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Completed

NCT Number: NCT03470584

Vegetarian Diet and Chronic Degenerative Diseases

To investigate the prospective association between a vegetarian diet and chronic degenerative diseases in two cohorts of Taiwanese Buddhists

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Key information

Conditions

Dementia Arthritis Behavior Behavioral Symptoms Biliary Tract Diseases Brain Diseases Calculi Cardiovascular Diseases Cataract Central Nervous System Diseases Cerebrovascular Disorders Cholecystolithiasis Cholelithiasis Congenital, Hereditary, and Neonatal Diseases and Abnormalities Crystal Arthropathies Depression Digestive System Diseases Eye Diseases Female Urogenital Diseases Female Urogenital Diseases and Pregnancy Complications Gallbladder Diseases Gallstone Gallstones Genetic Diseases, Inborn Gout Infections Joint Diseases Lens Diseases Male Urogenital Diseases Mental Disorders Metabolic Diseases Metabolism, Inborn Errors Musculoskeletal Diseases Nervous System Diseases Neurocognitive Disorders Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases Pathological Conditions, Anatomical Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Purine-Pyrimidine Metabolism, Inborn Errors Rheumatic Diseases Stroke Urinary Tract Infections Urogenital Diseases Urologic Diseases Vascular Diseases

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Observational

Primary location

Dalin Tzu Chi Hospital

Chiayi City, Taiwan

About this study

The Tzu Chi Vegetarian Study (TCVS) recruited 12062 community volunteers of the Buddhists Tzu Chi Foundation throughout Taiwan in the year 2005. All participants completed a self-administered questionnaire on basic information, medical history, lifestyle, and diet.

The Tzu Chi Health Study (TCHS) recruited 6002 participants who came to the Buddhist Tzu Chi Dalin General Hospital for health examination. All participants were interviewed on basic information, medical history, lifestyle, and diet. Biochemical and anthropometric data was collected through a health examination:

Biochemical variables: CBC, fasting glucose, lipid profile (TCH, LDL, HDL, TG), BUN, Cr, ALT, AST, and UA. In addition, homocysteine, serum vitamin B12, folate, and C-reactive protein (CRP) are available for 1500 subjects.

Blood: Extra blood samples have been obtained and stored for 3500 subjects and will be available for future investigation.

Anthropometric variables: body weight, height, waist circumference, % body fat (with BIA), blood pressure, pulse wave velocity, bone mineral density through DXA (at spine for female and hip for male), lung function test (spirometric), abdominal sonography, colonoscopy, esophageal-gastro-duodenal-scopy, chest X-ray, KUB.

Follow-up: Individual baseline data were linked to the National Health Insurance Database and the National Death Registry to ascertain disease outcomes at the Health and Welfare Data Science Center.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Participants who consent to be followed.

Exclusion criteria

  • Participants with inaccurate ID which make linkage to NHIRD impossible.
  • Participants already with study outcome (disease) prior to enrollment in the study.
  • Participants with missing covariates

Treatment and study plan

Diet Exposure

Other

Vegetarian diet vs nonvegetarian diet

Primary outcomes

  1. Gout

    Time frame: From enrollment to time of disease occurrence, death of any cause, or end of study period (December 31st 2014).

    Incidence of gout are ascertained by linking individual participants' baseline data to the the National Health Insurance Database. Cases of gout are identified using ICD-9 code: 274.

  2. Stroke

    Time frame: From enrollment to time of disease occurrence, death of any cause, or end of study period (December 31st 2014).

    Incidence of stroke are ascertained by linking individual participants' baseline data to the the National Health Insurance Database. Cases of stroke are identified using ICD-9 code: 430-438, where hemorrhagic stroke is defined by ICD9 430-432 and ischemic stroke is defined by ICD9 433-434.

  3. Cataract

    Time frame: From enrollment to time of disease occurrence, death of any cause, or end of study period (December 31st 2014).

    Incidence of cataract are ascertained by linking individual participants' baseline data to the the National Health Insurance Database. Cases of cataract are identified using ICD-9 code: 366.

  4. Gallstone disease

    Time frame: From enrollment to time of disease occurrence, death of any cause, or end of study period (December 31st 2014).

    Incidence of gallstone disease are ascertained by linking individual participants' baseline data to the the National Health Insurance Database. Cases of gallstone diseases are identified using ICD-9 code: 574.

  5. Dementia and mild cognitive impairment

    Time frame: From enrollment to time of disease occurrence, death of any cause, or end of study period (December 31st 2014).

    Incidence of dementia are ascertained by linking individual participants' baseline data to the the National Health Insurance Database. Cases of dementia and mild cognitive impairment are identified using ICD-9 code: 290.0, 290.1,290.4, 331.0, 331.1, 331.82, 331.83.

  6. Depression

    Time frame: From enrollment to time of disease occurrence, death of any cause, or end of study period (December 31st 2014).

    Incidence of depression are ascertained by linking individual participants' baseline data to the the National Health Insurance Database. Cases of depression and are identified using ICD-9 code: 296.2, 296.3, 300.4 and 311.

  7. Urinary tract infections (UTI)

    Time frame: From enrollment to time of disease occurrence, death of any cause, or end of study period (December 31st 2014).

    Incidence of UTI are ascertained by linking individual participants' baseline data to the the National Health Insurance Database. Cases of UTI are identified using ICD-9 code: 599.0, 595, 590.

  8. Medical expenditures

    Time frame: From enrollment to December 31st 2014.

    Actual medical expenditure associated with different dietary patterns are analyzed. Medical expenditures are obtained and computed from the National Health Insurance Database claim data for outpatient treatment, inpatient treatment, and dental treatment. This also includes costs associated with laboratory work and medication prescription.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Dalin Tzu Chi General Hospital

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Vegetarian Diet and Chronic Degenerative Diseases in the Tzu Chi Health Study (TCHS) and the Tzu Chi Vegetarian Study (TCVS)

Important dates

Study start
2005
Primary completion
2005
Study completion
2014
First posted
Mar 20, 2018
Registry last updated
Sep 12, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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