Vegetarian Center

What are the benefits of being a vegetarian?

2012-08-18T22:05:00.004-07:00

When nutritionally balanced, a vegetarian diet has many beneficial effects on one’s body, especially on the cardiovascular system, cholesterol levels, energy levels, and also helps in the "prevention and treatment of chronic diseases."

As a way for lowering the risk for cancer, the World Cancer Research Fund suggests a diet consisting primarily of a "variety of vegetables and fruits, legumes...and to limit the intake of grilled, cured and smoked meats and fish."

According to studies, vegetarians have better health than people that eat meat. They have lower rates of coronary artery disease, gallstones, cancer (particularly lung and
colon cancer), kidney stones, colon disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. It has been shown that sometimes a vegetarian diet can help cure these diseases. A vegetarian is also less likely to be overweight than a non-vegetarian.

The American Heart Association report states, "In well-documented population studies using standard methods of diet and coronary disease assessment…evidence suggests
that a high-saturated-fat diet is an essential factor for a high incidence of coronary heart disease."

The National Academy of Science reported that "people may be able to prevent many common cancers by eating less fatty meats and more vegetables and grain."

The USDA recommends that people reduce saturated fat and cholesterol, which are in high amounts in animal products, and low in vegetarian diets.

In his Notes on the Causation of Cancer, Rollo Russell writes, "I have found of twenty-five nations eating flesh largely, nineteen had a high cancer rate and only one had a low rate, and that of thirty-five nations eating little or no flesh, none had a high rate."

Various studies have also shown that vegetarians have lower blood pressure than non-vegetarians. They also have much lower cholesterol levels too. Heart disease is found much less in vegetarians. Studies have also shown that vegetarians have up to half the cancer rate than those of non-vegetarians. Cases of breast cancer are much lower in countries that have low meat diets.

Vegetarians eat more antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotenes and phytochemicals. Phyotochemicals are components in plants that help to prevent disease. Antioxidants decrease the chance of getting heart disease, cancer and other diseases.

Eating red meat increases the chance of dying from cancer of the breast and colon, heart disease and strokes. Meat eaters have much higher rates of cancer than vegetarians. Cancer and cardiovascular diseases are linked to diets with a high amount of saturated fat (meat) and with a low amount of fiber (meat).

Animal products are high in sodium, which causes the blood to retain water and also causes plaque to build up in the arteries, lowering the flow of blood, which are major causes of high blood pressure.

According to a study done in England for 12 years of 5,015 meat eaters and 6,115 vegetarians, it was found that vegetarians had 40% less chance of getting cancer.

Grains and plant foods contain fiber, while animal products contain almost none. Because fiber is necessary for proper stool production, lack of proper fiber accounts for societies with meat-based diets to have higher cases of colon cancer. The main reasons why people need to take laxatives is because of lack of fiber in their diet and not drinking enough water.

Many components - including numerous vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants - found in fruits and vegetables are believed to aid in the protection against heart disease: "folic acid, dietary fiber, potassium, magnesium, carotenoids, phytosterols, flavonoids, and other polyphenolic antioxidants."

While legumes, other beans, and nuts provide the necessary protein in a healthy diet, "cruciferous and green leafy vegetables and citrus fruits were the most protective."

There can be health benefits to being a vegetarian especially if you eat plenty of fruit and vegetables, wholegrains and eat seeds, pulses or nuts daily. All of these foods are rich in phytonutrients (antioxidants) as well as fibre which all help to protect the body from illness. If you aren't vegetarian then you will also benefit from making these foods part of your usual balanced diet.

Alternatives To Meat

If you are thinking about becoming a vegetarian, then, It is important to know how to get your protein, iron and zinc from sources other than meat. Choose from the foods listed below:

Soya based foods including tofu
Beans, lentils and chick peas
Seeds, nuts and nut butters (like peanut butter)

If you eat these foods as well as cereal foods (such as wholemeal bread, rice, pasta) together this will give you a good mix of proteins - equivalent to those found in meat.

Because modern people eat good amounts of meat, in some countries, people even eat five times as much protein as is recommended. An excess of protein can leach calcium from the bones, which is a major cause of bone disorder.

It is important to get enough leafy vegetables that are high in antioxidants, which are good for overall health.

Some Important Guidelines are as follow

(1) Eat a variety of foods.
(2) Mainly eat foods from plant sources.
(3) Don't eat too much salt or sugar.
(4) Eat at least six servings of grains, breads and pastas.
(5) Eat at least five servings of vegetables and fruits.
(6) Avoid foods high in fat, especially those coming from animal sources.

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Composition Of A Good Nutrient Rich Diet

2012-08-18T21:53:00.000-07:00

For the human body to function well, it should be fed a good balance of vitamins and nutrients. There are three primary macronutrients which we consume namely protein, fat, and carbohydrates. Without these, our body won't be able to function properly. Since we cannot synthesize vitamins in sufficient quantities, they must be obtained from dietary sources. We also need several minerals for our body to function smoothly. Calcium and phosphorous, for example, aside from being important in the strengthening and lengthening of your bones are needed by your heart to pump efficiently. Salt, aside from adding flavor to your dishes, contain sodium and chlorine which help in maintaining fluid balance and producing digestive juices, respectively.

Mineral salts are ionic in nature, they help regulate pH levels in our blood and body. Maintenance of proper pH levels is crucial for the proper functioning of the body, a balanced supply of necessary mineral nutrients ensures that natural pH balance is maintained. There are also minerals which you require in lesser amounts of such as iron, iodine and zinc. While only minute levels are required, several ailments will emanate from not being able to meet the recommended dietary allowance overtime. You can get both macrominerals and trace elements from dietary sources. If your diet is deficient is essential nutrients, taking dietary supplements on a regular basis is recommended.

Beside mineral nutrients, the body needs water, you need to keep your body hydrated. 6 to 8 glasses of water a day is more than sufficient for the average person, if you have an active lifestyle, your requirement will be higher. Taking the adequate amounts of fluids is essential for the growth and maintenance of your body. It is also important in the elimination of unneeded and harmful substances from your system. Alkaline water, called so because of its slightly alkaline pH, is believed to benefit the body by reducing blood acidity.

This trend is brought about by the heightened awareness of the public to alkaline water benefits. The manufacturers of alkaline water additives claim that the regular consumption of alkaline water protects against cancer and may even slow down aging. Also called ionized water, this water preparation is mineral-rich and consequently keeps the blood pH at a neutral state. It is believed that certain food items, most notably carbonated drinks and junk foods, can make the blood acidic. When not neutralized, blood that is too acidic can have deleterious effects, like lethargy and abnormal heart rhythms.

Still there are those who do not believe in these alkaline water benefits saying further that these are overstated. The argument between believers and non-believers essentially fuels interest for the product. Ultimately, the users are the only people who can testify whether or not alkaline water works, and the present consensus is that it works.

The Original IonPod Portable Alkalizing Water Bottle

New Apple Ingredient Discovery Keeps Muscles Strong

2012-08-18T21:34:00.001-07:00

In search of an effective method to prevent muscle wasting that comes with illness and aging, researchers have located a natural compound that is very promising.
The findings reported in the June issue of Cell Metabolism (a Cell Press publication), identify a natural component of apple peels known as Ursolic Acid as a promising newnutritional therapy for the widespread and debilitating condition that affects nearly everyone at one time or another.

"Muscle wasting is a frequent companion of illness and aging," explained researchers from The University of Iowa, Iowa City. "It prolongs hospitalization, delays recoveries and in some cases prevents people going back home. It isn't well understood and there is no medicine for it."

The research team first looked at what happens to gene activity in muscles under conditions that promote weakening. Those studies turned up 63 genes that change in response to fasting in both people and mice and another 29 that shift their expression in the muscles of both people who are fasting and those with spinal cord injury. Comparison of those gene expression signatures to the signatures of cells treated with more than 1300 bio-active small molecules led them to ursolic acid as a compound with effects that might counteract those of atrophy.

"Ursolic Acid is an interesting natural compound," they said. "It's part of a normal diet as a component of apple peels. They always say that an apple a day keeps the doctor away..."

The researchers next gave Ursolic Acid to fasted laboratory subjects. Those experiments showed that ursolic acid could protect against muscle weakening as predicted. When ursolic acid was added to the food of normal subjects for a period of weeks, their muscles grew. Those effects were traced back to enhanced insulin signaling in muscle and to corrections in the gene signatures linked to atrophy.

The subjects given ursolic acid also became leaner and had lower blood levels of glucose, cholesterol and triglycerides. The findings therefore suggest that ursolic acid may be responsible for some of the overall benefits of healthy eating.

"We know if you eat a balanced diet like mom told us to eat you get this material," the researchers explained "People who eat junk food don't get this."

It is not yet clear whether the findings will translate to human patients, but the goal now is to "figure out if this can help people." If so, they don't yet know whether Ursolic Acid at levels that might be consumed as part of a normal diet might or might not be enough.

Journal Reference:

mRNA Expression Signatures of Human Skeletal Muscle Atrophy Identify a Natural Compound that Increases Muscle Mass. Cell Metabolism.

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