More Plants Less Problems

I’m not as tough as I used to be.  It has been almost a year and a half since I decided to become a vegetarian.  My dad said I had to be kidding, considering he is quite possible the most bbq eating/bird shooting/sports bar loving American you can get, and my siblings were less than supportive, but my mom helped me find recipes as I had know idea what I was doing.  All I knew was the mass producing meat industry grossed me out, and I didn’t want to eat animals anymore.

So what exactly has this done to my body?  Well, I can’t run.  That could be because I stopped going to the gym (possible confounding third variable?), or is it because my body simply has less muscle?  Everyone always asks if it has made me loose weight, but honestly I’m not sure.  I actually think I’ve gained weight, but again that could be because of the gym thing.  So the question I would like to explore today is how does my vegetarianism effect me?  And why did it take me this long to ask?

This article Vegetarianism: The Basic Facts from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics explained quite a few health benefits to being a vegetarian.  These included reduced risk of obesity, reduced risk of heart disease, and lower blood pressure.  It also explained the different reasons people become vegetarians, some simply for preference or ethical regions or religious EatVegetarianbeliefs, but I want to know more.  Could lifestyle choice or the reason one becomes a vegetarian have something to do with the health benefits?  Are there negative side effects?

So I looked up the bad stuff.  I found a Scientific Letter that explains vegetarianism can cause “dietary B12 vitamin deficiency” in humans.  It examines a study in United States where researchers concluded the following:

“The breast-fed infant of a vitamin B12-deficient mother is at risk for severe developmental abnormalities, growth failure, and anemia. Elevated methylmalonic acid and/or total homocysteine are sensitive indicators of vitamin B12-deficient diets and correlate with clinical abnormalities.”

It recommended vegetarian woman take a B12 vitamin supplement while pregnant.  Helpful……but I’m not pregnant, so what else can I find?

This research study compared urban to rural male subjects ages 18-30 in a region of Chad.  The study determined food consumption from a questionnaire and overall health status was assessed.  The research was pretty scientific and difficult to understand.  The results were this:

“The low dietary intake of protein and sulfur amino acids by a plant-eating population leads to subclinical protein malnutrition, explaining the origin of hyperhomocysteinemia and the increased vulnerability of these vegetarian subjects to cardiovascular diseases.”

The results also stated that this health status could be assumed for most African vegetarian populations, but the data is limited due to the small number of participants.

Again, this is interesting to know, but seeing that I am not pregnant or an African male I need to find another source.

Finally!  I found this article on the Brown University health page.  It says vegetarians are at lower risk for developing heart disease, diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and colorectal, ovarian, and breast cancers.  The article then discusses the health risks to vegetarianism as we “may be deficient in iron, vitamin B-12, vitamin D, calcium, zinc, and occasionally riboflavin.”  It continues to discuss ways in which vegetarians must actively go out of our way to consume protein, calcium, vitamin D, iron, and vitamin B-12 (hey, would ya look at that!).  The study also mentioned athletes and says “It can be difficult [for vegetarians] to eat a volume of food high enough to meet an athlete’s high caloric needs.”

What I can learn from this is that I am okay.  I can be a healthy vegetarian, but I must remember to actively consume the nutrients I need.

It makes sense why I struggle to run now because I am not eating a “volume of food high enough”, but this could still be a correlation.  I could have trouble running because I don’t go to the gym, or it could be some other third variable I have yet to consider.  This research reviewed report examines previous research that has been done on vegetarianism.  Here is what it says:

“The present article reviews the extant literature, exploring variants of and motivations for vegetarianism, differences in attitudes, values and worldviews between omnivores and vegetarians, as well as the pronounced gender differences in meat consumption and vegetarianism. Furthermore, the review highlights the extremely limited cultural scope of the present data, and calls for a broader investigation.”

So what is my final takeaway?  There needs to be more research done on the subject.  I can’t think of a way to do a double-blind experiment as it may not be ethical to tell someone who eats meat “okay you are a vegetarian now” and tell someone who doesn’t “okay eat this cheeseburger”.  It could be interesting to conduct an observational study with similar age/gender groups and observe how vegetarians health compares and contrasts to their carnivore counterparts.

3 thoughts on “More Plants Less Problems

  1. Dean Giammarco

    I enjoyed your post. I like the unique perspective based around something that actually concerns you. Many posts are based on random questions but the fact that it was something you were interested in and the questions you were asking were straight from you made this a good read. The studies you researched didn’t give you much but you stuck with it and I applaud that. Maybe it is difficult for you to run for not going to the gym but doesn’t seem likely. I would increase your nutrient intake and make sure to keep up with what the article says from Brown University. Give running a try, start slow then work your way into it. It will get easier as you train your body! Here is a cheesy article on how to become a better runner. I know it wasn’t your main point of the post but I gave this a shot and it worked for me so I am passing it on to you to try. http://breakingmuscle.com/running/the-single-secret-to-becoming-a-better-runner

  2. Tyler John Sokolich

    Personally, I viewed being a vegetarian as a bad idea for dietary purposes. If its against your beliefs or you’re grossed out by the food I can get that I just thought the whole vegetarian as a method of dieting sounded off. However, I can now definitely see in what ways it has its benefits. As long as you are supplementing well and getting the correct nutrients, it seems like it is effective in providing other health benefits as well. I actually just wrote a post about stress eating. A lot of the foods involved in the vegetarian diet have nutrients that are great for relieving stress.

    Here is the link to my post about healthy nutrients that relieve stress: http://sites.psu.edu/siowfa15/2015/10/02/the-good-way-to-stress-eat/

  3. Emanuel Gabriel Mitchell

    I’m curious as to what kind of vegetarian you are. I’m also a vegetarian myself, and find it offensive when people think I only eat salads or vegetables. So, here’s a link to describe the different types of vegetarians there are. I’m personally, a lacto-ovo vegetarian. There are vegetarian versions for every type of meat product, which makes being a vegetarian relatively easy for me. So, if anybody ever tries to convert to being a vegetarian I recommend you head to trader joes or your local super market and buy some “morningstar” products.

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