Vegans ‘much less likely to get severe Covid-19,’ new study suggests
We know that a plant-based diet is associated with many personal health benefits when it comes to chronic illnesses such as type 2 diabetes, certain forms of cancer and heart disease, but a new study suggests that vegans may also have a defence against Covid-19 when compared to meat-eaters.
A new study published in the journal BMJ Nutrition, Prevention and Health, and reported on today by the Independent, looked at data gathered from healthcare professionals in six countries - France, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK and the USA. Of those who declared themselves to be plant-based, findings showed that 73 per cent were less likely to fall ill with severe coronavirus than those who eat red and white animal flesh.
Findings also suggested that self-declared pescatarians - people who eat aquatic species of animals such as fish and crustaceans - were 59 per cent less likely to become ill with Covid-19 than meat-eaters.
Around 2,300 people who did not test positive for Covid-19 were polled as part of a web-based questionnaire that ran between July and September last year, aimed at answering speculation about the role of diet in the severity of the illness, while a further 568 were questioned who had tested positive.
Of those who did contract Covid-19, 138 said they had experienced severe symptoms while 430 only reported a very mild or mild illness. Respondents were also asked to choose which of 10 diets they had followed in the 12 months prior to Covid-19: whole foods, plant-based; keto; vegetarian; Mediterranean; pescatarian; “Paleo”; low fat; low carbohydrate; high protein; other; or none of the above.
Of the 568 who reported testing positive for coronavirus and exhibiting symptoms, only 41 had declared themselves plant-based for the year leading up to their illness meaning that the prevalence of moderate-to-severe Covid was higher in those who followed other diets including red and white meat.
The study’s authors - based in the US from universities and hospitals including Columbia University and Stamford Hospital - stated that “in six countries, plant-based diets or pescatarian diets were associated with lower odds of moderate-to-severe Covid-19. These dietary patterns may be considered for protection against severe Covid-19.”
Gunter Kuhnle, professor of nutrition and food science at the University of Reading, told the Independent that there were several caveats that had to be considered, including the study’s reliance on self-reporting - albeit by qualified health workers - which data has shown can be unreliable in regards to dietary intake.
The different definitions of plant-based from country to country may also have affected the results, Kuhnle said. And while people in the UK may consider plant-based to be synonymous with veganism, as opposed to other countries where the term is interchangeable with vegetarian or reducetarian diets where meat is greatly reduced, one thing can be assumed to be true of all plant-based definitions: far lower consumption of animal products.
Professor Francois Balloux of the UCL Genetics Institute said that the study’s sample size was good and the analyses competent, warranting further validation to “confirm a direct, causal link between diet and Covid-19 illness severity.”
Andrew Gough is Media and Investigations Manager for Surge.
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