The studies behind the map.
Every claim on this map traces back to a study. Here they all are — landmark cohorts, randomised trials and meta-analyses, scored on study design, sample size, funding independence and replication.
- 57
- studies in the hub
- 40
- landmark-tier
- 10
- leading killers covered
Vegetarian diets and cancer risk — pooled analysis of 1.8 million adults across three continents
Across 1.8M adults on three continents, vegetarian and low-meat diets were linked to lower risk of five cancers.
Sugar-sweetened beverages and risk of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes — a meta-analysis
One to two sugary drinks a day raised type 2 diabetes risk 26%.
Trans fatty acids and cardiovascular disease
Each 2% of calories from trans fat raised coronary heart disease risk ~23% — with no safe level.
Fruit and vegetable intake and the risk of cardiovascular disease, total cancer and all-cause mortality
Up to 800 g/day of fruit and veg was linked to 31% lower mortality — far above the usual '5-a-day'.
EPIC — Meat, fish, and colorectal cancer risk
Each 50 g/day processed meat → 18% higher colorectal cancer risk.
Red meat consumption and mortality — results from 2 prospective cohort studies
Each daily serving of red meat raised mortality 13% (20% if processed); swapping it for plant protein lowered risk.
Coffee drinking and mortality in 10 European countries — a multinational cohort study
Heavy coffee drinkers had 7-12% lower all-cause mortality across 521,000 Europeans.
UK Biobank — Risks of ischaemic heart disease and stroke in meat eaters, fish eaters, and vegetarians
Vegans had 22% lower CVD risk across 500,000 participants — but a slight uptick in haemorrhagic stroke.
EPIC — Diet quality and risk of COPD
High AHEI score → 33% lower COPD risk over 16 years.
Association of nut consumption with total and cause-specific mortality
Eating nuts 7+ times a week was associated with 20% lower total mortality.
Women's Health Initiative — Low-fat dietary pattern and risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer
A low-fat diet did not significantly cut heart disease or cancer in 48,835 women — nutrition's biggest null result.
VITAL — Marine n-3 fatty acids and prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer
Fish-oil supplements did not cut cardiovascular events or cancer in 25,871 adults.
PREDIMED — Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease with a Mediterranean Diet
Mediterranean diet + olive oil/nuts cut major cardiac events 30% and stroke 39%.
Adventist Health Study-2
Vegans had the lowest mortality, ischaemic heart disease, T2D and cancer rates across the diet spectrum.
FINGER — Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment
Diet + exercise + cognitive training preserved cognition in at-risk adults.
DPP — Reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes with lifestyle intervention or metformin
Intensive lifestyle change cut new type 2 diabetes by 58% — versus 31% for metformin.
The diet and 15-year death rate in the Seven Countries Study
Across seven countries, saturated-fat intake tracked coronary heart disease mortality — Crete and Japan fared best.
The Framingham Heart Study and the epidemiology of cardiovascular disease
Framingham established cholesterol, blood pressure, smoking and obesity as cardiovascular 'risk factors'.
Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 — Diet as the leading risk factor
Diet is the leading risk factor for premature death worldwide.
Health effects of dietary risks in 195 countries — Global Burden of Disease 2017
Poor diet was linked to 11M deaths a year — driven more by too few whole grains, fruits and nuts than by too much red meat.
WCRF/AICR Third Expert Report — Diet, Nutrition, Physical Activity and Cancer
Fibre, whole grains, fruit/veg consistently protective; alcohol consistently harmful.
Lyon Diet Heart Study
Mediterranean diet cut cardiac events 72% versus the AHA control diet.
Reduction in saturated fat intake for cardiovascular disease — Cochrane review
Cutting saturated fat reduced cardiovascular events 17% — but only when replaced by healthy fats or whole grains.
EPIC-Oxford — Vegetarian diet and stroke risk
Vegetarians had 20% lower ischaemic stroke risk than meat-eaters.
Plant-based diets and risk of incident CKD — Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities
Higher plant-protein intake → 14% lower CKD incidence.
Carbohydrate quality and human health — dietary fibre and whole grains
Eating 25-29 g+ of fibre daily cut mortality and the big four chronic diseases by 15-30%.
Look AHEAD — Cardiovascular effects of intensive lifestyle intervention in type 2 diabetes
Intensive lifestyle weight loss improved fitness and risk factors but did not cut cardiovascular events in type 2 diabetes.
EAT-Lancet Commission — Food in the Anthropocene
A planetary health diet (~70% plant) could prevent 11M premature deaths/yr.
DASH — Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension
A plant-forward diet dropped systolic BP 11.4 mmHg in hypertensives — drug-comparable.
IARC Monograph — Carcinogenicity of consumption of red and processed meat
Processed meat = Group 1 carcinogen; red meat = Group 2A (probable).
DASH-Sodium — Effects on blood pressure of reduced dietary sodium and the DASH diet
Low sodium plus the DASH diet cut systolic blood pressure up to 11.5 mmHg — additively.
PURE — Fruit, vegetable, and legume intake and risk of cardiovascular disease and deaths
Higher fruit, vegetable and legume intake → lower mortality globally.
Da Qing Diabetes Prevention Study — 20-year follow-up of lifestyle intervention
Six years of lifestyle change cut diabetes incidence 43% over 20 years.
POUNDS LOST — Comparison of weight-loss diets with different compositions of fat, protein, and carbohydrates
Across four diets with very different fat/protein/carb ratios, weight loss was the same — calories, not macros, drove the result.
Plant protein intake and all-cause mortality in chronic kidney disease — NHANES III
In CKD, each 33% rise in plant-protein share was linked to 23% lower mortality.
Dietary acid load and CKD progression
Higher dietary acid load → faster CKD progression.
Nicoya Peninsula — Exceptional longevity
Lowest midlife mortality on Earth, with a plant-heavy traditional diet.
Barnard et al. — Low-fat vegan diet for type 2 diabetes
Low-fat vegan diet > ADA diet for glycaemic and lipid control.
DiRECT — Primary care-led weight-management for remission of type 2 diabetes
46% of T2D patients achieved remission at 1 year on a structured whole-food programme.
Fadnes et al. — Estimating impact of food choices on life expectancy
Switch from Western to optimal diet at age 20: +10 years life expectancy.
INTERSTROKE — Global and regional effects of potentially modifiable risk factors for stroke
10 modifiable factors explain 90% of stroke risk globally.
MIND Diet — Slower cognitive decline and Alzheimer's risk reduction
High MIND-diet adherence → 53% lower Alzheimer's risk over 4.5 years.
North Karelia Project
Community-wide shift to plant oils dropped CVD mortality 80% in 25 years.
Rotterdam Study — MIND/Mediterranean diet and the risk of dementia
Higher MIND-diet adherence was linked to lower dementia risk — but the association weakened over longer follow-up.
DIETFITS — Effect of low-fat vs low-carbohydrate diet on 12-month weight loss
Healthy low-fat and healthy low-carb diets produced the same weight loss — and genes and insulin didn't predict who did better.
SELECT — Semaglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in obesity without diabetes
In people with obesity and heart disease, semaglutide cut major cardiovascular events 20% over ~3 years.
STEP 1 — Once-weekly semaglutide in adults with overweight or obesity
Weekly semaglutide produced ~15% average body-weight loss versus ~2% on placebo over 68 weeks.
Ornish Lifestyle Heart Trial
Whole-food plant-based diet + lifestyle reversed coronary blockages on angiography.
Sardinia AKEA Study — Identification of a geographic area characterised by extreme longevity
Highest male centenarian density on Earth in central Sardinia.
Weight loss with a low-carbohydrate, Mediterranean, or low-fat diet
Over two years, Mediterranean and low-carb diets beat a low-fat diet for weight loss and metabolic markers.
Cured meat consumption and risk of readmission in COPD patients
High cured-meat intake roughly doubled the risk of COPD hospital readmission.
Okinawa Centenarian Study
Okinawan centenarians ate a ~96% plant-based traditional diet.
Ikaria — Dietary patterns and exceptional longevity
1 in 3 Ikarians reaches age 90.
A way to reverse CAD? — plant-based nutrition in coronary artery disease
Of 177 adherent patients, only ~0.6% had a major cardiac event over ~4 years.
Dietary patterns and lung function among smokers without respiratory disease
A Mediterranean dietary pattern was associated with better lung function in smokers.
Diet, life-style, and mortality in China — the China-Cornell-Oxford Project
Rural Chinese counties eating more plant-based diets had less heart disease and cancer.
Blue Zones — Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who've Lived the Longest
5 longevity zones share ~95% plant diet, daily movement and strong social connection.
