Eating More Vegetables and Less Meat may Curb Diabetes Risk

Affecting roughly 9.3% of the entire United Stated adult population (29.1 million), diabetes is an all-too-common disease that's characterized by excessively high blood sugar levels over a prolonged period. Symptoms may include increased thirst, increased hunger and increased urination. Failure to properly manage diabetes can lead to more severe complications, such coma, diabetic ketoacidosis, heart disease, kidney failure and death.

But you may be able curb your risk of developing diabetes by eating more vegetables and less meat. According to a study published in the journal PLOS Medicine, making these otherwise small changes to your diet can make a big impact on your health, including lowering your risk of Type 2 diabetes.

For the study, researchers analyzed the eating habits of some 200,000 men and women who had taken part in one of three long-term studies: the Nurses' Health Study, the Nurses' Health Study 2, and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. All of these studies involved asking participants questions about their eating habits and overall health. Participants were required to list what they ate, how much they ate, and even what cooking oils they used (e.g. olive oil, vegetable oil, canola oil, peanut oil, etc.).

Researchers found that adults who consumed a plant-based diet with few meat and animals products were 20% less likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than their counterparts who consumed a high-meat diet. Furthermore, participants who consumed mostly healthy plant-based foods were 34% less likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than their carnivorous counterparts.

“What we’re talking about is a moderate shift – replacing one or two servings of animal food a day with one or two plant-based foods,” said lead researcher Dr. Hu. “We’re not talking about a dramatic change from being a carnivore to being vegan or even vegetarian – we’re talking about a small shift, that’s doable for most people. You can still include some meat, but not have it in the center of the plate.”

It's important to note that this meta-analysis study involved “self-reported” data, which in other words means participants submitted their own information about their respective eating habits. As such, there's a greater room for error. Nonetheless, most health experts agree that eating more vegetables and less meat – especially red meat – is beneficial to your health.

If you struggle to consume enough vegetables in your diet, consider investing in a juicer or blender. Juicing and blending smoothies is a great way to up your intake of vegetables. And you can always add a splash of fruit juice for added flavor.