On Mon, 22 May 2000, Wally Day wrote:

> I know that the Adventists are encouraged to eat very
> little meat or fish.

You're half right.  SDAs are encouraged to eat no meat at all,
*except* fish, which is not restricted.  Reason: Jesus ate fish
(and served it), so it must be okay.

> Does that mean that nuts are a
> primary protein source for them? Or do they try to get
> most of their protein from grain sources?

Many of them eat a lot of soy-based pseudo-meats and things of
that nature.  The Loma Linda corporation, which makes many such
products, is owned or controlled by the SDAs, I believe.

> If nuts are
> used as the primary protein source, it would be
> interesting to know what the protein/fat/carb ratio is
> for a "strict" Adventist.

I think nuts are not generally the primary protein source.  Eggs,
fish, dairy, and soy probably are.  They are not required to be
vegans.  They don't eat shellfish and crustacea, for the same
reason that Jews are not supposed to.

> Are any of these studies
> published online?

Here's one abstract:

Am J Clin Nutr 1999 Sep;70(3 Suppl):532S-538S

Associations between diet and cancer, ischemic heart disease, and
all-cause mortality in non-Hispanic white California Seventh-day
Adventists.

Fraser GE

Center for Health Research and the Department of Epidemiology and
Biostatistics, Loma Linda University, CA 92350, USA.
[log in to unmask]

Results associating diet with chronic disease in a cohort of
34192 California Seventh-day Adventists are summarized. Most
Seventh-day Adventists do not smoke cigarettes or drink alcohol,
and there is a wide range of dietary exposures within the
population. About 50% of those studied ate meat products <1
time/wk or not at all, and vegetarians consumed more tomatoes,
legumes, nuts, and fruit, but less coffee, doughnuts, and eggs
than did nonvegetarians.  Multivariate analyses showed
significant associations between beef consumption and fatal
ischemic heart disease (IHD) in men [relative risk (RR) = 2.31
for subjects who ate beef > or =3 times/wk compared with
vegetarians], significant protective associations between nut
consumption and fatal and nonfatal IHD in both sexes (RR
approximately 0.5 for subjects who ate nuts > or =5 times/wk
compared with those who ate nuts <1 time/wk), and reduced risk of
IHD in subjects preferring whole-grain to white bread. The
lifetime risk of IHD was reduced by approximately 31% in those
who consumed nuts frequently and by 37% in male vegetarians
compared with nonvegetarians. Cancers of the colon and prostate
were significantly more likely in nonvegetarians (RR of 1.88 and
1.54, respectively), and frequent beef consumers also had higher
risk of bladder cancer. Intake of legumes was negatively
associated with risk of colon cancer in nonvegetarians and risk
of pancreatic cancer. Higher consumption of all fruit or dried
fruit was associated with lower risks of lung, prostate, and
pancreatic cancers. Cross-sectional data suggest vegetarian
Seventh-day Adventists have lower risks of diabetes mellitus,
hypertension, and arthritis than nonvegetarians. Thus, among
Seventh-day Adventists, vegetarians are healthier than
nonvegetarians but this cannot be ascribed only to the absence of
meat.

UI: 99408692