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Vegetarian diet… the key to a healthy lifestyle?

Posted November 8, 2007 at 12:00 PM by Denise Musumeci

Section: His Fitness, Cardio Training, His Health, Physical Health, Lifestyle Health, His Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Diets, Supplements, Vegetarian / Vegan

These days, more and more people are trying out vegetarian diets, but not necessarily because of animal rights. Currently, Coronary Heart Disease is the number one killer in the United States, caused mainly by fatty substances and plaque clogging up the arteries. Heart problems are a concern for everyone, not to mention other problems many Americans face, such as diabetes and obesity. One of the main factors with each of these problems is the consumption of cholesterol and saturated fat, both found in meat products in high amounts. Eliminating meat completely and maintaining a well-balanced vegetarian diet can greatly reduce the risk of all of these problems.

Although eliminating meat is essential to reducing the amount of saturated fat and cholesterol, eating a proper assortment is important in maintaining a healthy diet. Living off of nothing but pasta, potato chips, and snack food, while still avoiding meat, is still not good for the body. According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (AJCN), “Diets largely based on plant foods, such as well-balanced vegetarian diets, could best prevent nutrient deficiencies as well as diet-related chronic diseases.

However, restrictive or unbalanced vegetarian diets may lead to nutritional deficiencies, particularly in situations of high metabolic demand. If some vegetarian diets are healthier than diets largely based on animal products, this constitutes an important departure from previous views on dietary recommendations to prevent disease conditions.” In other words, choosing a diet made of a variety of plant foods will provide all the nutrients that animal products will provide, without the high amounts of animal fat and cholesterol that are risk factors for disease. However, an unbalanced vegetarian diet can lead to vitamin and nutrient deficiencies, which are just as detrimental to health as consuming too much meat.

What constitutes a well-balanced vegetarian diet and how does it benefit your health? Eating a wide assortment of green vegetables is a good start to a vegetarian diet. In addition, whole grains should be added to the diet, such as nuts, viscous fibers (such as those found in oats and barley), soy proteins, and plant sterols. According to the AJCN, each of these greatly reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease and also reduces serum lipids. Also, substituting soy or other vegetable proteins for animal protein may also decrease renal hyperfiltration, proteinuria, and renal acid load and reduces the risk of developing renal disease in type 2 diabetes.

Although a vegetarian diet is better for the body in the long run, there are a few concerns. It was once thought that a vegetarian diet has a detrimental to physical capacity and endurance, but studies find that a vegetarian diet is neither beneficial nor harmful. The protein intake of vegetarian athletes is a concern, but data indicate that all essential amino acids can be supplied by plant food sources alone as long as a variety of foods are consumed and the energy intake is adequate. If an athlete is not confident that their protein intake is adequate, he or she can take soy or whey protein supplements to make sure protein consumption is plentiful.

Another concern for athletes concerns only females. Vegetarian female athletes are at increased risk for oligoamenorrhea, which is a decrease in the amount of menstrual periods or having an extremely light flow. Even though vegetarian women are at an increased risk, menopause and low energy intake are a more major cause than diet. Even with these few drawbacks, a balanced vegetarian diet is the key to a healthy lifestyle.

Even though many Americans are becoming more health conscious, countless people have trouble letting go of meat. According to a study by the Cambridge University Press, the greatest barrier to adopting a vegetarian diet is the enjoyment that many have with eating meat and an unwillingness to give it up in all age groups and both sexes. The study also showed that the main benefits associated with vegetarian diets were health related, such as an increased fruit and vegetable intake, decreased saturated fat consumption, and weight control.

Animal welfare-related benefits and disease prevention were also important. As a result, the participants of the study were aware of the benefits of vegetarianism, but still enjoyed eating meat. Based on this, it is likely that the participants will incorporate more vegetables in their diet, but still consume some meat.

With the obsession Americans have with weight, it is likely that more people will include fruits and vegetables in their diets, but because most have an attachment to eating meat and enjoy it, it is unlikely that their diets will become strictly vegetarian. Regardless, eating some meat with a variety of vegetables is much healthier than eating solely meat with no vegetables. For those that still choose meat, limiting the amount of meat consumed on a daily basis, including more vegetable proteins, and exercising regularly will ensure a healthy diet and a decreased risk of diseases associated with animal fat.

Research sources and for more information: [NIH]; [AJCN]; [AJCN 2]; [AJCN 3]; [Cambridge Journals]; [picture]

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Tags: cholesterol, coronary heart disease, diet, fitness, health, healthy eating, meat, men, saturated fat, vegtarianism, vitamins, weight loss, well-balanced diet

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