Vegetarian and Mediterranean diets ‘offer similar heart disease benefits’

New research published by the American Heart Association (AHA) has shown similar benefits for those who have a vegetarian or Mediterranean diet in terms of reduced risk of heart disease.

Published in the AHA's journal Circulation, the study compared the effects of these two distinct eating patterns in the cases of 107 healthy but overweight individuals, all aged between 18 and 75 years old.

It found that a vegetarian diet was more effective in reducing participants' LDL cholesterol levels, while the Mediterranean diet was associated with a greater reduction in triglycerides – high levels of which have been found to increase the risk of heart attack and stroke.

The research concluded that both diets provided similar benefits to heart health.

Lead study author Francesco Sofi stated: "The take-home message of our study is that a low-calorie lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet can help patients reduce cardiovascular risk about the same as a low-calorie Mediterranean diet.

"People have more than one choice for a heart-healthy diet."

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