Quorn, beans or fake meat: research reveals the healthiest type of vegan protein that lowers cholesterol
People who want to eat less meat and dairy are better off switching to beans and peas rather than opting for vegetarian burgers and plant-based milk, according to a study by the University of Oxford.
Experts looked at several factors when considering 24 meat and milk alternatives, including their impact on health, the environment and their cost.
They found that natural, plant-based foods such as peas, soybeans and beans performed best across all domains.
By comparison, processed foods such as veggie burgers, meat substitutes tofu and tempeh, and plant-based milk were associated with fewer climate benefits and higher costs than unprocessed foods – although they were still better than animal products.
At the bottom of the list was lab-grown meat, which is not yet sold for human consumption in Britain.
In the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), researchers from Oxford and University College London suggested that replacing all meat and dairy products in high-income countries with the same calories from meat or milk alternatives could reduce premature mortality by as much as could be reduced by as much as . 5 percent to 6 percent
‘Among meat alternatives, the largest reductions were for peas (6.1 percent), followed by tempeh, beans and soybeans (5.1 percent to 5.7 percent), veggie burgers and tofu (4 percent to 4.3 percent), and vegetarian sausages and vegetarian bacon (3.5 percent to 3.6 percent),” they said.
“Among milk alternatives, the largest reductions were for soybeans (5.2 percent), followed by almond milk.”
There are hundreds of different ‘fake meat’ products on the market today, most of which are made from engineered proteins.
Most of the changes in the risk of death were related to an increase in fiber (44 percent), which is good for health, followed by reductions in areas such as bad cholesterol and an increase in healthy fats and the mineral potassium.
Researchers said that if all calories from meat or dairy were replaced with alternatives, people would typically follow a diet lower in fat and higher in fiber.
On the climate front, experts say the livestock sector is responsible for the majority of all food-related greenhouse gas emissions and around 20 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions.
‘Without dietary changes towards more plant-based diets, the environmental impacts of the food system are expected to pose a serious challenge to efforts aimed at keeping global warming below 2 degrees Celsius and could could cross other major planetary boundaries that seek to provide a safe operating space for humanity on a stable Earth system,” they said.
They added: ‘Our findings suggest that whole plant-based foods such as soybeans, peas and beans are best suited to replace meat and dairy in high-income countries, performing well across all dimensions.
‘In comparison, processed plant-based foods such as veggie burgers and plant-based milk were associated with fewer climate benefits and higher costs than unprocessed foods, but still provided substantial environmental, health and nutritional benefits compared to animal-derived foods.’
The team concluded that choosing legumes over meat and milk would reduce “dietary imbalances” in high-income countries like Britain by half, premature deaths – mainly from diet-related diseases – by a tenth, and environmental impact of diets by more than 10%. half, and costs by more than a third.
Dr. Marco Springmann of the Environmental Change Institute in Oxford, who led the study, said: “Reducing meat and dairy in high-income countries is essential for limiting climate change, biodiversity loss and improving health.
‘Our research shows that there are a range of foods and nutritional products that would have multiple benefits if they replaced meat and dairy in current diets.’