Whilst some people cannot imagine a day without meat, others insist that vegetarianism is the most optimal way to enjoy food and stay healthy. A vegetarian diet proffers a very wide range of health and medical benefits.
Research and case studies testify that vegetarians tend to suffer lesser from a host of illnesses and diseases associated with the typical Western diet, such as, morbid obesity, heart disorders, hypertension, elevated levels of cholesterol, type II diabetes, constipation, gall stones and cancer.
Health Benefits Of Eating Vegetarian Food
- Veggies are definitely easy to digest. When it comes to digestion, eating meat places a huge strain on the digestive system. Vegetables are digested as well as assimilated very fast compared to meat.
- Vegetarian diets are lower in total fat. Research proves that a lacto-ovo vegetarian consumes about 35% of energy as fat, as against meat eaters who consume more than 40% of energy as fat. What’s more, vegetarians eat proportionally more polyunsaturated fat to saturated fat compared to non-vegetarians. Animal products are a major source of saturated fat.
- Being a vegetarian, you can stave off the occurrence of heart diseases. A vegetarian diet helps keep cholesterol levels normal, prevents the buildup of plaque within the arteries and atherosclerosis, and prevents angina and heart attacks.
- A ‘rainbow’ vegetarian diet promises to keep cancer at bay. Veggies provide a multitude of antioxidants which battle free radical damage and ward off the onset of cancer, especially, colorectal cancer and lung cancer. Experts recommend incorporating colorful fruits and vegetables in the daily menu.
- Going vegetarian can help you lose pounds of superfluous fat effortlessly. Fruits and vegetables help get rid of built up fat deposits and also maintain an ideal body weight.
- You can detox with veggies. Loaded with anti-oxidants and phyto chemicals, a vegetarian diet helps to purge the bowels clean and eliminate accrued wastes and toxins. Adhering to a vegetarian diet, you can sluice the colon clean and reap extraordinary health benefits.
- Food borne illnesses, such as salmonellosis and toxoplasmosis are associated with meat. However, vegetarians will not contract these food borne illnesses.
Advantages Of Vegetarian Diet
- For many, it is by and large a case of being concerned for the species that are slaughtered. A vegan diet is a diet that is free of the guilt that affects those who eat meat.
- Given that vegetables are much cheaper than meat, eating a vegetarian diet is light on the pocket. In fact, statistics state that one can save as much as $ 4000 per year if one switches to vegetarianism.
- Diets loaded with plant foods are packed with anti-oxidants, minerals and vitamins that are vital for a healthy and radiant skin.
- A non-vegetarian diet is known to also proffer chemicals and by-products used on the animals during processing. This includes chemicals sprayed on the dead animal, additives, preservatives, and other ingredients used for packaging and distribution. If you switch to veggies you can do away with these toxins.
- Fruits and vegetables are never injected with growth hormones which have the potential to impair the human body; conversely, animal products are.
- Eating a vegetarian diet is one way to avoid bulking up. Being rich in fiber, it cleanses the digestive tract whilst keeping the arteries clean.
- Being vegetarian lengthens your life span. The body is free of lethal toxins and chemical buildup; thus vegetarians live longer than their fellow meat eaters.