Are plant-based meat substitutes really better for the heart than meat options?

• As plant-based meat substitutes gain popularity, researchers in Singapore have conducted a study comparing their effects on health to those of traditional meats, with a specific focus on heart health and diabetes risk.
• The research, involving 89 adults at risk for type 2 diabetes, found no significant heart health benefits of plant-based meat diets over those including animal meat, challenging the notion that these alternatives offer the same health advantages as whole plant-based diets.
• Highlighting the nutritional differences between plant-based meat analogues and animal meats, the findings suggest a need for the food industry to develop nutritionally enhanced and environmentally sustainable plant-based meat substitutes.

In new research, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, scientists looked at how diets containing real meat compare to those using plant-based meat alternatives, especially in terms of cardiovascular health and diabetes risk.

Diets rich in plant-based foods have been found beneficial for heart and metabolic health, thanks to their wide variety of health-promoting components like vitamins, fibres and antioxidants.

However, for those who regularly eat meat, switching to such diets can be challenging due to deep-seated cultural, historical, and social influences on meat consumption, as well as socioeconomic factors.

Plant-based meat analogues (PBMAs) are designed to mimic the taste and texture of real meat using sustainable ingredients and are becoming increasingly popular worldwide.

This new research focused on comparing the effects of diets based on plant-based meat analogues (PBMAs) and traditional animal-based meats (ABMs) on the heart health of Singaporeans at a higher risk for type 2 diabetes.

The main question was whether replacing animal meat with PBMAs would improve heart health and reduce the risk of chronic diseases.

In this 8-week study involving 89 participants, half were asked to eat PBMAs, and the other half ate animal meats. The researchers looked at levels of bad cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure, among other health indicators.

The findings showed no significant changes in cholesterol profiles for either diet, but both diets were linked to improvements in some blood sugar markers.

There was no clear advantage of one diet over the other in improving heart health. However, in a smaller group that closely monitored their blood sugar, those eating animal meat managed their blood sugar levels better.

Blood pressure improvements were also noted in the animal meat group but not in the PBMA group.

This suggests that the benefits often associated with plant-based diets might not directly apply to PBMAs, as they differ nutritionally from whole plant foods and their impact on heart health.