Vegetarians

To many going vegetarian is a very daunting task that they think is too hard to do. Adopting a meatless diet is a major change of pace for many people around the world, especially Americans. This being said, the benefits of going vegetarian are plentiful and can, if followed correctly, provide much better nutrition levels and boost overall bodily health with very little drawbacks outside of desire to eat meat.

Vegetarians follow a diet that lacks meat, Not to be confused with vegans, vegetarians do eat dairy, eggs, and other animal products. This means that vegetarians still have a varied diet and is not too harsh of a transition to make for those who previously ate meat as opposed to going vegan. A vegetarian diet has been shown to be incredibly healthy for the heart, with vegetarians being one third as likely to be hospitalized for heart disease. The healthy fats that vegetarians consume through foods such as nuts and avocados is significantly better for the heart than the fats present in steak for example. Adopting this diet has been shown to decrease the risk of cancer as well. A study found that a vegetarian diet lowered the risk of cancer, specifically ovarian and breast cancer. This link is likely due to the fact that vegetarians meet their recommended servings of vegetables more often than meat eaters do, which lowers the chance of cancer as the risk of cell abnormalities is lower. In addition to cancer and heart disease, this lifestyle has also shown a link to lowering blood pressure, decreasing the symptoms of respiratory illnesses such as asthma, and promoting bone health due to increased levels of calcium in the body. Despite these many benefits, detractors of the diet argue that vegetarians and a meatless diet lack the protein necessary to lead a healthy lifestyle. This claim however is not true. Plant based protein is very plentiful with nuts, beans, legumes, milk, and eggs all providing large quantities of protein in reasonable servings. With the increased number of products in the meatless meat industry with companies like Beyond and Impossible, and the plant based protein powder and bar options as well, there is truly no reason that a well informed eater cannot thrive in a vegetarian lifestyle.