Signs and symptoms of food hypersensitivities between vegetarian individuals vs. onívoros

Abstract

Objective: To compare clinical signs and symptoms related to feeding between omnivorous and vegetarian adults. Methods: The present work was developed based on a descriptive, quantitative and transversal research. The research population was composed of two groups: omnivores and vegetarians. The sample selection was intentional non-probabilistic, with a total of 100 individuals. The Metabolic Tracking Questionnaire (QRM), Bristol Scale and Constipation Questionnaire were used to compare and relate the type of diet with the signs and symptoms of food hypersensitivity. Results:  When comparing the QRM between the groups, it can be observed that the percentage of individuals considered healthy was 20.9% in the vegetarian group and 9.1% in the omnivorous group. In addition, 16.4% of vegetarians had low hypersensitivity, while no omnivorous individual fit this classification. Another positive result found in favor of vegetarianism was that 66.7% of omnivores showed moderate hypersensitivity and only 34% of vegetarians were classified as moderate. For all these comparisons, there was a significance of p = 0.003 between the groups. On the other hand, there was no significant difference between vegans and omnivores inherent to the Bristol Scale. Conclusion: Vegetarian patients, compared to omnivorous patients, showed more favorable clinical responses regarding signs and symptoms of food hypersensitivity. However, further scientific investigation of vegetarianism in the intestinal health scenario is interesting, whose new controlled clinical trials are important especially in the investigation of biomarkers to complement the findings.