TV Show promotes Vegan Diets

A current Netflix series turned this medical study into a reality tv show:

Question What are the cardiometabolic effects of a healthy plant-based (vegan) vs a healthy omnivorous diet among identical twins during an 8-week intervention?

Findings In this randomized clinical trial of 22 healthy, adult, identical twin pairs, those consuming a healthy vegan diet showed significantly improved low-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentration, fasting insulin level, and weight loss compared with twins consuming a healthy omnivorous diet.

Meaning The findings from this trial suggest that a healthy plant-based diet offers a significant protective cardiometabolic advantage compared with a healthy omnivorous diet.

It says that the twins were chosen randomly, but the ones chosen for vegan diets had lower blood pressure, lower LDL cholesterol, and lower triglycerides. After the 8-week study, these measurements were lower still. The study brags that the vegan diets lowered these numbers. Okay, but why did they start with lower numbers?

The vegan diet also lowered HDL cholesterol, but higher HDL is considered good for the heart.

The test subjects were healthy, with figures in the normal ranges. There is reason to believe that someone with high LDL will be healthier if he lowers his LDL, but no so clear about someone with LDL in the normal range.

Plant-based diets have gained recent popularity not only for their lower environmental impact compared with an omnivorous dietary pattern but also for their health benefits.1,2 ...

Clinicians may consider recommending plant-based diets to reduce cardiometabolic risk factors, as well as aligning with environmental benefits.

So your clinician might be making a dietary recommendation based on speculative effects on climate change.