The Relationship between Vegetarian Diet and Sports Performance: A Systematic Review
Identificadores
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12020/1030ISSN: 2072-6643
DOI: 10.3390/nu15214703
Autor/es
Hernández-Lougedo, Juan; Maté-Muñoz, Jose Luis; García-Fernández, Pablo; Úbeda-D'Ocasar, Edurne; Hervás-Pérez, Juan Pablo; [et al.]Fecha
2023-11-06Tipo de documento
articleÁrea/s de conocimiento
Ciencias BiomédicasMateria/s Unesco
3206 Ciencias de la NutriciónResumen
Introduction: In recent years, the vegetarian diet has increased in popularity among athletes.
The aim of this review is to ascertain the differences in variables related to performance, nutritional
intake, and health in athletes according to whether they are omnivores or vegetarians. Methodology:
A literature search was carried out in different databases: PubMed, Web of Science, Dialnet,
and Cochrane. The keywords used were “vegetarian diet”, “vegan diet”, “exercise”, “sport”, and
“performance”. After applying different inclusion criteria, six studies were included in the review.
Results: No significant differences were obtained in variables related to physical performance (adherence
exercise, Vo2Máx, muscle power, and sprint test) or health (body composition, psychological
well-being, and social relationships), but dietary intake was significantly higher in carbohydrates and
lower in proteins in vegetarian athletes (p < 0.05). Conclusions: It cannot be affirmed that vegetarian
subjects have a higher sports performance, for which more research should be carried out.