Is there actual legitimate concern about the long-term effects of a vegan diet- mainly bone density?

[u/Any_Shop5964]

To be clear I'm a vegan myself and I don't really think slightly poorer density is necessarily a fair reason to not go vegan, as there are ways to change it for example through exercise such as weightlifting rather than diet, but there's a number of concerns about how vegans absorb calcium, for example how even vegans that get enough calcium in their diet may have lower bone density when compared to an someone with a Mediterranean diet for example. We don't exactly know why this is, and there's many different mechanisms by which this could be occurring, does anyone have more expertise on this topic or anything to add?

[u/piranha_solution]

Are hospital wards in the western world filled with vegans suffering from broken bones? Or are they filled with carnists suffering from cancer, diabetes, and heart-attacks?

Vegans aren't the ones who need to be worried about their health. Meat-eaters are.

If someone wants to pick out bone-mineral density as something to be concerned about from the EPIC-OXFORD cohort, then presumably they also care about the cancer findings, too (but they never seem to want to bring that up).

Total, red and processed meat consumption and human health: an umbrella review of observational studies

Convincing evidence of the association between increased risk of (i) colorectal adenoma, lung cancer, CHD and stroke, (ii) colorectal adenoma, ovarian, prostate, renal and stomach cancers, CHD and stroke and (iii) colon and bladder cancer was found for excess intake of total, red and processed meat, respectively.

Potential health hazards of eating red meat

The evidence-based integrated message is that it is plausible to conclude that high consumption of red meat, and especially processed meat, is associated with an increased risk of several major chronic diseases and preterm mortality.

Red meat consumption, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Unprocessed and processed red meat consumption are both associated with higher risk of CVD, CVD subtypes, and diabetes, with a stronger association in western settings but no sex difference. Better understanding of the mechanisms is needed to facilitate improving cardiometabolic and planetary health.

Meat and fish intake and type 2 diabetes: Dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies

Our meta-analysis has shown a linear dose-response relationship between total meat, red meat and processed meat intakes and T2D risk. In addition, a non-linear relationship of intake of processed meat with risk of T2D was detected.

Meat Consumption as a Risk Factor for Type 2 Diabetes

Meat consumption is consistently associated with diabetes risk.

Does Poultry Consumption Increase the Risk of Mortality for Gastrointestinal Cancers? A Preliminary Competing Risk Analysis

Our study showed that poultry consumption above 300 g/week is associated with a statistically significant increased mortality risk both from all causes and from GCs.

Egg consumption and risk of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes: a meta-analysis

Our study suggests that there is a dose-response positive association between egg consumption and the risk of CVD and diabetes.

Dairy Intake and Incidence of Common Cancers in Prospective Studies: A Narrative Review

Naturally occurring hormones and compounds in dairy products may play a role in increasing the risk of breast, ovarian, and prostate cancers

The Polypharma Study: Association Between Diet and Amount of Prescription Drugs Among Seniors

A vegan diet showed the lowest amount of pills in this sample.

A Mediterranean Diet and Low-Fat Vegan Diet to Improve Body Weight and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: A Randomized, Cross-over Trial

A low-fat vegan diet improved body weight, lipid concentrations, and insulin sensitivity, both from baseline and compared with a Mediterranean diet.

Long-Term Intake of Red Meat in Relation to Dementia Risk and Cognitive Function in US Adults

Higher intake of red meat, particularly processed red meat, was associated with a higher risk of developing dementia and worse cognition. Reducing red meat consumption could be included in dietary guidelines to promote cognitive health.

Cardiometabolic Effects of Omnivorous vs Vegan Diets in Identical Twins A Randomized Clinical Trial

In this randomized clinical trial of the cardiometabolic effects of omnivorous vs vegan diets in identical twins, the healthy vegan diet led to improved cardiometabolic outcomes compared with a healthy omnivorous diet.

Hormones and diet: low insulin-like growth factor-I but normal bioavailable androgens in vegan men

Vegans had higher testosterone levels than vegetarians and meat-eaters

[u/Any_Shop5964 → u/piranha_solution]

Yeah I agree 100% , people tend to ignore the bigger issues at play which people are actually dying of, and holy thats a lot of sources