr, M. L., Chang-Claude, J., Frentzel-Beyme, R., Kuzma, J. W., Mann, J., & McPherson, K.
- Affiliations
- German Cancer Research Center (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Key, Timothy J
- Venue
- The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 1999-09
- Volume
- 70
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 516S-524S
- ISSN
- 0002-9165 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2116278697
- Cited by
- 484
- References
- 33
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 17 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 22 · 2016: 22 · 2015: 19 · 2014: 35 · 2013: 21 · 2012: 19
- FWCI
- 18.46
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Nutritional Studies and Diet
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Agriculture Sustainability and Environmental Impact
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiovascular Health and Risk Factors
- Keywords
- vegetarian diet, mortality, ischemic heart disease, meat consumption, fish consumption, vegans, cancer mortality, cerebrovascular disease
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Cardiovascular Diseases, Cause of Death, Diet, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Neoplasms, Prospective Studies, Smoking, Diet, Vegetarian, Confounding Factors, Epidemiologic
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