EAT-Lancet reference diet: reduced cancer and all-cause mortality risk in UK adults

Aim

Despite a wide-reaching cultural impact, few studies have investigated if the EAT-Lancet reference diet is also beneficial for human health using large-scale data.

This study used the largest sample to date to assess if there is an association with incident cancer, cardiovascular and all-cause mortality outcomes, overall and by effect-modifiers.

Method

The study utilised the UK Biobank cohort and included over 400,000 participants for all of the outcomes considered.

Dietary information was collected via the UK Biobank touchscreen questionnaire that then developed a score to assess adherence to the reference diet.

Scores were rescaled based on energy intake to 2000kcal/day.

The researchers then assessed incident cancer cases and cardiovascular events based on hospital admissions according to ICD-10 classification. Mortality was assessment based on central registers.

Key findings

Baseline characteristics

Throughout an observational period averaging 11.5 years, the UK Biobank cohort registered a 46,594 incident cancer cases, 7,530 major cardiovascular events, and 34,438 deaths.

Among this cohort, individuals with higher adherence to the EAT-Lancet reference diet tended to exhibit characteristics associated with healthier lifestyles such as being physically active, and possessing higher levels of education. They were also significantly more likely to be female.

Non-communicable disease risk

The study revealed a noteworthy association between adherence to the EAT-Lancet diet and reduced mortality risk.

Notably, this relationship was particularly striking when comparing those with the lowest adherence (scoring 1.00) to those with the highest adherence (scoring 0.89), indicating a considerable protective effect against mortality.

These findings are consistent with the growing body of research investigating the link between adherence to the EAT-Lancet reference diet and all-cause mortality. Similarly, adherence to the EAT-Lancet diet exhibited a protective effect against incident cancer cases.

For each unit increase in adherence score on the scale of 0 to 11, there was a corresponding decrease in cancer risk (0.99, CI 0.98-0.99).

Specifically, individuals categorized in the high adherence group (scoring 8-11) demonstrated approximately a 10% reduction in incident cancer risk throughout the study period. Intriguingly, this association with cancer risk was found to be significant only among males within the cohort.

However, no significant associations were observed between adherence to the EAT-Lancet diet and major cardiovascular events or stroke occurrences.

While the diet's impact on mortality and cancer risk underscores its potential as a preventive measure against non-communicable diseases, further investigation is warranted to elucidate its effects on cardiovascular health comprehensively.

These findings contribute to the growing body of evidence supporting the benefits of dietary patterns aligned with the EAT-Lancet reference diet in promoting overall health and reducing the risk of non-communicable diseases, particularly cancer and mortality.

Conclusion

This study provides evidence that the diet proposed by the EAT-Lancet commission can provide benefits for non-communicable disease risk and all-cause mortality, on top of its posited environmental benefits.

Additional studies on larges cohorts such as this are required in LMICs who represent an increasingly important population group heading towards the middle of the 21st century.

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