A Shocking Number Of Deaths May Be Due To Poor Diet

Nearly half of all deaths from heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes may be due to diet, a new study finds. In 2012, 45 percent of deaths from “cardiometabolic disease” — which includes heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes — were attributable to the foods people ate, according to the study. This conclusion came from a model that the researchers developed that incorporated data from several sources: The National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys, which are annual government surveys that provide information on people’s dietary intakes; the National Center for Health Statistics, for data on how many people died of certain diseases in a year; and findings from studies and clinical trials linking diet and disease. [7 Foods Your Heart Will Hate] The researchers found that, in 2012, just over 700,000 people died from a cardiometabolic disease. Of these deaths, nearly 320,000 — or about 45 percent — could be linked to people’s diets, according to the study, published today (March 7) in the journal JAMA. The estimated number of deaths that were linked to not getting enough of certain healthier foods and nutrients was as least as substantial as the number of deaths that were linked to eating too much of certain unhealthy foods, according to the researchers, who were led by Renata Micha, a research assistant professor of nutrition and epidemiology at Tufts University in Boston. In other words, Americans need to do both: Eat...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - Category: Science Source Type: news