The Health Affects of Vegetarianism
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THE HEALTH AFFECTS OF VEGETARIANISM BY LUKAS FLANDERS Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat, seafood, and the flesh of any other animal, and sometimes the abstention from by-products of animal slaughter, such as offal and bone char. Common variants of vegetarianism include pescetarian; abstinence from all meats except seafood, and vegan; abstinence from all animal products, including eggs, dairy, and honey. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has stated that a properly planned vegetarian diet is “healthful, nutritionally adequate, and provides health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases”. A vegetarian diet offers lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol and animal protein, and higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folates, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians tend to have a lower body mass index, lower blood pressure, lower levels of cholesterol, and fewer incidences of diabetes and heart disease. All of these apparent health benefits have been mostly attributed to the abstinence from non-lean red meat. Emphasis on “non-lean”. This implies that muscle and body fat deposits are present on the meat, and have not been trimmed by the butcher. This is where all the lost saturated fat and cholesterol is hiding. There is a trade off, however. Unless extremely well planned and executed, a vegetarian diet is disturbingly low in protein and beneficial fats.
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The Health Effects of a Vegetarian Diet.
Transcript of The Health Affects of Vegetarianism
THE HEALTH AFFECTS OF VEGETARIANISM BY LUKAS FLANDERS
Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat, seafood, and the flesh of any other animal, and sometimes the abstention from by-products of animal slaughter, such as offal and bone char. Common variants of vegetarianism include pescetarian; abstinence from all meats except seafood, and vegan; abstinence from all animal products, including eggs, dairy, and honey.
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has stated that a properly planned vegetarian diet is “healthful, nutritionally adequate, and provides health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases”. A vegetarian diet offers lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol and animal protein, and higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folates, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians tend to have a lower body mass index, lower blood pressure, lower levels of cholesterol, and fewer incidences of diabetes and heart disease.
All of these apparent health benefits have been mostly attributed to the abstinence from non-lean red meat. Emphasis on “non-lean”. This implies that muscle and body fat deposits are present on the meat, and have not been trimmed by the butcher. This is where all the lost saturated fat and cholesterol is hiding. There is a trade off, however. Unless extremely well planned and executed, a vegetarian diet is disturbingly low in protein and beneficial fats.
