A very interesting study by Cornell University on the vegetarian and vegan diet, of which you can read the full version here in English, is causing debate on the possibility that this type of diet can create genetic mutations, mutations found in essentially vegetarian populations. Responsible for these mutations would be the diet, lacking in fish and forage meat (rich in omega3) but abundant in vegetables and whole grains, from which the body would absorb more omega 6, which in the Western diet has reached alarming levels thanks to its use in addition of vegetable seed oils (sunflower, corn, soybean, peanut, for example), even higher than the vegetarian populations studied by the researchers. Who have established with a two-phase study that historically vegetarian populations have more frequency a mutation that would allow them to autonomously synthesize polyunsaturated fatty acids starting from linoleic acid, fatty acids that would be added to those derived from food. What does it mean?

Since a too high consumption of polyunsaturated fatty acids has been linked to the onset of cardiovascular diseases and risk of inflammatory diseases , vegetarian populations with this genetic mutation would be more prone to an excess of polyunsaturated fatty acids, and therefore to a series of inflammatory diseases. and cardiovascular.
However, the mutation in those countries where the vegetarian diet was based on a limited content of polyunsaturated fatty acids , that is, the one minimally present in olive oil and avocado, from cereals and minimally from vegetables, did not create health disorders and risks of a diet rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, simply because the diet provided too little of them. The other way around,Researchers wonder what can happen to people who inherit this mutation and follow a “modern” vegetarian diet , who may  in addition consume too high levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids from dietary sources such as oil seeds, seed oils, nuts. Industrial products in fact abound in these oils.

To determine the correlation between a vegetarian diet and genetic mutation, which the team calls “consistent,” the researchers first studied the differences between the population of a vegetarian country for generations and that of an American omnivore. In the first sample, they found high rates of this mutation among the inhabitants. Subsequently, drawing on the database of the  1000 Genomes Project , the world’s largest database on genetic variations, the researchers found confirmation of a fact: genetic variation has been massively present in vegetarian populations for centuries, for example South Asian and partisan populations. of Africa. For further information in Italian, read here .