Diabetes, Obesity, and Heart Disease Linked to Dramatic Dietary Changes

New study confirming the "mismatch" hypothesis found that diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular illnesses increased among Turkana people whose diet shifted from animal-based to carbohydrate-based. The findings of the study are published in the journal Science Advances. Are diabetes, obesity, heart diseases, and more the outcome of a "mismatch" between the meals we consume and the foods our bodies are prepared for?

"Humans evolved in a very different environment compared to the one we're currently living in," said Amanda Lea, the first author of the study. "No one diet is entirely bad. It's really about the mismatch between your evolutionary history and what you're currently consuming."

The "mismatch" approach has been around for years, but it's hard to test directly. To address this gap, the researchers collected interviews and biomarker data from individuals of Turkana ancestry who practice subsistence-level, nomadic pastoralism (the ancestral way of life for this group), and individuals who no longer practice pastoralism and live in urban areas.

The study found that Turkana, who moved to cities, exhibited poor cardiometabolic health, partly because of a shift toward "Western diets" high in refined carbohydrates. It also shows that being born in an urban area independently predicts adult health, such that life-long city dwellers will experience the greatest heart disease risk.

Source-Medindia