Veggies Veggies and more Veggies!
For as long as I remember, I’ve always been a vegetarian. Sure, I was not given an option when I was smaller, but I stuck to the choice made for me. I would never eat any form of meat. Not only because it probably won’t digest in my stomach, but also because there are far more benefits to being a vegetarian than a non-vegetarian! I will be going through the benefits in my blog today. However, this is to remind everyone reading that it is just fact-based article, not meant to change anyone’s or degrade anyone’s choice of food.
Here goes the list:
- Say bye bye to diseases: According to Joel Fuhrman, MD, author of Eat to Live: The Revolutionary Formula for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss, vegetarians have lower mortality rate for cardiovascular disease as compared to non-vegetarians. This is because, vegetarians eat lesser animal fat and cholesterol but more fiber and antioxidant-rich produce.
- Slim and trim: Between 1986 to 1992, a study done by Dean Ornish, MD, President and Director of the Preventive Medicine Research Institute in California discovered that overweight people following a low-fat, vegetarian diet lost around 24 lbs in the first year and was able to maintain that weight even 5 years later! CDC and National Center for Health Statistics announced that 64% of adults and 15% of children are overweight and are at risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes. VEGETERIAN DIET > NON-VEGETARIAN DIET
- 100 years old (maybe?): Michael F. Roizen, MD, author of The Real Age Diet: Make Yourself Younger with What You Eat, stated that by changing from the ‘standard American diet’ to a vegetarian diet, you can add about 13 years to your life! Who would not want an extra 13 years? Consuming saturated fat, or animal products will clog your arteries and slow down your immune system. A little fun fact to be noted: in Okinawa, Japan, residents have the longest life expectancy of any Japanese (who, by the way, have the longest life expectancy in the world) said they consume a low-calorie diet base on complex carbohydrates, fiber-rich fruits and vegetables, and soy.
- Lesser food borne illnesses: The US Food and Drug Administration or FDA said that foods rich in protein—meat, poultry, fish and seafood are generally involve in food-borne illness outbreaks. Avoid meat= Avoid food borne illness.
- $$ Saved: Meat is included in 10 percent of Americans’ food spendings. By substituting vegetables, grains and fruits in place of 200 pounds of beef, chicken and fish, you will be able to save an average of $4,000 a year! That is quiet an amount to save.
- Regularity is important: If going to the toilet is important for you and you want to be regular, then consume more veggies and less meat! Vegetables have more fiber that helps in pushing away waste from the body. Meat eaters tend to have more constipation than vegetarians because of the lack of fiber in their diet.
With all these benefits, it is kind of hard to resist being a vegetarian right!?
Try it out and go with the flow…
If you would like to find out more about the benefits of being a vegetarian- visit: http://www.vegetariantimes.com/article/why-go-veg-learn-about-becoming-a-vegetarian/
They have plenty of great articles to look at!