Increased Plant Protein Consumption May Protect Women Against Diabetes, Cancer, and Other Disorders
In contrast to other animal-based protein sources like dairy and meat, plant protein may be crucial for women to age healthily.
A new study published today in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reveals that those who consume more plant protein have a higher chance of ageing with better mental health, being free from physical and mental damage, and not developing chronic diseases.
Dr. Andres V. Ardisson Korat, DSc, a researcher at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Centre on Ageing and the study’s author, told Healthline, “This research provides a lot of evidence for the importance of protein in the health of older adults, especially protein intake that occurs in our middle adulthood, which is when we’re setting ourselves up for the risk of chronic diseases later on in life for physical and cognitive function.”
“We discovered that eating more protein in the diet, especially plant protein, was linked to improved health outcomes and ageing in a healthy way,” the speaker stated.
Researchers discovered that the chance of women ageing healthily increased by 38% for every 3% of total dietary calories derived from plant protein.
According to Kristin Kirkpatrick, MS, RD, co-author of Regenerative Health and Cleveland Clinic, “these findings are consistent with previous data showing an association between moderate protein intake and healthy ageing,” as she stated to Healthline. She had nothing to do with the research.
The effects of diet on aging
Data from over 48,000 adult women in the US between 1984 and 2016 were examined by Korat and colleagues to determine the impact of dietary protein composition on health outcomes from middle adulthood to old life.
All of the women were included in the Nurses’ Health Study, a long-term investigation in which information was gathered via questionnaires concerning lifestyle, nutrition, and overall health. The participants’ average age at the start of the observation period was 48 years old. About 18% of their daily calories came from protein on average, with 13 percent coming from animal sources and only 5 percent from plant sources.
Could this dietary information predict the participants’ chances of developing chronic illness or ageing healthily?
A mix of factors, such as not having any of the 11 chronic diseases, not having any physical or mental impairments, and having good mental health, is what researchers characterised as “healthy ageing.”
The eleven illnesses listed were:
Cancer (apart from skin cancer that is not melanoma)
Diabetes type 2
disorders of the cardiovascular system, such as heart attacks and heart failure
a stroke
renal failure
COPD stands for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Parkinson’s illness
Multiple sclerosis
ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Participants in the Nurses’ Health Study had their risk of these 11 diseases evaluated between 2014 and 2016. They also had evaluations of their mental and physical health as well as their subjective memory.
3,721 (about 7%) of the original group of women satisfied the criteria for healthy ageing.
Protein from plants versus animals
Protein is a crucial component of a healthy diet and is involved in many vital bodily processes, such as cell signalling and muscle building.
But not every protein is made equally.
The study’s authors discovered that plant protein was the best indicator of healthy ageing, outperforming dairy and animal proteins.
Since animal proteins—including dairy—are regarded as “complete proteins,” which means they can provide the nine essential amino acids that the body is unable to make on its own, they have long been hailed as superior sources of protein. Because most plant proteins only provide some of these amino acids or don’t include them all in appropriate levels, they are referred to as “incomplete proteins.”
There are hazards associated with animal protein, even if it can also be advantageous, particularly if you don’t consume much protein overall. Particularly red meat has been connected to a higher risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.
It was discovered by researchers that plant protein offered greater advantages for ageing healthily than did animal protein.
How to incorporate more plant protein in your diet
You don’t have to switch to a vegetarian or vegan diet if you want to increase the amount of plant protein in your diet. In actuality, it’s possible that you already include some plant protein in your diet. Increasing your intake of plant protein requires researching high-quality plant sources and figuring out how to include them in a bigger portion of your diet.
“In addition to dietary fibre, high-quality carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals, the protein that comes from those sources also contains some phytochemicals that are also beneficial for health,” added Korat.
For long-term sustainability, a baby-steps strategy might be your best option if you routinely consume animal-based protein. Kirkpatrick suggested starting with incorporating plant-based proteins into meals by dressing salads or adding beans and legumes to grain dishes.
For long-term sustainability, a baby-steps strategy might be your best option if you routinely consume animal-based protein. Kirkpatrick suggested starting with incorporating plant-based proteins into meals by dressing salads or adding beans and legumes to grain dishes.
Rich sources of plant protein include:
Black beans
Quinoa
Tofu
Edamame (soy beans)
Lentils
Oats
Pea protein powder
Peanut butter
Nuts
“Eating more nuts and seeds is a wonderful method to get more plant-based protein. Try adding walnuts to salads, adding hemp seed to oats in the morning to boost protein, putting nut butter on whole grain bread or in sauces, replacing cheese on bean-based pasta with nutritional yeast, or consuming protein smoothies for meals and snacks, said Kirkpatrick.
In summary
According to a recent study, women who consumed higher amounts of plant protein in their diet were more likely to age “healthily.”
Being free of 11 prevalent chronic diseases, not having any physical or mental disabilities, and displaying good mental health are all considered indicators of healthy ageing.
Nuts, beans, and grains are just a few of the foods that include plant proteins, which are also high in fibre, vitamins, and minerals.
