Vegetables, legumes and dried fruit 'stronger' than Covid. Science reveals an unprecedented advantage of being 'veg'. In fact, it seems that people who follow a predominantly green or vegetarian/vegan diet are 39% less likely to contract the Sars-CoV-2 virus infection compared to omnivores. This is what emerges from a study published in the journal 'BMJ Nutrition Prevention & Health', conducted on 702 adult volunteers, recruited between March and July 2022. The results obtained from their analysis push the authors, researchers from the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil , to hypothesize that a green diet – rich in vegetables, legumes and dried fruit and low or free of dairy products and meat – can help to avoid contagion.
How is it possible? For experts, it may be that predominantly plant-based diets provide more nutrients that strengthen the immune system and help fight viral infections. Several studies, the authors recall, have suggested that diet could play an important role in the evolution of Covid-19 infection, as well as in the factors that increase the risk of associated complications. Starting from this, scientists decided to evaluate the potential impact of various dietary patterns on the incidence, severity and duration of Covid. The research participants were interviewed about their usual eating patterns and the frequency of various food groups on their menus, as well as their lifestyle and medical history, including anti-Covid vaccination. They were then divided into two groups, those following an omnivorous diet (424) and those with predominantly plant-based diets (278). The plant-based diet group was further divided into flexitarians/semi-vegetarians who ate meat 3 times per week or less (87); and vegetarians and vegans (191).
No significant differences were found with respect to sex, age or vaccinations between the omnivore and veg groups. But in the latter a significantly higher number of people had a high level of education with postgraduate degrees. Omnivores also reported higher rates of medical conditions and lower rates of physical activity. And the prevalence of overweight and obesity was significantly higher, all factors also associated with a higher risk of Covid. In total, 330 people (47%) involved in the study declared having had Sars-CoV-2 infection. Of these, 224 (32%) reported having mild symptoms and 106 (15%) moderate to severe symptoms.
Omnivores had a significantly higher incidence of Covid than plant-based diet groups: 52% versus 40%, the authors report. And they were more likely to have had a moderate to severe infection: 18% versus just over 11%. However, there was no difference between the two groups in the duration of symptoms. This is the starting point. After accounting for potentially influential factors, such as weight, pre-existing medical conditions and physical activity levels, no overall difference in symptom severity was found between the omnivore and plant-based diet groups, the experts point out. But those who ate a predominantly plant-based or vegetarian/vegan diet were 39% less likely to contract the infection than omnivores.
“Plant-based dietary patterns are rich in antioxidants, phytosterols and polyphenols, which positively influence different types of cells implicated in immune function and present direct antiviral properties,” the authors write, specifying that theirs is an observational study and, as such , cannot establish causal factors. The researchers also acknowledge that the study relies on personal recollection and subjective assessment, both of which are subject to error. However, they conclude: “In light of these findings and the results of other studies, and given the importance of identifying factors that may influence the incidence of Covid, we recommend the practice of following plant-based diets or vegetarian dietary patterns.”
“This research adds to the evidence suggesting that diet may play a role in susceptibility to Covid infection,” comments Shane McAuliffe, of the NNEdPro Global Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health, which co-owns BMJ Nutrition Prevention & Health together with Bmj. “But this remains an area of research that deserves more rigorous, high-quality investigation before definitive conclusions can be drawn about whether particular dietary patterns increase the risk of Covid infection,” he adds.
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