A group of European researchers carried out a study to find that avoiding meat is a good way to maintain a healthy weight. The research involved studying 400,000 adults and revealed that eating meat was proportional to weight gain. Processed meat like ham and sausages was the worst suggesting that high-protein diets won’t work in the long run for those aiming to loose weight. These findings also support the messages issued in interest of public health to lessen the use of meat as part of daily diet.

The study used the data from adults volunteering for a large project to find the association of diet and cancer. The weight of the volunteers from various European countries was noted at the start then again later after five years. They were also given a questionnaire asking them the details of their daily diet.

An in depth analysis revealed the association was significant even if various factors which can distort the results were accounted for. These factors included the physical activities and also the in general calorie intake. Individuals who ate the same amount of additional calories, 250 mg meat per day, gained 5lbs in 5 years. This clearly opposes the widely believed theory that high-protein low carbohydrate diet helps in weight loss.

The study suggests people to opt for variety in their daily diet like replacing the bacon with egg for morning or cheese during lunch in place of ham and for dinner it could be fish. The study emphasizes on the use of lentils, pulse, fruit, vegetable, whole grain and fish in addition to meat.

Source:

BBC News