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Vegan Diet Associated With Favorable Gut Microbiome
Trillions of bacteria and other microorganisms live in our guts and have a lot of influence over our health. Researchers compared 150 people—half following a vegan diet, the other half an omnivorous diet—and found that vegans had more bacteria linked to heart health, fewer viruses that infect bacteria, and lower levels of harmful compounds linked to metabolic and kidney disease. Interestingly, among vegans, higher plant protein intake was linked to greater bacterial diversity,1 which may benefit health.2
References
- Thirion F, Fan Y, Hansen TH, et al. Vegans have distinct profiles of their gut microbiome and multi-compartment metabolome that align with markers of metabolic health. Microbiome. 2026. doi:10.1186/s40168-026-02538-y
- Fan Y, Pedersen O. Gut microbiota in human metabolic health and disease. Nat Rev Microbiol. 2021;19:55–71. doi:10.1038/s41579-020-0433-9
