If you're overweight and have high cholesterol, eating a vegan diet low in carbs for 6 months might lower your bad cholesterol markers more than a vegetarian diet high in carbs — meaning your heart might be at lower risk.

66

Pro

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Against

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

66

Community contributions welcome

66

Effect of a 6-month vegan low-carbohydrate (‘Eco-Atkins’) diet on cardiovascular risk factors and body weight in hyperlipidaemic adults: a randomised controlled trial

Randomized Controlled Trial

Human

2014 Feb 5

This study found that people who ate a plant-based, low-carb diet for 6 months had better cholesterol numbers than those on a high-carb vegetarian diet, exactly as the claim says.

Contradicting (0)

0

Community contributions welcome

No contradicting evidence found

Gold Standard Evidence Needed

According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.

Source Study

Effect of a 6-month vegan low-carbohydrate (‘Eco-Atkins’) diet on cardiovascular risk factors and body weight in hyperlipidaemic adults: a randomised controlled trial

Score: 66

DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2013-003505

Similar Assertions

If you're overweight and have high cholesterol, eating a vegan diet low in carbs (but high in fats from nuts and oils) for 6 months might help you lose more weight and lower your bad cholesterol more than eating a vegetarian diet high in carbs.

66

0

87%

If overweight people with high cholesterol eat a vegan diet low in carbs for six months, their harmful blood particles go down a bit more than if they eat a vegetarian diet high in carbs.

66

0

85%

If overweight people with high fat in their blood switch to a vegan diet low in carbs for six months, their triglyceride levels drop more than if they ate a vegetarian diet high in carbs — which is good for their heart health.

66

0

83%

People who eat a lot of fat and very few carbs tend to have higher cholesterol numbers than those who eat plant-based or mixed diets, and more than 7 in 10 of them have cholesterol levels that doctors consider too high—especially if they’re eating super low-carb.

54

0

80%

If you're overweight and have high cholesterol, eating a vegan diet low in carbs for 6 months might lower your risk of heart disease a little more than eating a vegetarian diet high in carbs.

66

0

78%