(From http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/12206669/Long-term-vegetarian-diet-changes-human-DNA-raising-risk-of-cancer-and-heart-disease.html)
So, research from Molecular Biology and Evolution has found a genome that makes long term (over generations) vegetarianism look bad. Sounds unbelievable right? But it seems to have a hold on the media and have an actual scientific basis.
Now, the study the media is raving on about is one that has to be paid to view (of course) so let’s just assume that they have given the full story and haven’t left any important details out…
“Scientists in the US believe that the mutation occurred to make it easier for vegetarians to absorb essential fatty acids from plants.”
Sounds reasonable.
“But it has the knock-on effect of boosting the production of arachidonic acid, which is known to increase inflammatory disease and cancer.”
It is known to increase inflammatory diseases and cancer, another reason to avoid chicken, eggs, beef, sausages and bacon which are the leading dietary intakes of this.
(http://appliedresearch.cancer.gov/diet/foodsources/fatty_acids/table4.html)
“When coupled with a diet high in vegetable oils – such as sunflower oil – the mutated gene quickly turns fatty acids into dangerous arachidonic acid.”
For a news article so SCARED AND TERRIFIED OF THE DANGEROUS arachidonic acid, they don’t seem to mention that vegetarian and vegan diets have the lowest dietary intake of this. Not even a mention of the foods to avoid, as shown above.
“The finding may help explain previous research which found vegetarian populations are nearly 40 per cent more likely to suffer colorectal cancer than meat eaters, a finding that has puzzled doctors because eating red meat is known to raise the risk.”
I really wish they would link people to this study. I couldn’t find it. But almost ALL data shows that vegetarians have lower colorectal cancer and cancer in general.
” ‘Those whose ancestry derives from vegetarians are more likely to carry genetics that more rapidly metabolise plant fatty acids,’ said Tom Brenna, Professor of Human Nutrition at Cornell.”
Interesting…however this doesn’t seem to do much in terms of cancer for the Asian population, particilaurly India. U.S. men get 23 times more prostate cancer than men in India. Americans get between 8 and 14 times the rate of melanoma, 10 to 11 times more colorectal cancer, 9 times more endometrial cancer, 7 to 17 times more lung cancer, 7 to 8 times more bladder cancer, 5 times more breast cancer, and 9 to12 times more kidney cancer. (credit to Nutritionfacts.org for the nice summary)
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19721899)
“The mutation appeared in the human genome long ago, and has been passed down through the human family.”
Very interesting, but not applicable to many of the Caucasian population who are reading this today, just sayin’.
“To make the problem worse, the mutation also hinders the production of beneficial Omega 3 fatty acid which is protective against heart disease.”
Can’t be by much since vegetarian and vegan populations have the lowest rates of heart disease in the world. But it’s always good to get Omega 3s from some high sources such as flax seeds, sprinkle them on your cereal!
“Previous studies have shown that vegetarianism and veganism can lead to problems with fertility by lowering sperm counts.”
lol this came out of nowhere…
Once again I wished they would linked these studies they rave on about. Vegans do not have lower fertility, in fact quite the opposite. These “lower” sperm counts don’t take into account the ejaculation fluid, which is typically much higher in vegans and vegetarians thus giving the perception of lower sperm counts. Increasing one’s meat intake has been shown to reduce semen quality in men.
(http://humrep.oxfordjournals.org/content/23/11/2584.long)
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18314116)
“Separate research from Harvard University also found that a diet high in fruit and vegetables may impact fertility because men are consuming high quantities of pesticides.”
Where are these “studies”? Key word here is MAY, meaning it hasn’t been studied but simply hypothesised. Research has SHOWN that diets with high veggie and fruit intake improve sperm quality. (see above)
“Many vegetarians also struggle to get enough protein, iron, vitamin D, vitamin B12 and calcium which are essential for health. One study found that vegetarians had approximately five percent lower bone-mineral density (BMD) than non-vegetarians.”
lol wut? Where did they pull this out of? Go to a hospital and see how many are suffering from protein deficiency, then see how many are vegetarians/vegans…it simply isn’t an actual thing. There is protein in everything, pretty much. Vegetarian/vegan men and women usually eat more iron in their diet and there is no more iron based anaemia in vegetarian women or men, why won’t this myth die?
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25369923)
Approximately 1/3 of Australians (where I live) suffer from vitamin D deficiency. GO OUTSIDE FOR 15 MINUTES, that’s all you need…perhaps 10 minutes more for darker skin tones. Calcium is problem for everyone, less than half in Australia get enough calcium every day…it’s plain wrong to pin this problem on vegans and vegetarians.
“One study found” ohhhh sounds reliable. How about a meta analysis that found drinking milk did NOT help reduce bone fractures in women.
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20949604)
Basically, the message is…
Vegetarians and vegans have a lower risk of basically everything that tries to kill us, despite this one gene discovered in generational vegetarians that is killing us with the terrifying arachidonic acid that is mainly found in animal products lol.
k thanks.
Veggie Myths Debunked 