Comparison of Renal Function and Other Health Outcomes in Vegetarians Versus Omnivores in Taiwan (Report‪)‬

INTRODUCTION In the last few years, renal disease has become one of the 10 leading causes of death in Taiwan. Results of an analysis of the United States Renal Data System (USRDS) showed that the incidence rates of reported end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in 2007 were the highest in Taiwan, at 415 per million population, followed by Mexico, the United States, Japan, and Turkey, at 372, 361, 285, and 229 per million population respectively (1). In 2009, the Department of Health, Taiwan, reported that mortality due to nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and other kidney diseases was the 10th leading cause of death in Taiwan (2).