Vegetarian Diet Health Benefits

There are several different forms of vegetarianism. For example, a vegan eschews all meat products, including dairy and eggs while a lacto-vegetarian will include dairy products in their diets. Ovo-vegetarian include dairy and eggs in their diets. Finally, semi-vegetarians avoid red meat completely, but do include dairy and egg products as well as fish and chicken in their diets. A vegetarian diet has many health benefits. The deficiency found in a vegetarian diet can be easily supplemented with careful planning.

Many people wonder how healthy a vegetarian diet can be. Their diets are generally lower in cholesterol, saturated fat and total fat than their non-vegetarian counterparts.

Recent studies propose that vegetarians are in a lower risk group for coronary heart disease, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and even some forms of cancer.

As long as vegetarians are careful to include some nutrients that usually come from meat products in their diet, vegetarianism can be a healthy way to live. Specifically, vegetarian diets lack the protein generally found in meat products. It is possible to receive enough protein from plant products alone if the intake of calories provides enough energy and the protein sources are varied. Good sources of protein include legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds and even some vegetables. Soy protein, such as that found in tofu and soy milk is rich in protein and can completely substitute meat proteins. Because iron is generally received from meat products and eggs, many vegetarians suffer from an iron deficiency. This can be avoided if the vegetarian diet contains sufficient amounts of spinach, dried beans, brewers yeast and dried fruits. Many vegetarians suffer from a b-12 deficiency. Vegetarians may need to use supplements to replace B-12, but it is also found in some fortified products such as soy products, breakfast cereals, and brewers yeast. Vegans especially need to supplement their vitamin D intake. Finally, zinc, a mineral that aids in development and growth needs to be added to a vegetarian diet by incorporating nuts, grains and legumes.

Vegetarians should strive for a diet with enough calories and variety to satisfy themselves. Avoiding fatty foods and sweets is important as they are high calorie food with little nutritional value. Eating unrefined or whole products whenever it is feasible is important. Vary your fruit and vegetable intake to ensure a good supply of Vitamins A and C. For Lactovegetarians, choose dairy products that are low in fat or even fat free. Ovovegetarians should limit their use of eggs to avoid the risk of high cholesterol. Careful food choices can make a vegetarian diet healthy.

There are many benefits to the vegetarian lifestyle. Careful consideration of dietary needs and the use of supplements when needed can ensure a vegetarians health for years to come.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vegetariandiet.html