international news
N
ew research from New Zealand
has found that a diet of plant-
based wholefoods can shrink
your waistline, reverse type 2
diabetes, and lower cholesterol
levels. Participants in the study lost an
average of 11.5 kilograms after one year –
despite being told to eat as much as they
wanted.
Bread, pasta, and potatoes were all
encouraged during the study.
The research, published in Nutrition &
Diabetes, recorded the largest weight loss
of any randomised control trial where
participants had no restriction on calories
and didn’t have to exercise.
The study included 65 patients who
were obese or overweight and had heart
disease or diabetes. Participants were split
randomly into two groups: 33 participants
ate a plant-based diet, while 32 others
formed a control group.
In addition to being plant-based, the
prescribed diet was low in fat, as
approximately only 7 to 15 per cent of total
energy came from fat. The diet included
unlimited amounts of whole grains, legumes,
vegetables and fruits. Participants were
advised to eat until they were full and not
to count calories. They also took a daily
B12 supplement.
Participants received a “traffic-light”
diet chart that outlined which foods to
consume, limit, or avoid. They attended
twice-weekly meetings, which included
nutritional education sessions and cooking
classes. Then it was up to them to stick to
the eating plan at home.
Unlimited amounts of food to eat included
vegetables and fruit, wholegrains, sauces
and seasonings; food to eat sparingly
included salt, sugar and other sweeteners,
processed flour, tempeh and tofu, soy milk,
almond milk and oat milk, caffeine and
alcohol; and foods to strongly limit
included nuts, seeds and tahini, avocado,coconut, and coconut milk.
New Zealand GP and lead author Dr
Nicholas Wright says, “The wholefood
plant-based approach shows very
promising weight loss results that appear
to be sustained over time. People don’t
have to worry about going hungry and
can still lose weight”.
The participants were able to stick to the
diet - in large part because the unlimited
quantities of food meant they never felt
hungry. After 12 months, they had not only
lost weight and lowered their cholesterol
but also decreased their waistlines by an
average of nine centimetres and their
medication usage by an average of 29
per cent.
Two of four patients with diabetes
reduced their dosage or reliance on
diabetes medications, including one who
no longer required insulin.
And for those wondering how to eat a
healthy plant-based diet on a budget, the
good news is that participants reported
that they didn’t change the amount they
spent on food and enjoyed food just as
much as before.
Dr Wright says a plant-based diet is
great for health and also reduces the
impact on the environment by using less
land and water. He ads: “I think there
should be more focus within the health
system on interventions which focus on
diet and lifestyle, because these tend to
cost less, and have less side effects, all the
while having effects which are sometimes
much better than can be offered through
medications and surgery”.
During the study, prominent
environmentalists James Cameron and
Suzy Amis Cameron gave their support to
participants via a special video message.
Keen to find out more? The website for
the research and a download link can be
found at http://www.thebroadstudy.com.
PETA AustraliaT
he European Parliament
[recently] voted 410 to 205 in
favour of measures to improve
farmed rabbit welfare, which
includes the drafting of legislation to
end the use of battery cages. This
historic result will help more than 340
million rabbits every year who currently
experience extreme suffering in battery
cages.
Animal Equality and its supporters
lobbied MEPs (Members in the European
Parliament) across Europe, sending
more than 120,000 emails urging
[them] to support this initiative to
protect farmed rabbits. Compassionate
celebrities including Evanna Lynch,
Victoria Summer, Peter Egan and Dave
Spikey also backed the campaign.
Toni Shephard, Executive Director
of Animal Equality UK, said: “Today
history has been made! One of the
cruelest farming practices ever invented,
confining animals in tiny barren cages
for their entire lives, could soon be
obsolete in Europe. This is amazing
progress for hundreds of millions of
rabbits who currently endure extreme
suffering in battery cages on European
farms. Animal Equality will keep
working with European and national
politicians until rabbit cages are
confined to history”.
Footage taken by Animal Equality
investigators on rabbit farms in Spain
and Italy was instrumental in this
landmark decision. Investigations on
more than 75 farms revealed the
pain and suffering that caged rabbits
endure, including rabbits left with
open and infected wounds and
countless dead rabbits left to rot in
cages alongside living rabbits, and
even cases of cannibalism due to the
unnatural and stressful conditions.
With this vote, the EU Parliament
has instructed the Commission to
draft legislation setting out minimum
standards for the protection of farmed
rabbits. This process is likely to take
several months and may be subject to
deliberate delays, but Animal Equality
will keep up the pressure until the will
of the Parliament - and the people - is
enacted.
EU Reporter3FTFBSDImOETUIBUBWFHBO
diet can shrink waistlines
Europe votes to
ban battery cages
on rabbit farms
© Andrea De Martin