Men who follow vegetarian diet at higher risk of developing varicose veins, finds study

Additionally, the study showed that irrespective of their diet, women had a higher risk of developing varicose veins than men.

Varicose veins are a common vascular disease in developed countries, posing a substantial medical burden. The condition is characterized by clearly visible, tortuous, dilated, and possibly prominent subcutaneous veins in the lower extremities. The risk factors for varicose veins include parity, age, long-standing hours, obesity, and heavy lifting.

Evidence suggests that a vegetarian diet reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, and associated mortality. A plant-based diet has also been associated with a reduced risk of heart failure, metabolic syndromes, type 2 diabetes, cerebrovascular disease, weight management, lower blood pressure, and improved lipid profiles.

However, there has been no investigation on the impact of a vegetarian diet on the pathogenesis of varicose veins. There needs to be clarity on vegetarian diets' role in disease pathogenesis. Therefore, Cheng-Ken Tsai, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, and colleagues examined the risk of varicose veins in vegetarian and non-vegetarian women and men.

The included 9905 adults whose data was from the Taiwan Biobank between 2008 and 2020. They obtained information on varicose veins, vegetarian diets, and sex from the Taiwan Biobank questionnaires that contained participants' self-responses.

The study revealed the following findings:

• The study subjects consisted of 4,142 men and 5,763 women. About 12% of men and 35% of women had VVs.
• Study participants were predominantly non-vegetarians (91.84% were men, and 88.24% were women).
• Women had a higher risk of VVs than men. The odds ratio (OR) was 3.414.
• There was a significant interaction between sex and vegetarian diets.
• Women were at higher risk of VVs than men in the vegetarian (OR = 1.877) and non-vegetarian (OR = 3.674) groups.
• Based on vegetarian diets, only vegetarian men had a higher risk of VVs (OR = 1.453).
• Based on the sex-stratified model, the risk of VVs was significantly higher in vegetarian men (OR = 1.457) and vegetarian and non-vegetarian women, with corresponding ORs of 3.101 and 3.599, respectively.

"Regardless of diet, Taiwanese women were found to have a greater risk of varicose veins than men," the researchers wrote. However, regarding diet, only men who followed a vegetarian diet were at a higher risk of VVs development."

"Our study indicates that sex-related factors may play a more prominent role in varicose veins development than diet-related factors," they conclude. "Clinicians should consider both variables as predisposing factors for varicose veins when managing chronic venous diseases."

Reference:

Tsai, C., Nfor, O. N., Tantoh, D. M., Lu, W., & Liaw, Y. (2023). The association between vegetarian diet and varicose veins might be more prominent in men than in women. Frontiers in Nutrition, 10, 1046158. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2023.1046158