Benefits of Adopting a Vegetarian Diet (Essay Sample)

Benefits of a Vegetarian Diet
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Benefits of Adopting a Vegetarian Diet
A vegetarian diet can be defined as a meal made up of foods, which mainly come from plants including vegetables, whole grains, fruits, legumes, nuts, and seeds. In the past, people used to focus more on the risks and dangers of vegetarian diets rather than their benefits. However, in the contemporary world, nutritionists have shifted their attention to the benefits of vegetarian diets or even the benefits of vegetarian lifestyles. The reason for this dramatic shift is because of the increasing number of studies with sound data on the benefits one can reap from vegetarian foods. Benefits associated with vegetarian foods arise from the lower intake of animal protein and cholesterol, and the higher intake of complex dietary fiber, carbohydrates, folic acid, magnesium, and vitamin C and E (Blake, 2009). This paper intends to discuss the benefits people can get from a vegetarian diet.
To start with, studies have indicated that it is possible to ward off diseases by adopting a vegetarian diet. Vegetarian diets play a crucial role in preventing and treating diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, as well as minimizing the risk of diseases like cancer. Researchers have shown that vegetarian foods have the capability of stopping the progression of coronary-artery disease or even prevent it entirely. According to studies done by the World Health Organization (WHO), cardiovascular diseases are among the main causes of death across the globe. For instance, in 2012, approximately 17.5 million people die from cardiovascular diseases, representing almost 31% of the reported deaths globally. Out of these deaths, 7.4 million occurs as a result of coronary heart diseases. However, the mortality rate for coronary heart disease among vegetarians is lower than in non-vegetarians because vegetarians consume less cholesterol and animal fat, which cause blockages in the arteries leading to heart failure (WHO/Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), 2015).
Vegetarian diets also help people to keep weight down because they contain fewer calories compared to animal products. Eating lots of veggies, fruits, and whole grains makes an individual feel full on fewer calories than the recommended amount per day. The calorie deficit combined with little physical activity can help an individual to shed some pounds. Obesity has become a global problem, and it is causing at least 2.8 million deaths each year. Overweight people are also at a higher risk of obese related diseases such as stroke, heart disease, and diabetes (WHO.int, 2015). Consequently, it is advisable to adopt vegetarian diets in order to avoid such adverse consequences of obesity.
Another benefit of going vegetarian is that it will be possible to keep the environment safe and conducive for survival. Everyone needs clean water and a pollution free environment. However, human activities such as livestock keeping highly contribute to serious environmental problems including water and air pollution. Livestock keeping consumes high amounts of energy; water; land, and it produces greenhouse gasses, which are detrimental to the environment. The good news is that it is possible to solve part of environmental problems by adopting vegetarian diets. Plants purify the air by consuming carbon dioxide and producing oxygen which is needed by other living things for survival. They also make and preserve soil (Pence, 2001).
In addition, vegetarian diets contain fewer amounts of chemical substances such as pesticides, compared to animal products. Research indicates that the pesticide content in meat is 14 times more than in plant foods. This is because pesticides are easily stored in fatty tissues. Studies have also shown that the percentage of pesticide chemicals increases up the food chain. In 1974, the U.S. Food and Drug Agency found out that all dairy products contained approximately 85% of dieldrin, a poisonous chemical substance used to kill insects, which is among the most potent of all cancer-causing agents discussed in the modern science. Furthermore, one of the EPA’s studies showed that breast milk from vegetarian women had lower levels of pesticides compared to the average Americans. The study also showed that the average American breast-fed infant ingest 9 times the permissible amount of dieldrin. To avoid such high intake of pesticides and other related chemicals, nutritionists recommend that people should eat more vegetarian foods and consume less animal products (Robbins, 1998).
Over the last few decades, vegetarian diets have been associated with a longer life expectancy. In one of the studies published in JAMA Internal Medicine, which is a Journal of the American Medical Association, people who adopted vegetarian foods lived longer than those who had animal products in their diets. The participants of the study were 73,308 members of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, which is known for supporting vegetarian foods, although some of its members do not follow that teaching. The participants were monitored for a period of 6 years. Researchers recorded the types of foods each participant ate, and number of the participants who died as well as what caused their deaths. The results of the study indicated that participants who adopted vegetarian foods had 12% fewer deaths, and were 19 percent less-likely to die from heart disease than those who consumed animal products (Johnson, 2013). In addition, residents of Okinawa in Japan are said to have the longest life expectancy than any other Japanese and even across the globe because of consuming low-calorie diet containing fruits, vegetables, soy, and unrefined complex carbohydrates (Singhal, 2015).
Vegetarians foods such as soybeans and soynuts; calcium set tofu, Chinese cabbage, mustard greens, kale, broccoli, collards, and okra, are among the known sources of well-absorbed calcium. Calcium is crucial mineral needed in the body and it is used mainly in building and strengthening bones. Although health specialists recommend dairy products because of their high calcium content, people who fear the adverse effects of dairy products such as artery blockage, can get this essential mineral from the above stated vegetarian foods (Blake, 2009). Moreover, going vegetarian can help one reduce the chances of contracting food-borne diseases. As per the studies done by the U.S. Center of Disease Control, diseases associated with food products cause almost 76 million diseases and approximately 5,000 deaths in the United States annually. Some of the causes of the food-borne diseases illnesses include bacteria, parasites, metals, toxins, and prions, most of which are contained in animal products (Food-Related Illness and Death in the United States, 2015).
Fibre which is a key component of vegetarian foods is needed in the body to keep the digestive system healthy as well as prevent digestions complications such as constipation. Consuming adequate amounts of foods containing fiber assists in normalizing bowel movements, reducing the risks of inflammatory bowel diseases, and helps in maintaining a healthy colon/digestive tract. Dietary fiber softens stool and increases its weight enabling it to pass through the intestinal tract, and as a result it minimizes strained bowel movements. Fiber also plays a key role in weight management and maintaining the recommended blood cholesterol levels. Foods with high amounts of fibre take a longer time to chew, making a person feel fuller quickly. The high content of fibre in food also keeps people feeling full for a long time, and this means by the end of the day, the amount of calories consumed will reduce (Singhal, 2015).
Vegetarian diets help women to ease the symptoms associated with menopause. Menopause is usually associated with symptoms such as hot flushes, insomnia, sweating, impairment of memory, anxiety, and fatigue. In the long term some women may experience a decline in libido, heart disease, osteoporosis, and even dementia because of reduction in the estrogen levels. However, the good news is that such health conditions can be controlled by adopting vegetarian diets. Some vegetarian foods such as apples, cherries, beets, garlic, dates, plumes, olives, squash, raspberries, and yams, contain high amounts of phytoestrogens, a plant-based chemical that assists in controlling the levels of estrogen and progesterone in the body. Consequently, women who adopt such foods have a comfortable passage through menopause (BBC Good Food, 2015).
Since plant products are relatively cheap compared to animal products, going vegetarian can help a person to boost his/her savings. Spending on vegetables, fruits, and grains instead of buying 200 pounds of fish, beef, or chicken, can help one save a substantial amount of money. This is because plant foods are usually sold in bulk and they do not fetch high prices in most markets. Moreover, vegetarian foods enable the body to have more energy, without gaining too much weight. Balanced vegetarian diets usually generate more usable energy for the body without causing adverse side effects s...