Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26138004›Full record

SynthesisJournal of general internal medicine2016

Vegetarian Diets and Weight Reduction: a Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Ru-Yi Huang, Chuan-Chin Huang, Frank B Hu, Jorge E Chavarro

Open access · bronzeAbstract readMeta-AnalysisReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Journal of general internal medicine, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 152 papers, 18 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
152citing papers in PubMed, 18 pooled it
7.7field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

152 citing papers in PubMed, 18 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 310 citations in OpenAlex.

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  2. Plant-based and sustainable diet: A systematic review of its impact on obesity.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2025
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  11. Effects of vegan diets on cardiometabolic health: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2022
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92 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Ru-Yi HuangDepartment of Medical Education, Department of Family Medicine, E-Da Hospital, No.1, Yida Road, Jiaosu Village, Yanchao District, Kaohsiung City, 82445, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Chuan-Chin HuangDepartment of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
Frank B HuDepartment of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
Jorge E ChavarroDepartment of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA, 02115, USA. jchavarr@hsph.harvard.edu.
Harvard University · USE-Da Hospital · TW

Funding

Transgenic CoreP30DK046200 · NIDDK · TUFTS MEDICAL CENTER · PI GREENBERG, ANDREW S, PERISSI, VALENTINA · 1992 to 2021
$25.0M
Sleep Duration, Childhood Energy Balance, and Insulin Resistance in AdolescenceU54CA155626 · NCI · HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH · PI HU, FRANK B · 2011 to 2015
$9.6M
NCI NIH HHS 1U54CA155626NCI NIH HHS U54 CA155626NIDDK NIH HHS P30 DK046200NIDDK NIH HHS P30DK46200
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundVegetarian diets may promote weight loss, but evidence remains inconclusive.

methodsPubMed, EMBASE and UpToDate databases were searched through September 22, 2014, and investigators extracted data regarding study characteristics and assessed study quality among selected randomized clinical trials. Population size, demographic (i.e., gender and age) and anthropometric (i.e., body mass index) characteristics, types of interventions, follow-up periods, and trial quality (Jadad score) were recorded. The net changes in body weight of subjects were analyzed and pooled after assessing heterogeneity with a random effects model. Subgroup analysis was performed based on type of vegetarian diet, type of energy restriction, study population, and follow-up period.

resultsTwelve randomized controlled trials were included, involving a total of 1151 subjects who received the intervention over a median duration of 18 weeks. Overall, individuals assigned to the vegetarian diet groups lost significantly more weight than those assigned to the non-vegetarian diet groups (weighted mean difference, -2.02 kg; 95 % confidence interval [CI]: -2.80 to -1.23). Subgroup analysis detected significant weight reduction in subjects consuming a vegan diet (-2.52 kg; 95 % CI: -3.02 to -1.98) and, to a lesser extent, in those given lacto-ovo-vegetarian diets (-1.48 kg; 95 % CI: -3.43 to 0.47). Studies on subjects consuming vegetarian diets with energy restriction (ER) revealed a significantly greater weight reduction (-2.21 kg; 95 % CI: -3.31 to -1.12) than those without ER (-1.66 kg; 95 % CI: -2.85 to -0.48). The weight loss for subjects with follow-up of <1 year was greater (-2.05 kg; 95 % CI: -2.85 to -1.25) than those with follow-up of ≥1 year (-1.13 kg; 95 % CI: -2.04 to -0.21).

conclusionsVegetarian diets appeared to have significant benefits on weight reduction compared to non-vegetarian diets. Further long-term trials are needed to investigate the effects of vegetarian diets on body weight control.

Indexed as

Diet, VegetarianRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicWeight LossBody Mass IndexHumansObesityEnergy restrictionLacto-ovo-vegetarian dietObesityOverweightVegan diet

Identifiers

PMID26138004
PMCPMC4699995
OpenAlexW1958059468

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.