6 Science-Based Health Benefits of Eating Vegan

1. A Vegan Diet Is Richer in Certain Nutrients

If you switch to a vegan diet from a typical Western diet, you’ll eliminate meat and animal products.

For instance, several studies have reported that vegan diets tend to provide more fiber, antioxidants and beneficial plant compounds. They also appear to be richer in potassium, magnesium, folate and vitamins A, C and E (1, 2, 3). Vegan diets even appear to be higher in iron, though the form of iron provided by plants is not as bioavailable as that provided by animal foods (1, 3).

However, not all vegan diets are created equal.

For instance, poorly planned vegan diets may provide insufficient amounts of essential fatty acids, vitamin B12, niacin, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D, calcium, iodine, selenium or zinc (1, 2, 3, 4, 5).

That’s why it’s important to stay away from nutrient-poor, fast-food vegan options. Instead, base your diet around nutrient-rich whole plants and fortified foods. You may also want to consider supplements like vitamin B12.

Summary While whole-food vegan diets are generally higher in certain nutrients, poorly planned vegan diets may lead to deficiencies of several important nutrients.

2. It Can Help You Lose Excess Weight

An increasing number of people are turning to plant-based diets in hopes of shedding excess weight. This may be for good reason.

Many observational studies show that vegans tend to be thinner and have lower body mass indexes (BMIs) than non-vegans (3, 6).

In addition, several randomized controlled studies — the gold standard in scientific research — report that vegan diets are more effective for weight loss than the diets they are compared to (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12).

In one study, a vegan diet helped participants lose 9.3 lbs (4.2 kg) more than a control diet over an 18-week study period (8).

Interestingly, participants on the vegan diet lost more weight than those who followed calorie-restricted diets, even when the vegan groups were allowed to eat until they felt full (9).

What’s more, a small study comparing the weight loss effects of five different diets concluded that vegetarian and vegan diets were just as well-accepted as semi-vegetarian and standard Western diets (13).

Even when they weren’t following their diets perfectly, the vegetarian and vegan groups still lost slightly more weight than those on a standard Western diet.

Summary Vegan diets have a natural tendency to reduce your calorie intake. This makes them effective at promoting weight loss without the need to actively focus on cutting calories.

3. It Appears to Lower Blood Sugar Levels and Improve Kidney Function

Indeed, vegans tend to have lower blood sugar levels, higher insulin sensitivity and up to a 50–78{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes (6, 14, 15, 16, 17).

Studies even report that vegan diets lower blood sugar levels in diabetics more than the diets from the American Diabetes Association (ADA), American Heart Association (AHA) and National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) (10, 18, 19, 20).

In one older study, 43{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} of participants following a vegan diet were able to reduce their dosage of blood-sugar-lowering medication, compared to only 26{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} in the group that followed an ADA-recommended diet (20).

Other studies report that diabetics who substitute plant protein for meat may reduce their risk of poor kidney function (21, 22).

What’s more, several studies report that a vegan diet may be able to relieve systemic distal polyneuropathy symptoms — a condition in people with diabetes that causes sharp, burning pain (23, 24).

Summary Vegan diets may reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. They are also particularly effective at reducing blood sugar levels and may help prevent further medical issues from developing.

4. A Vegan Diet May Protect Against Certain Cancers

For instance, eating legumes regularly may reduce your risk of colorectal cancer by about 9–18{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} (25).

Research also suggests that eating at least seven portions of fresh fruits and vegetables per day may lower your risk of dying from cancer by up to 15{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} (26, 27).

Vegans generally eat considerably more legumes, fruit and vegetables than non-vegans. This may explain why a recent review of 96 studies found that vegans may benefit from a 15{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} lower risk of developing or dying from cancer (6).

What’s more, vegan diets generally contain more soy products, which may offer some protection against breast cancer (28, 29).

Avoiding certain animal products may also help reduce the risk of prostate, breast and colon cancers.

That may be because vegan diets are devoid of smoked or processed meats and meats cooked at high temperatures, which are thought to promote certain types of cancers (30, 31, 32, 33). Vegans also avoid dairy products, which some studies show may slightly increase the risk of prostate cancer (34).

On the other hand, there is also evidence that dairy may help reduce the risk of other cancers, such as colorectal cancer. Therefore, it’s likely that avoiding dairy is not the factor that lowers vegans’ overall risk of cancer (35, 36).

It’s important to note that these studies are observational in nature. They make it impossible to pinpoint the exact reason why vegans have a lower risk of cancer.

However, until researchers know more, it seems wise to focus on increasing the amount of fresh fruits, vegetables and legumes you eat each day while limiting your consumption of processed, smoked and overcooked meat.

Summary Certain aspects of the vegan diet may offer protection against prostate, breast and colon cancers.

5. It’s Linked to a Lower Risk of Heart Disease

Eating fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes and fiber is linked to a lower risk of heart disease (26, 37, 38, 39).

All of these are generally eaten in large amounts in well-planned vegan diets.

Observational studies comparing vegans to vegetarians and the general population report that vegans may benefit from up to a 75{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} lower risk of developing high blood pressure (16).

Vegans may also have up to a 42{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} lower risk of dying from heart disease (16, 40).

What’s more, several randomized controlled studies report that vegan diets are much more effective at reducing blood sugar, LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol levels than the diets they are compared to (6, 8, 10, 41).

This may be particularly beneficial to heart health since reducing high blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels may reduce the risk of heart disease by as much as 46{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} (42).

A vegan diet even lowered hsCRP, a risk marker for major cardiovascular events like heart attack or stroke, 32{c33c21346ff5e26ab8e0ae3d29ae4367143f0d27c235e34c392ea37decdb8bed} more than the American Heart Association diet in patients with coronary artery disease (43).

Compared to the general population, vegans also tend to consume more whole grains and nuts, both of which are good for your heart (44, 45).

Summary Vegan diets may benefit heart health by significantly reducing the risk factors that contribute to heart disease.

6. A Vegan Diet Can Reduce Pain from Arthritis

Those on the vegan diet reported higher energy levels and better general functioning than those who didn’t change their diet (46).

Several other studies suggest a vegan diet can help improve symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, including pain, joint swelling and morning stiffness. The higher antioxidant, probiotic and fiber content, as well as lack of certain trigger foods, of a vegan diet may be responsible for these benefits (47, 48).

Summary Vegan diets based on probiotic-rich whole foods may significantly decrease symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Vegan diets may provide an array of health benefits.

For the most part, researchers do not yet understand exactly what causes these benefits.

That said, until further research emerges, it can only benefit you to increase the amount of nutrient-rich, whole plant foods in your diet.