The Health and Performance Benefits of Going Vegan

Eating a vegan diet, which involves avoiding all animal products such as meat, dairy, eggs, etc. has been associated with many health benefits. A 2018 Review “Plant-Based Diets: Considerations for Environmental Impact, Protein Quality, and Exercise Performance“ found that a vegan diet reduces the risk of heart disease, diabetes, certain cancers, and metabolic syndrome. For those not aware, metabolic syndrome is many conditions that occur together and increase the risk of heart disease, stroke, and diabetes.

A reason for this is vegans tend to have lower BMI and body weight on average. This reduces risk factors for various chronic diseases. Vegans consume more fiber, antioxidants like vitamins C and E, magnesium, iron, and beneficial plant compounds, which help reduce cholesterol inflammation, and triglycerides.

When comparing vegans to vegetarians and meat-eaters, vegans consume the least amount of saturated fat and sodium on average, while eating the most fiber. As a result, this happens to show major improvements in blood pressure, blood sugar regulation, cholesterol levels, and overall cardiovascular risk factors.

Multiple studies have shown that switching to a vegan diet for even a few weeks can dramatically improve lipid profiles, blood sugar control, and blood pressure in addition to facilitating minor weight loss. This indicates short-term benefits as well in people with diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and obesity.

Research also suggests vegan diets are associated with a reduced risk of certain cancers, especially gastrointestinal cancers. The fiber, micronutrients, and plant compounds in vegan diets may prevent cancer initiation and progression through antioxidant effects and by enhancing the detoxification of carcinogens.

Research indicates that well-planned vegetarian and vegan diets can adequately support athletic performance. Studies comparing vegan/vegetarian and omnivorous athletes have found no significant differences in measures of endurance capacity like VO2 max or time to exhaustion. Muscle strength and power output also appear similar regardless of dietary pattern when matched for calories and protein. This suggests plant-based diets can meet nutrient needs to fuel rigorous training. One benefit for vegetarians is an enhanced response to creatine supplementation for building lean muscle mass. While further research is warranted, particularly in elite athletes, current evidence indicates vegetarian and vegan diets do not impair fitness or athletic performance as long as energy and protein needs are met.

Despite some concerns over protein and micronutrient intake, well-planned vegan diets have been found to be nutritionally adequate for all stages of life. With some strategic meal planning, vegans can meet all their nutritional needs for protein, iron, zinc, calcium and vitamin B12 from plant sources alone or with supplements if needed.

Overall the evidence suggests well-balanced vegan diets can be a safe and healthy option for most people while providing benefits for long-term disease risk and environmental sustainability. With some education on vegan nutrition, it appears the vegan diet can be suitable to support an active lifestyle and athletic performance as well. More research is still needed regarding vegan diets in elite athletes however.

Lynch H, Johnston C, Wharton C. Plant-Based Diets: Considerations for Environmental Impact, Protein Quality, and Exercise Performance. Nutrients. 2018 Dec 1;10(12):1841. doi: 10.3390/nu10121841. PMID: 30513704; PMCID: PMC6316289.