Vegetables are rich in fiber and nutrients, especially when eaten raw
There is no doubt that vegetables are beneficial, but eating a lot of them is not necessarily a decisive factor in reducing the risk of heart attacks or strokes.
And a British study says that what we eat, how much we exercise, where we live, the way we live – these may have a bigger impact on disease.
The study confirms that making sure to eat a balanced diet helps reduce the risk of many diseases, including some cancers.
Consultants advise eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables per day.
The study’s authors conducted a questionnaire that included about 400,000 people, and included questions about their diets, including the amount of vegetables they ate daily, whether they were raw or cooked.
The questionnaire showed that the participants ate an average of two tablespoons of raw vegetables daily, and three tablespoons of cooked vegetables.
Over the course of the twelve months following the questionnaire, its organizers tracked the health conditions of the participants and their suffering from heart problems that led some to hospitalization or death.
rich in fiber
The study showed that the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease was about 15 percent lower among those who ate more vegetables – especially raw ones.
However, the researchers said that there are other factors that could be behind this finding. Including the pattern and lifestyle followed – smoking or the amount of alcohol consumed for example, as well as the nature of work, the amount of income it brings, as well as the nature of people’s diet.
Accordingly, the researchers concluded that their study found no evidence that a certain amount of vegetable intake has a “protective effect” in relation to cardiovascular disease.
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Ben Lacy, a researcher at the University of Oxford, says this study is important in understanding the impact of diet on cardiovascular health.
Naveed Sattar, from the University of Glasgow, believes that the study provided good empirical evidence that eating high-fiber foods such as vegetables can help with weight loss and reduce the risk of heart disease.
Star cautions that the results of this study are debatable, and should not negatively affect the common advice to eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables per day.
“I’m afraid we may underestimate the importance of a healthy diet and its impact on health in general,” says the researcher.
Why five servings a day?
According to consultants with the British National Health Service, fruits and vegetables are a good source of vitamins such as folic acid, and minerals.
Fruits and vegetables also contain fiber that is beneficial for a healthy stomach. It prevents digestion problems and reduces the risk of colon cancer.
Eating fruits and vegetables also helps reduce the risk of heart disease and other cancers. Fruits and vegetables contribute a share to a healthy, balanced diet.
Fruits and vegetables often don’t contain a lot of fat and calories (provided you don’t use a lot of oil to cook them).
“Error-prone operation”
But other experts argue that the process of calculating the amounts and types of food people eat over many years in order to study the impact of this on health risks – is prone to error.
“Unfortunately, the reliability of the results of simple questions included in a questionnaire in which we expect respondents to determine their food intake values,” says Janet Kidd, a researcher at the University of Leeds.
But the study, published in the scientific journal Frontiers, concluded that people who eat more raw vegetables may be less likely to develop heart disease.
Cooking vegetables strips them of important nutrients like vitamin C. Also, oils and fats used in the cooking process may increase the amount of sodium and fats – elements that are known to cause heart problems.
Those who follow a diet rich in vegetables get only small percentages of calories and fat, while those in return get large percentages of vitamins and antioxidants – which can protect cells from damage.