WASHINGTON-In July 2009 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has been published an article about vegetarian diets and bone density. The study seems to have been misinterpreted by some journalists, who believed that the article suggests that the vegetarian and vegan diets can lead to a decrease in bone health. Isn't this what the study showed.
Research results suggest that vegetarian and vegan diets may be associated with a bone mineral density is slightly lower. "But the extent of this correlation is clinically insignificant", as explained in the conclusions of the research coordinator job, Tuan Nguyen.
Other studies have shown that vegetarian and vegan diets have no adverse clinical effects on bone health. A recent study of the same group of researchers has revealed that a vegan diet prolonged over time has no negative effects on bone mineral density, compared to an omnivorous diet. Many epidemiological studies have in fact that a high intake of dairy products is associated with an increased risk of fractures.
"Vegetarian diets can help build strong bones, and plant-based diets reduce the risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer," says Amy Joy Lanou, an associate professor of health and well-being at the University of North Carolina Asheville and author of"Building Bone Vitality (Vitality of bone-building), a new book about bone loss and osteoporosis prevention. "To ensure strong bones and a healthy physique, you must exercise with weights and plant-based diets with low acidity, rich in fruits and vegetables."
A scientific review on the role of dairy foods in health of bones, published in 2005 on Pediatrics, showed that the majority of studies in this field did not reveal any relationship between bone health and the consumption of dairy products or calcium intake in the diet. The level of consumption of dairy products in the United States is among the highest in the world, yet the incidence of osteoporosis and fractures is also among the highest.
Also dairy products cause health problems. Milk became in us. children's diet the major source of saturated fat, those that block the arteries. A study by Harvard Medical School revealed that drinking milk increases the risk of obesity. The fat content in dairy products is also associated with the risk of pancreatic cancer,according to a study just published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.