Vegetarian diet 'keeps weight low'

Meat-eaters who switch to vegetarianism gain less weight than people who make no changes to their diet, a new study has suggested.

Scientists from Cancer Research UK studied the eating habits of 22,000 meat eaters, fish eaters, vegetarians and vegans of all ages over five years and compared weight gains in all the categories.

The team found that, on average, people gained two kilos during the period studied, but the lowest weight gain was seen in people who changed to a diet containing less animal foods.

Among those who did not change their diet during the five-year period, the largest weight gain was seen in meat eaters, while the smallest weight gain was seen in vegans.

Overall, the scientists found that during the five-year period the proportion of overweight people increased from 29.4% to 34.9% in men and from 19.1% to 24.2% in women.

The proportion of obese men increased from 4% to 6.9% and the number of obese women from 5.7% to 8.4%.

Professor Tim Key, deputy director of Cancer Research UK's epidemiology unit at Oxford University, who planned the study, said: "Contrary to current popular views that a diet low in carbohydrates and high in protein keeps weight down, we found that the lowest weight gain came in people with high intake of carbohydrate and low intake of protein."

Professor Key also said that the data also showed that people who took more physical exercise during the time period also gained less weight than those who did very little exercise. He said: "This confirms that the best way to prevent obesity is to combine a healthy diet with exercise."

The study, conducted in Oxford, was part of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition.

Professor John Toy, medical director of Cancer Research UK, said: "EPIC continues to highlight the importance of diet and exercise in achieving a healthy weight. We know that obesity contributes to increasing the risk of cancer as it does to heart disease and diabetes.

"This study suggests that a healthy weight is easier to maintain by switching from meat to eating fish or a vegetarian diet."

(KMcA/GB)