On Being Vegetarian

Hi guys, welcome to my page! As you’ve probably read, I’m going to be talking about being vegetarian, why I’m vegetarian, and reasons it can be a great, healthy thing!

To start off, let’s define vegetarian. Here’s a graphic I put together with a little help from the internet:

I am currently a lacto-ovo-vegetarian, so I eat dairy and eggs, but no meat and no fish. I have been since October of 2015. I’ve recently been getting into learning about my food and nutrition and I’ve been reading The Truly Healthy Vegetarian Cookbook by Elizabeth Thompson. I’ve known that eating vegetarian tends to be cheaper, especially at restaurants when you order things without meat (salads, pasta, etc.), but I didn’t really think about what this means overall. Cost is just one reason some people go vegetarian. In The Truly Healthy Vegetarian Cookbook, Thompson outlines how much cheaper vegetable protein sources are by pound versus traditional meat.

I’m recently learning the health benefits of meat-free as well. According to livestrong.com,
“Vegetarians typically have a lower body mass index, lower LDL and total cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure and reduced rates of death from ischemic heart disease, according to an article published in “Nutrition in Clinical Practice” in December 2010. Vegetarians also tend to have decreased incidence of hypertension, stroke, Type-2 diabetes, and certain cancers, compared to non-vegetarians. Some possible explanations for the health benefits of vegetarian diets include a low intake of saturated fat and cholesterol and a high intake of dietary fiber. Additionally, vegetarian diets include many health-enhancing phytochemicals.” Now, that’s a lot of big words so I’m going to summarize it a little. Vegetarians, in general, have a lower BMI, meaning they are less likely to face complications from obesity. LDL is a type of bad cholesterol that blocks your arteries. Ischemic heart disease is the same as coronary heart disease, and is caused by narrowing of arteries and increasing chances of heart attacks and strokes. Hypertension is another fancy word for high blood pressure, and lastly, phytochemicals are called the cancer-fighters in your foods (according the the American Institute for Cancer Research)

To be clear here-this is a healthy vegetarian diet. “A diet of soda, cheese pizza, and candy, after all, is technically “vegetarian.” For health, it’s important to make sure that you eat a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains” (Harvard Medical School). If you want to be a vegetarian for the health benefits, you have to plan accordingly. Sure, you can have pizza and mac and cheese time to time, but eating as a healthy vegetarian is how you get these benefits. You really are what you eat; If you eat well, you’ll feel good. It’s that simple.

What do I need to be careful of? This is very important if you are considering going vegetarian, are vegetarian, or even a semi-vegetarian. Not done correctly, a vegetarian diet can lead to deficiencies in protein, iron, vitamin B12, zinc, and omega-3 fatty acids. “Research shows that lacto-ovo vegetarians generally get the recommended daily amount of protein, which is easily obtained from dairy products and eggs. (Women need about 0.4 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day)” (Harvard Medical School). Personally, my iron levels have been totally normal, and this is common between vegetarians and meat eaters. Vegans should be advised, as I tend to get my iron from eggs and they may need to eat specific things to aid iron consumption. Vitamin B12 is only found in animal products like eggs and dairy. I know there are supplements for B vitamins if this is not an option. Zinc is not a common deficiency, but can occur. Omega-3 fatty acids are typically found in eggs and fish (for these types of vegetarians). Again, there is a supplement to help this. The internet has many great resources for combating these possible deficiencies, I just felt the need to share risks as well as benefits in my article.

This got lengthy quickly, as I realized I actually have more to say than I originally thought. Stay up-to-date for more information I will likely be sharing, or utilize Google or my contact page for further questions!

Sources:

https://www.aicr.org/reduce-your-cancer-risk/diet/elements_phytochemicals.html

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/becoming-a-vegetarian