Vegetarians have significantly lower blood pressure, waist circumference, body mass index, blood sugar, and triglycerides, compared with nonvegetarians, according to a recent study published in Diabetes Care. In 1,011 randomly selected Adventist Health Study 2 participants, metabolic syndrome, a cluster of disease risk factors associated with heart disease and diabetes, was lowest among vegetarians (25.2 percent), followed by semi-vegetarians (37.6 percent), and highest among nonvegetarians (39.7 percent).

Rizzo NS, Sabate J, Jaceldo-Siegl K, Fraser G E. Vegetarian dietary patterns are associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome: the Adventist Health Study 2. Diabetes Care. Published ahead of print March 16, 2011. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.110.004028.

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