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# Vegetarians and Vegans Have Lower Risk of Heart Disease
- URL: https://www.foodconsumer.org/vegetarian_low_risk_of_heart_disease_0416140530/
- Published: 2014-04-16T18:29:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-15T14:07:01.000Z
- Description: Among 592 African-American participants in Adventist Health Study-2, those eating a vegetarian or vegan diet had lower blood pressure, half the diabetes risk and 44% lower hypertension risk than pesco- and non-vegetarians, and were 43% less likely to be obese than non-vegetarians.
- Author: Food Consumer
- Tags: Heart & Blood, Avoiding Illness, #vivvo-import

Vegetarian and vegan diets lower the risk of heart disease, according to a study published in *Public Health Nutrition*. Researchers tracked the dietary habits of 592 African-American participants from the Adventist Health Study-2 and categorized them into three eating patterns: vegetarian/vegan, pesco-vegetarian, and non-vegetarian.

Those who consumed a vegetarian/vegan diet had fewer heart disease risk factors including lower blood pressure, half the risk of diabetes, and a 44 percent reduced risk for hypertension, compared with those who consumed pesco-vegetarian and non-vegetarian diets. Additionally, vegetarians and vegans were 43 percent less likely to be obese, compared with non-vegetarians. This study stresses the positive effects plant-based diets may have towards disease prevention for African-Americans.

Fraser G, Katuli S, Anousheh R, Knutsen S, Herring P, Fan J. Vegetarian diets and cardiovascular risk factors in black members of the Adventist Health Study-2\. *Public Health Nutr*. Published online March 17, 2014.