China Study – scientific evidence for healthier nutrition
It was already on everyone's lips in the 1970s and 1980s: The China Study, conducted by Oxford and Cornell Universities in China, revealed the connection between diet and disease. Biochemistry professor T. Colin Campbell and his son Thomas M. Campbell clearly advocated a vegan lifestyle after the completion of this long-term study.
Veganism and its nutritional background
Data from 6,500 test subjects was collected over ten years. However, the finding that a vegan diet is the healthiest option for humans has been challenged from many sides. So, it's best to form your own opinion and decide, based on your own reason and instinct, whether the connections between cheese and cancer cells, the traditional German protein overkill, and the eye-saver fruit fit into your worldview or even change it.
Healthy nutrition is the best medicine
People today enjoy medical advances while simultaneously, quite needlessly, putting themselves in danger. On the one hand, medications and the like help us live significantly longer than our ancestors. On the other hand, diseases like cancer and diabetes have increased exponentially since the 1970s. Diseases of affluence, which are triggered by overeating and over-eating, could already be prevented with healthy foods. After all, we simply cannot ignore the principle "You are what you eat." "Let food be thy medicine," Hippocrates recommended. Let's believe him!
Enjoy proteins in moderation
For example, there's the issue of protein: We know it's essential for muscles and hormones. But the amount makes all the difference: Nutritionists postulate that 48 grams of protein per day is enough; other calculations assume about 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight for adults. The big mistake many people make is believing that protein is best available in meat. This is a careless mistake. Protein obtained from nuts or legumes reduces the risk of cancer, while a meat-based diet increases it. A vegan diet, on the other hand, counteracts the outbreak of many diseases.
The China Study causes a stir
The study conducted in the 1980s, based on a large-scale investigation in China, succeeded in highlighting the differences between genetics and environmental influences. There are regions in China where the population is considered genetically homogeneous. This means that all residents have a similar risk of disease. This made it possible to rule out genes as a trigger. In some regions, for example, an exorbitant number of people were diagnosed with cancer, which also led to China conducting numerous investigations and studies on the topic and publishing the analyzed data in the Cancer Atlas. Comparing the data revealed the influence of diet on health status particularly clearly.
Fatal for many: Animal protein
The study revealed a result regarding protein and cancer risk that was shocking to many. In experiments with rats, it was found that animals fed a high-protein diet developed cancer cells far more frequently than those fed a low-protein diet. The researchers observed so-called "foci"—precisely the group of cells that mutate from healthy to diseased cancer cells. However, this development is only possible when certain enzymes are present that stimulate the carcinogenic process. It was also observed that rats fed plant protein had a significantly lower risk of cancer than those fed animal protein. It was therefore recognized that protein intake is far less about the amount than about the source. Plant protein is significantly healthier than animal protein.
Plant-based nutrition against lifestyle diseases
The China Study proves that not only cancer, but also many other often difficult-to-treat diseases of modern life can be alleviated or even prevented by a vegan diet. For example, the risk of heart attack is significantly higher in people with an animal-based diet than in those who follow a vegan diet. Even bypass surgery patients, who after a heart attack have their blood flow "redirected" from calcified to healthy blood vessels, minimize their risk of another heart attack with a plant-based diet. Obesity and diabetes, two of the most widespread diseases of modern life, can also be effectively treated with a healthy, plant-based diet. Taking it a step further: A consistent vegan diet can not only keep often fatal diseases like stroke, heart attack, obesity, and diabetes at bay, but can also act as a preventative measure to prevent the development of modern life diseases on a large scale. Incidentally, a vegan lifestyle also helps with Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and bone diseases.
Healthier than anything else: Vegan food
The results of numerous experiments speak for themselves. One thing is certain: those who base their diet entirely on plant-based foods live significantly healthier lives. Women in particular, who risk excess estrogen from animal fats, are significantly more likely to suffer from breast cancer and its complications. Furthermore, plant-based products contain significantly more fiber, which has a positive impact on health. For example, consuming plant-based fiber helps lower cholesterol levels and thus minimizes the risk of colon cancer. Compared to the Chinese population, which consumes around 33g of fiber daily, the American population consumes an average of only 11g per day. The result: In the USA, significantly more people are affected by obesity and its resulting consequences, such as cardiovascular problems, cancer, and diabetes.
The system prevents healthy eating
Sounds harsh, but it's true. Worldwide, systems exist of lobbies that finance them and profit very well themselves. Huge food corporations like Danone, Nestlé, and Kraft Food work closely but discreetly with the pharmaceutical industry. This is demonstrated not least by major mergers, such as that between genetic engineering giant Monsanto and the German pharmaceutical giant Bayer. The big players stick together and have no interest in keeping their customers healthy. After all, junk food from factory farming and pharmaceuticals generate significantly more revenue than urging people to grow their own vegetables. Sounds plausible, but it's carried out at the expense of the health of the end consumer. Or how else can one understand the American government agency FNB (Food and Nutrition Board) officially recommending that schools base their calorie intake on 30% sugar? Incidentally, French fries and ketchup are also considered vegetables here. Anyone who thinks otherwise is a scoundrel.
Just try it yourself: Go vegan!
Many people shy away from leaving their culinary comfort zones and changing their eating habits. But it's worth it and not that difficult, because it's not a diet, but a lifestyle. Just start step by step by shopping more consciously and avoiding animal products as much as possible. Don't be tempted by industrially produced meat imitations made from presumably genetically modified soy and other oddities, but get used to the unobtrusive taste of freshness. Learn to work magic with spices and create flavor components you never even dreamed of before. Before long, you'll notice that you're getting fitter, losing weight, and, above all, boosting your immune system.
Conclusion
The large-scale, long-term study from China provides clear evidence: Eating vegan is significantly healthier than consuming animal products. Not only can obesity and diabetes be combated with healthy foods, but veganism also counteracts cardiovascular disease and cancer. Just give it a try.
About the author TC Campbell
The American biochemist, nutritionist, and university professor T.C. Campbell was the scientific director of the China Study . He became world-famous with the publication of its results and is also a staunch advocate of veganism. His son, Thomas M. Campbell, is a general practitioner and co-founder of the Program for Nutrition in Medicine at the University of Rochester.
You can find more tips and smart advice for healthy eating
in the book " CHINA STUDY" -by Professor TCCampbell
You can order it here on Amazon.
It is also available as an audiobook and audio CD .
