With all the steroid and antibiotic inside meat becoming a vegetarian sounds pretty doable People are turning to alternative ways to become healthy. A common choice is to cut meat out of their diets, and become a vegetarian. Cutting meat seems crazy to some and the healthiest option for others, but is being a vegetarian as healthy as it seems. Can humans cut meat out of their diets and be just as healthy.
There are many reasons why people become vegetarians, but is it really as healthy as it seems. Can simply eating veggies supply you with all the vitamins and proteins your body needs to survive. An estimated 6-8 million people do not eat meat, poultry, or fish. Harris Interactive poll commissioned by the Vegetarian Resource Group (Journal of the American Dietetic Association, July 2009).Having your diet mainly consist of fruits and vegetables allows you to consume less saturated fats and cholesterol. Also since you be consuming more plants you will be taking in mote vitamins like vitamins C and E, More fiber, potassium and magnesium. Resulting in a stronger immune system, as well as, lower cholesterol and blood pressure. “Traditionally, vegetarianism focused mainly on potential nutritional deficiencies, but in recent years, the pendulum has swung the other way, and studies are confirming the health benefits of meat-free eating. Nowadays, plant-based eating is recognized as not only nutritionally sufficient but also as a way to reduce the risk for many chronic illnesses”.
Meals with more fruits and vegetables can reduce the risk of several different cancers among many other diseases. Vegetarians generally have lower body weight than those who eat a significant amount of meat.
Research shows that in countries where people eat a pound or more of fruit and vegetables a day , the rate of cancer is half what it is in the United States. Pollan argues that vegetarians are less susceptible to most of the western diseases, and as a consequence live longer than the rest of us(164). Apparently, we can’t live without plants, but we don’t need to eat meat in order to obtain the nutrients we need for growth because they can be found elsewhere (Pollan 165). Since plants are less energy dense than other foods, by eating a plant-based diet one will likely consume fewer calories which is itself protective against many chronic disease (Pollan 165).I agree with Pollan that a plant-based diet can help reduce the risk of obesity, Diabetes, and Heart Disease.
Vegetarianism is more efficient from production to consumption because there is less waste and the ratio of energy intake compared to gross production is much greater for plants than animals. Meat prices more drastically compared to those of fruits and veggies. You can grow your own fruits and veggies in your backyard with relatively little space and resources compared to trying to raise your own livestock. Vegetarianism may lead to a deficinacy of vitamins and minerals including iron, B-12, and protein. You can also be lacking in calories in general and may be more tired because many vegetarian foods are not as calorie dense. Eating vegetarian can also be difficult depending on where you live.
Besides the food borne illnesses that you put yourself at risk when eating meat, you are also at a higher risk for heart disease, strokes, and cancer. As discussed above in the vegetarian versus meat-eater study, a meat eating diet will raise your cholesterol levels. This can cause plaque buildup in your arteries. This buildup can restrict blood flow to your heart and/or brain which can cause a heart attack and/or stroke.
The few things that vegetarians are able to eat are vegetables, fruits, and some other things such as carbohydrates. They try to avoid any meat, poultry, fish, eggs or dairy products, unless they are lacto-vegetarians which in that case they can eat dairy products like milk, cheese, and yogurt. When you contrast a meat-eater and a vegetarian you will notice how they differentiate in ways, for instance their life-span. Unlike meat-eaters, vegetarians are known to have a longer life-span. Being a vegetarian provides many benefits for the health of a person. One of them include improving and boosting up their mood. A lot of people may ask, why go vegetarian? Well, being one is great for you. You’ll keep your weight down, build strong bones, and you’ll have more energy. As well as all these advantages, there are many bad effects of being a vegetarian. One of them is a high risk of colorectal cancer, which is a cancer that starts in the colon.
The quote “A man can live and be healthy without killing animals for food; therefore, if he eats meat, he participates in taking animal life merely for the sake of his appetite. And to act so is immoral” from Russian writer, Leo Tolstoy, encompasses what vegetarianism is about. Veganism and vegetarianism is generally associated with leafy green salads but there is a long list of health benefits attached to that way of eating and a reduction in livestock farming benefits our environment. Diving into the benefits of becoming a vegetarian or vegan, there has been extensive research done on how a teak in diet can reduce risk of cancer, diabetes and heart disease. Plant-based dieting is a lifestyle that is beneficial for health, moral and environmental reasons.
Some people say that we should adapt a vegetarian diet to save animals in or so that we could protect them from having a harsh life but no one talks of how vegetarian diets can affect your health. Meat is one of the worse sources for us to get our nutrients from because the fat that meat contains is the unhealthiest one while the fats that come from plants or nuts is one of the healthiest. When you have a vegetarian diet you have less chances to get a cardiovascular disease, your chances of having cancer lowers. Vegetarian diets are actually its more tasteful than other diets that doctors give you to recover faster, you recover at the same time, and also it’s cheaper. Usually people that follow a vegetarian and because they are challenging people tend to develop a stronger mind and it usually transfers to other things in life like getting an education and leading to have a good future with a higher standard of living. Vegetarian diets are actually way better than eating like a regular person and also is better than the other regular diets where you eat meat.
Since the time of caveman to the modern day society, humans have always eaten meat as a part of daily life, “As far back as it can be traced…Our ancestry is among the hunter/gatherers from the beginning. Once domestication of food sources began, it included both animals and plants” (McArdle). Although these modern times that we live in have created new substances and ways to replace the natural way to eat meat, people will always have reason to go back to the original way to get the basic nutrition of meat. Human beings should support the basic idea that eating meat is ethical because human bodies were created to be omnivore, people have evolved to manipulate animals in an intelligent manner, and there are several alternative and ethical ways of eating meat.
According to a recent poll 6 to 8 million American’s do not eat meat, fish, or poultry. From these studies, they have been researching about the effects of a vegetarian diet on the body. Compared to most meat based diets, vegetarians consume less saturated fat and cholesterol from not eating meat. Choosing this route will have a person what would be considered a better quality of life and overall good health. Research so far has shown that a vegetarian diet reduces the risk of heart disease. In recent years a study was done using different participants and the results showed that vegetarians were 25% less likely to die from heart related problem. “This is because vegetarians tend to consume more high-fiber, whole grains, and legumes which have a low glycemic index and the body digests slowly. This keeps blood sugar levels steady. Another food item that helps reduce the risk of heart disease is walnuts” (Sixwise). This is because the omega-3s in walnuts help reduce total cholesterol. There is some controversy over this specific topic, thus, are they really that healthy? What does it mean to be a vegetarian, and what do professionals have to say about being a vegetarian?
A few “drawbacks” to vegetarianism are a lack of protein, iron, and vitamin B12. Despite popular belief, these can all be found in plant-based foods. There are amino acids in various greens, nuts, and fruits: sprouts, broccoli, almonds, pecans, bananas, dates, etc. (Freedman). Not to mention, protein from animals can actually cause health issues for humans such as, osteoporosis and diabetes and cancer (Freedman). Beans and legumes, an assortment of fresh and dried fruit, almonds, peas, spinach, etc. all have iron (Getting). Then, vitamin B12 can be found in foods like,
I spent sometime mulling over the idea of giving up my some of my favorite foods, what it would be like to never again taste a warm, tender juicy steak, or bite down it to a succulent buffalo burger. I decided that if I was going to change my life in such a drastic way I had to be sure that the benefits were all that people worked them up to be. Did I give up meat then and join the ranks of the vegetarian? While researching the topic I found that although meat does have many negative effects these effects come from over eating and gorging ourselves on meat. If meat is eaten in moderation it actually has positive effects on the body. The nutriance found in meat is vital to help the body function properly, maintain brain tissue and make our minds sharper and more alert. Meat is an essential part of our diets and should be eaten (in moderation) by every one who wants to live the healthiest life
While copious amounts of vegans live full lives without eating any substance derived from animals, the human easily digests and absorbs meat, therefore their health may improve if they eat meat. The physical and social evolution of the human species shows a need for meat in the diet as the overall intelligence of the species has increased as a whole. There is a plethora positive effect of eating meat that masses of vegans ignore, to their eventual downfall. The amount of negative effects of avoiding meat is higher in number, including deficiencies and disorders. The human digestive system is built to be able to ingest meat and vegetables. There is an abundant amount of arguments proving that the human body is built to digest meat, the physical evolution is major.
(Kleiner, 2000; Cox, 2001). Significant research indicates that a vegetarian diet can result in lower body mass index, serum total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, reduced rates of death from ischemic heart disease, and decreased incidence of hypertension, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers. (Craig, 2010; Hart, 2009)
Another argument about the vegetarian diet is, more or less, “Prehistoric man hunted animals to survive, so we must continue to eat meat because they did it.” However, hunting was more than just their source of food. They used every part of the animal they hunted for survival. However, now we have all kinds of clothing, housing, and are not constantly being hunted by other animals, so eating their meat is simply a luxury. Before man figured out how to hunt larger animals, plants and grains were consumed. This was not a drawback and man lived on. Moving back to this lifestyle would transform the world into a cleaner place, and could help the world eventually obtain an organic lifestyle, which
Previously I stated that being a vegetarian is not necessarily healthier. For those of you who do not know what a vegetarian is, it is someone who does not eat meat, fish, and some of the time no animal products. Completely cutting out meat will lower your protein and can lower your iron. There are vitamins you can take to get those needed ingredients in your