Don’t go against the grains... study shows diets without them are No.1 for deaths

DIETS low in healthy food such as wholegrains, nuts and seeds are estimated to be the biggest killers in Ireland when it comes to eating habits – but we are among the best in the world for eating fruit and veg.

A lack of nuts and seeds are linked to the highest rates of death in Ireland when it comes to our eating habits, according to a new global study.

The findings were contained in a new Lancet report, commissioned by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, associating mortality rates to poor diet which gave the death rates for 195 countries in relation to 15 different diet categories in the years 1990 and 2017. Irish death rates linked to a diet high in red meat are among the highest in the world but the study reveals that the meat mortality rates are minuscule compared to deaths attributable to not eating enough vegetables or wholegrains.

The study looked at 15 dietary elements – diets low in fruits, vegetables, legumes, wholegrains, nuts and seeds, milk, fibre, calcium, seafood omega-3 fatty acids, polyunsaturated fats, and diets high in red meat, processed meat, sugar-sweetened beverages, trans fatty acids and sodium.

In Ireland, the study found diets low in nuts and seeds were responsible for 29.6 deaths in 100,000 – the biggest killer of the 15 food types. When it came to our eating habits, a diet lacking in wholegrain was No.2 on the list as it is linked to 28.2 deaths in 100,000. The third biggest killer in Ireland was diets high in salt which accounted for 25.2 deaths per 100,000 in 2017.

Globally, the study found the largest shortfalls in optimal intake were seen for nuts and seeds, milk, wholegrains, and the largest excesses were seen for sugarsweetened beverages, processed meat and salt. On average, the world only ate 12% of the recommended daily amount of nuts and seeds at an average of 3 grams.