A joint study by doctors at AIIMS, Delhi, and Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) on dietary habits of women suggested that those who consume non-vegetarian meals are less prone to diseases such as diabetes, cardiac ailments, cancer and obesity as compared to those on a vegetarian diet.

The survey was conducted on women between the ages of 18 and 40 years and is funded by the Department of Bio Technology (DBT), Government of India.

A total of 464 women enrolled from Delhi and Kashmir between 2015 and 2018. Women who consumed meat (203) were selected from Kashmir, while those who were vegetarian (261) were from Delhi. This included women who were healthy as well as those suffering from polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).

Results show that women from Kashmir who consumed up to five non-vegetarian meals a week were found to be at a lesser risk of these diseases irrespective of whether they were suffering from PCOS or were healthy, in comparison to women in Delhi who followed a vegetarian diet.

First described in 1935, PCOS causes irregular menstrual cycles, excessive body or facial hair and polycystic ovaries in women. PCOS increases the risk of having three types of cancer — ovarian, endometrial and breast.

All women underwent a detailed clinical assessment using a common proforma and methods of evaluation at both centres.

They were examined on the basis of their menstrual history, drug intake, 72-hour dietary recall, blood pressure, height, weight, lipid profile, liver function, kidney function and inflammatory marker (hs-CRP, TNF-a, IL-6, resistin, adiponectin). Higher TNF-a means increased risk of having the lifestyle disease, while adiponectin is considered to be the protective marker.