Not consuming meat would increase the risk of hip fracture in women later in lifeaccording to one British study published this August 11, 2022 in the journal BMC Medicine. Researchers at the University of Leeds analyzed the health and diet data of 26,318 women aged 35 to 69, 28% of whom were vegetarian women. Among all of these women, 822 cases of hip fractures have been observed in 20 years, ie more than 3% of the sample.
While the reasons for this higher risk are not entirely clear, researchers believe that some vegetarians do not receive not enough nutrients needed for good bone and muscle health, such as protein or calcium. According to Dr. James Webster, lead author of the study, vegetarian diets can vary significantly from person to person and be “healthy or unhealthy, as well as diets that include animal products”.
Nevertheless, researchers do not recommend abandoning a vegetarian diet“because it is healthy for other things and respectful of the environment”, said Dr. Webster. “But don’t miss out on the nutrients you miss out on when you don’t eat meat.”, he continued. If vegetarian diets can reduce the risk of diabetes, obesity, heart disease or even certain cancers, the study nevertheless underlines theimportance of a balanced dietregardless of the diet followed.
Weaker bones and muscle mass
“It is likely that vegetarians, for one reason or another, and potentially due to low intakes of important nutrients, have lower bone and muscle mass and both of these things predispose people to hip fractures”continues Dr. Webster.
The researchers also found that the average BMI of vegetarians was slightly lower than that of regular meat eaters as well as lower vitamin D intake, two risk factors”potential” hip fracture, often caused by falls in older women.
“Vegetarians should pay particular attention to maintaining a healthy body weight and ensuring they have adequate intake of protein and other nutrients important for bone health, including calcium and vitamin D.”, concludes the researcher. Adding nutrients like vitamin B12 and staying active could help women maintain bone health, even though”further research is needed to explore the role of body weight and to identify reasons for the different outcomes among vegetarians and meat eaters.”
Sources:
- Risk of hip fracture in meat-eaters, pescatarians, and vegetarians: results from the UK Women’s Cohort Study, BMC MedicineAugust 11, 2022
- Female vegetarians at greater risk of hip fracture, University of Leeds,August 11, 2022
