A Vegan Diet Is Associated with a Significant Reduction in Dietary Acid Load: Post Hoc Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial in Healthy Individuals

Alexander Müller, Amy Marisa Zimmermann-Klemd, Ann-Kathrin Lederer, Luciana Hannibal, Stefanie Kowarschik, Roman Huber and Maximilian Andreas Storz
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Alexander Müller: Centre for Complementary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
Amy Marisa Zimmermann-Klemd: Centre for Complementary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
Ann-Kathrin Lederer: Centre for Complementary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
Luciana Hannibal: Medical Center, Laboratory of Clinical Biochemistry and Metabolism, Department of General Pediatrics, Adolescent Medicine and Neonatology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
Stefanie Kowarschik: Centre for Complementary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
Roman Huber: Centre for Complementary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79106 Freiburg, Germany
Maximilian Andreas Storz: Centre for Complementary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, 79106 Freiburg, Germany

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 19, 1-12

Abstract: The composition of diet strongly affects acid–base homeostasis. Western diets abundant in acidogenic foods (meat and cheese) and deficient in alkalizing foods (fruits and vegetables) increase dietary acid load (DAL). A high DAL has been associated with numerous health repercussions, including cardiovascular disease and type-2-diabetes. Plant-based diets have been associated with a lower DAL; however, the number of trials exploring this association is limited. This randomized-controlled trial sought to examine whether an isocaloric vegan diet lowers DAL as compared to a meat-rich diet. Forty-five omnivorous individuals were randomly assigned to a vegan diet ( n = 23) or a meat-rich diet ( n = 22) for 4 weeks. DAL was determined using potential renal acid load (PRAL) and net endogenous acid production (NEAP) scores at baseline and after 3 and 4 weeks, respectively. After 3 weeks, median PRAL (?23.57 (23.87)) and mean NEAP R (12.85 ± 19.71) scores were significantly lower in the vegan group than in the meat-rich group (PRAL: 18.78 (21.04) and NEAP R : 60.93 ± 15.51, respectively). Effects were mediated by a lower phosphorus and protein intake in the vegan group. Our study suggests that a vegan diet is a potential means to reduce DAL, whereas a meat-rich diet substantially increases the DAL burden.

Keywords: vegan; plant-based; vegetarian; nutrition; dietary acid load; potential renal acid load; net endogenous acid production; diet; meat; health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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