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Healthy Diet Plans >>  Vegetarianism >>  Vegetarian foods

Vegetarian Foods


There are many people, living all across the world, that have either turned to or are gradually turning to vegetarianism. This means that they exclude all forms of meat from their diet and only eat vegetarian foods. One of the major contributors to this switch is the health benefits usually associated with vegetarian diets. Researches have indicated that almost 70% of the people living in the United States suffer from diseases that are directly related to their unhealthy eating habits. Studies also confirm that living exclusively on vegetarian foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and whole grain products in the right amounts can provide a person with all the required nutrients.
Apart from the health benefits, there are other advantages to vegetarianism, like preserving the environment and protecting animal rights. It is also important to make sure that you include a certain amount of high protein diet in your daily meals as people who follow a vegetarian diet often have a lower protein intake.

Benefits Of Vegan Foods In Diet


There are numerous reasons to switch over completely to vegetarian foods:
  • Some studies show that vegetarians live about seven years longer than meat-eaters and people who follow a vegan diet live about 15 years longer. People who consume the least amounts of animal products and fats have the lowest threat from diseases like cancer, blood pressure, heart diseases or other degenerative disease.
  • Meats or other animal products are much higher in calories, fat and cholesterol. High consumption of meat can lead to health complications, as it contains saturated fats. Plants on the other hand do not contain cholesterol and are good for people who are prone to heart problems.
  • Most meats are deficient in carbs and vitamins (except B vitamins). Starches, are essential for the proper functioning of the human body, are absent in most meats.
  • Plant-based foods have a higher shelf life than animal-based foods. Fresh meat products spoil much faster than fresh fruits and vegetables. Meats that contain preservatives are highly processed and should be avoided in any case.
  • Fiber is known to absorb the excess and unwanted fat in a body. It also helps in cleaning the intestines. Another advantage of fiber is that it adds bulk to the food, giving a person the feeling of being full for longer, thereby helping in weight loss. While most vegetarian foods are high in fiber, foods like poultry, meat and dairy products don’t have any fiber.
  • It has been proved that animal products contain much higher concentrations of agricultural chemicals, which include pesticides and herbicides, as compared to vegetarian foods. Moreover, foods derived from animals usually contain their wastes, including uric and lactic acid.  
  • Meats are extremely high in protein and a high intake of it can lead to excessively high amounts of nitrogen in the blood.
  • Tropical forests in many parts of the world are being destroyed on a daily basis, just to create more acreage on which livestock is raised. These forest lands are important to protect and filter our air supply and provide botanical resources, for new medicines.
You can refer to a vegetarian food list or a list of vegan foods when deciding on a diet plan. Fortunately there are easy to find, vegetarian substitutes for almost every meat product available. Even foods burgers and hot dogs can be found in the vegetarian variety. They are made from soy or wheat gluten and are as tasty as or even tastier than burgers or hot dogs made from real meat. The important this is that they are a lot healthier. Make sure that you talk to your doctor before you decide on a new diet plan.
Submitted on January 16, 2014