Observational studyNutrients2017
Comparison of Sociodemographic and Nutritional Characteristics between Self-Reported Vegetarians, Vegans, and Meat-Eaters from the NutriNet-Santé Study.
Observational study in Nutrients, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 156 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
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.
Who cites it
156 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 349 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Association of a Vegan Diet during Pregnancy with Maternal and Child Outcomes: A Systematic Review.Nutrients · 2024Pooled it
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of iodine nutrition in modern vegan and vegetarian diets.The British journal of nutrition · 2023Pooled it
- Influence of the vegan, vegetarian and omnivore diet on the oral health status in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Evidence-based dentistry · 2023Pooled it
- Levels of Trace Elements in the Lens, Aqueous Humour, and Plasma of Cataractous Patients-A Narrative Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- Vegan dietary pattern for the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2021Pooled it
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of the associations of vegan and vegetarian diets with inflammatory biomarkers.Scientific reports · 2020Pooled it
- Vegans, Vegetarians, and Omnivores: How Does Dietary Choice Influence Iodine Intake? A Systematic Review.Nutrients · 2020Pooled it
- The "Eat Less Meat" one-month challenge: a randomized controlled trial of a meat reduction pledge intervention among French university students.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2025Trial
- Trial
- Improving the selenium supply of vegans and omnivores with Brazil nut butter compared to a dietary supplement in a randomized controlled trial.European journal of nutrition · 2025Trial
- Vegan and Omnivorous High Protein Diets Support Comparable Daily Myofibrillar Protein Synthesis Rates and Skeletal Muscle Hypertrophy in Young Adults.The Journal of nutrition · 2023Trial
- A Vegan Diet Is Associated with a Significant Reduction in Dietary Acid Load: Post Hoc Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial in Healthy Individuals.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Trial
- A mycoprotein-based high-protein vegan diet supports equivalent daily myofibrillar protein synthesis rates compared with an isonitrogenous omnivorous diet in older adults: a randomised controlled trial.The British journal of nutrition · 2021Trial
- Common questions and misconceptions about diets: what does the scientific evidence really show?Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2026Review
- Evidence Suggests Linoleic Acid Exerts Health Benefits Beyond Cardiovascular Disease: A Brief Review of Clinical and Observational Studies.Current nutrition reports · 2026Review
- A 2 year retrospective study of vegan patients and their pregnancy outcomes in a tertiary level Irish hospital.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2026Article
- Nutrient and Discretionary Food Intake in Vegan Adult Australians: A Cross-Sectional Study.Nutrition bulletin · 2026Article
- Preferences for Meat and Meat Alternatives in Different Meal Scenarios: A Dutch Discrete Choice Experiment.Current developments in nutrition · 2026Article
- Evaluation of the relationship between sustainable and healthy eating behaviours, phytochemical index, anthropometric measurements, and depression in young adults.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Food Safety and Nutritional Aspects of Plant-Based Dairy and Meat Alternatives: A Review.Food science & nutrition · 2026Review
96 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThere is a growing trend for vegetarian and vegan diets in many Western countries. Epidemiological evidence suggesting that such diets may help in maintaining good health is rising. However, dietary and sociodemographic characteristics of vegetarians and vegans are not well known. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to describe sociodemographic and nutritional characteristics of self-reported, adult vegetarians and vegans, compared to meat-eaters, from the French NutriNet-Santé study.
methodsParticipants were asked if they were following a specific diet. They were then classified into three self-reported diet groups: 90,664 meat-eaters, 2370 vegetarians, and 789 vegans. Dietary data were collected using three repeated 24-h dietary records. Multivariable polytomic logistic regression models were perfomed to assess the association between the sociodemographic characteristics and type of diet. The prevalence of nutrient intake inadequacy was estimated, by sex and age for micronutrients, as well as by type of self-reported diet.
resultsCompared with meat-eaters, vegetarians were more likely to have a higher educational level, whereas vegans had a lower education level. Compared with meat-eaters, vegetarians were more likely to be women, younger individuals, and to be self-employed or never employed rather than managerial staff. Vegetarians and vegans substituted animal protein-dense products with a higher consumption of plant protein-dense products (e.g., soy-based products or legumes). Vegetarians had the most balanced diets in terms of macronutrients, but also had a better adherence to French dietary guidelines. Vegetarians exhibited a lower estimated prevalence of inadequacies for micronutrients such as antioxidant vitamins (e.g., for vitamin E, 28.9% for vegetarian women <55 years of age vs. 41.6% in meat-eaters) while vegans exhibited a higher estimated prevalence of inadequacies for some nutrients, in particular vitamin B12 (69.9% in men and 83.4% in women <55 years of age), compared to meat-eaters.
conclusionsOur study highlighted that, overall, self-reported vegetarians and vegans may meet nutritional recommendations.
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Registered trials
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.