For eons, nutritionists and food scientists alike have sworn by the benefits of eating plants and cutting back on meat. And it looks like people are finally catching on.
Each day, more people are embracing a vegetarian or plant-based diet. According to the latest surveys available, there are an estimated 1.5 billion vegetarians globally. Giving up meat, dairy, and eggs may seem like a monumental sacrifice for some. For others, the economic and environmental perks of vegetarianism make eating this way worthwhile. Personally, the incredible health benefits of a vegetarian lifestyle alone make the choice a no-brainer.
But if, like most people, you’ve grown up as a lifelong meat-eater, it’s hard to make the switch. This is why we’ve come up with some compelling reasons that’ll convince you to give this way of eating a try.
Physical Health Benefits of Vegetarianism
A vegetarian diet can provide us with multiple physical health benefits. So, let us discuss them one by one below.
Vegetarian Weight Loss Benefits
Obesity is a serious problem worldwide, thanks to our dietary habits. However, a vegetarian diet can help you lose weight, as you consume fewer calories than if you continue with a meat-based diet.
Vegetarian foods like vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, etc., are nutrient-dense but low in calories, meaning you eat meals without packing any pounds.
Research suggests that the weight loss benefits of a vegetarian diet last for at least 12 months, and more research is being conducted to determine the long-term weight loss benefits.
For many people, becoming a vegetarian is more of a lifestyle choice driven by ethical, health, and environmental concerns. For others, including celebrities like Beyonce and Kim Kardashian, switching to a plant-based lifestyle means a smaller waistline. But is it an effective means of weight loss?
The simple truth is adding more plant-based foods to your diet can do absolute wonders for your weight loss journey. Research groups at Harvard and Epic study following the same group of people for over 20 to 30 years show that those who typically eat more plant-based foods tend to put on less weight than heavy meat-eaters. Coupled with the work of Dan Buettner, which observes a population of individuals who likely live up to 100 years, evidence suggests that people who consume around 85% plant-based foods live longer and healthier, with far fewer diseases.
But what if you’ve already switched to a vegetarian diet, but the scale’s still not budging? Does this mean losing weight on a plant-based lifestyle is all just a gimmick?
When it comes to losing weight on a plant-based lifestyle, it’s just as important as what you add to your plate as what you omit. Just because you’ve switched from a sausage roll to a vegetarian sausage roll doesn’t necessarily make it a healthier choice, and nor does it guarantee weight loss.
If you’re switching to vegetarianism to shed excess weight, try to make it whole-food based. Fill up on rainbow-colored fruits and vegetables, legumes, and whole grains. However, don’t get too caught up in weight loss. Simply focus on making healthy choices every day, and the weight loss will come along.
Vegetarian Skin Benefits
Plant-based diets can significantly improve your skin condition and resolve some skin issues you face. For instance, acne has been linked to dairy consumption because it contains growth hormones. However, vegetarians can skip dairy to get rid of the annoying pimples and clean up their skin.
In addition to that, underlying inflammation that shows in the form of eczema, acne, allergies, etc., can also be improved if you consume a plant-based diet in the long term.
Similarly, the antioxidants present in plants and fruits can prevent free radical damage and counter premature aging, minimizing wrinkles and pigmentation.
Will becoming a vegetarian lower my cholesterol?
If done properly, yes. Since plant-based foods don’t contain cholesterol, a vegetarian diet can go a long way in lowering your cholesterol levels. Unlike an omnivore diet, a plant-based diet can reduce your cholesterol levels by about 15 to 30 percent. And the good news is that you don’t have to go cold turkey to enjoy the benefits. The key is to simply start adding more plant-based foods to your diet and gradually cut back on your meat consumption.
As to how exactly vegetarianism lowers cholesterol, here’s the deal. You see, a vegetarian diet is generally full of soluble fiber and super low in fat. This creates an ideal environment for your body to slow the production of cholesterol in the liver and reduce its absorption from other dietary sources. And considering cholesterol is typically found in animal-based products–meat, eggs, dairy–and minimal in plant-based foods, switching to a vegetarian diet doesn’t bring any additional cholesterol to the table.
A plant-based diet can have multiple benefits for your heart and lower your cholesterol and chances of developing heart problems.
By getting rid of dairy, meat, and eggs, it is possible to significantly bring down your cholesterol levels, as you no longer consume saturated fats. The soluble fiber in plants helps with lowering cholesterol by slowing down its absorption.
Animal products are full of saturated fats, so eliminating meat from your diet can get rid of LDL cholesterol by 15-30%. Within just 4 weeks, you can see a difference in your cholesterol levels by switching to a vegetarian diet.
Vegetarian Diet & Blood Pressure Benefits
Vegetarians also have a lower blood pressure compared to meat-eaters. They eat diets rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes, seeds, etc. can help get rid of saturated fats that cause high blood pressure.
It is because high blood pressure and body weight are linked, so reducing body weight through a vegetarian diet can also reduce blood pressure. Moreover, the lower blood viscosity of vegetarians may also help control their blood pressure.
Benefits of a Vegetarian Diet for Athletes
Slowing down isn’t an option for athletes as they have to stay at their best throughout their careers to compete. With that level of competition, having a quality diet is crucial.
Athletes can benefit impressively from a plant-based diet due to multiple factors.
Better Heart Health & Cardio Performance
Athletes usually tend to participate in intense training and competitions, so their heart health should always be at its best. Luckily, plant-based diets improve heart health by eliminating saturated fats coming from animal products.
Additionally, athletes who avoid meat tend to be leaner and have better body composition than their counterparts. The carbohydrates coming from plants can fill your muscles with glycogen, so you can keep pumping during intense sessions.
Faster Muscle Recovery with Reduced Inflammation
Athletes undergo intense training, so their bodies constantly bear a lot of physical and emotional pressure. That stress level on joints can cause inflammation if they don’t replenish their nutritional stores properly.
A plant-based diet can help athletes store glycogen in their muscles for faster recovery, and the antioxidants can counter inflammation.
Radishes, turnips, dark cherries, kale, and spinach are good choices in this regard. Consuming cherry juice before a workout can improve performance and tackle soreness.
Nitric Oxide for Varying Benefits
Athlete endurance is based on multiple factors, and taking enough nitrates for increasing nitric oxide in the body is one of them.
Nitric oxide has several benefits for our bodies:
Spinach, beets, cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, and carrots are rich in nitrate.
Efficient Workouts
Efficiency is crucial for athletes to ensure that their efforts hit the right mark and produce desired results.
Having a vegetarian diet will help them have more nitric oxide, which is pivotal in transporting nutrients and oxygen throughout the body.
Blood flow can continue with lower nitric oxide levels, too, but it’s not efficient, and the distribution isn’t balanced. With nitric oxide, the blood flow distribution is improved significantly, which helps dissipate the heat generated during exercise.
Benefits of Being Vegetarian While Pregnant
Taking care of your health during pregnancy becomes even more important as you now have two lives in your hands.
The foods you consume will also affect your baby’s health, and going vegetarian ensures you and your baby stay healthy throughout the pregnancy.
Obesity Control
Women often suffer from obesity during pregnancy because of intense cravings. Giving in to them can cause your weight to skyrocket, putting you at risk.
The way out of this problem is consuming a plant-based diet, which ensures that you do not consume too many calories or fats from animal products.
Gestational Diabetes Prevention
Diabetes during pregnancy is another medical scare faced by women. Increased intake of fats during pregnancy can heighten the risk of gestational diabetes. However, consuming a vegetarian diet low in fat can prevent that problem.
Plant-based lifestyle controls fat intake, ensuring that your blood sugar levels do not spike. This reduces the risk of gestational diabetes significantly.
Cardiovascular Improvements
Research has consistently shown that the cardiovascular health of vegetarians is much better than that of meat-eaters. Besides that, vegetarians’ cholesterol levels, blood lipid levels, and body weight are also better.
Therefore, eating a vegetarian diet during pregnancy can improve your cardiovascular health and benefit your baby in multiple aspects.
Furthermore, the fiber and antioxidants in fruits and vegetables will ensure your heart health remains optimum to deliver a healthy baby.
Develops Strong Bones
For strengthening your baby’s bones, you need vitamin K, magnesium, and potassium in ample amounts.
Fortunately, a plant-based diet is rich in these nutrients, ensuring that your baby develops strong bones.
Improvements in Overall Health
Stress and irritation can become common occurrences during pregnancy, which aren’t welcome. To deliver a healthy baby, you should stay stress-free and relaxed.
Consuming a vegetarian diet helps you manage stress and boosts your general health.
However, ensuring that you take the right nutrients is crucial for maintaining your health. Your diet should ideally have lots of vitamin D, calcium, protein, and energy-rich foods.
Benefits of Raising a Vegetarian Child
We all know about the kind of life animals live in factory farms. The conditions are cruel as they are kept in cages where even moving a few inches is impossible. Cows and pigs are inseminated repeatedly to reap maximum financial benefit without caring about them.
We should raise kids that disapprove of those conditions and refuse to eat animal-based products. Raising kids on a vegetarian diet teaches them empathy and helps them understand the cruelty around them every day.
It’s not just about kindness towards other living things, as a vegetarian diet is also healthier than a meat-based one. From heart health to lowering obesity to improving athletic performance, raising your kid as a vegetarian can help him in the longer run.
Mental Health Benefits of Vegetarianism
There is increasing evidence to suggest that diet and mood are interconnected, and you become what you eat. People usually focus on the physical health benefits of vegetarian diets and often ignore what it has in store for their mental well-being.
A plant-based diet can not only keep you healthy physically but can also bring multiple mental health benefits.
Reduces Stress, Anxiety, and Depression
Animal-based products such as eggs and chicken contain arachidonic acid that has been known to cause inflammation in your body. Ultimately, this inflammation hits the brain and causes anxiety and stress.
However, those who rely on plant-based nutrition usually have improved moodsover those who consume animal-based foods.
In addition to that, plant-based foods also help with reducing depression. A study analyzing dietary patterns of 3,486 individuals estimated that those who ate whole foods had fared much better regarding depression than those who did not.
Could Tackle ADHD
The connection between diet and ADHD is not well-established. However, some suggestions suggest that a plant-based diet may help reduce ADHD symptoms.
For instance, a study on preschoolers showed that those who consumed processed food had a higher chance of developing ADHD than those with a vegetarian diet.
Similarly, another study suggested that eating vegetarian foods might prevent a cognitive decline as you age, and vegetarians had 18-33% fewer chances of that decline.
Promotes Mindfulness & Improves Focus
Mindfulness is a concept that has been around for centuries. Developed by spiritual leaders and yoga masters, it has become an integral part of the vegetarian lifestyle. When you consume a plant-based diet, you are always aware of what you consume.
You are wary of your diet not hurting any living being and choose only cruelty-free foods. Besides that, you are always looking for foods that can improve your health, so staying aware of what you put in your body becomes necessary.
The more you eat healthier, the better it makes you feel because you know you are doing good to your body. The repetitive cycle of mindfulness fills you with happiness and confidence.
Vegetarians also have improved focus, as a study suggested. Those who relied on plant-based foods for their nutrition performed better at their workplaces and took fewer leaves.
Spiritual benefits of vegetarianism
Besides physical and mental health benefits, vegetarianism also has multiple spiritual benefits. Vegetarian wellness has been a topic for quite some time now.
People want to switch their diets to improve their spiritual experience and get away from the materialistic lifestyle. Let us explore the spiritual dimensions of vegetarianism and how they improve your well-being.
Promotes Non-Violence & Compassion
The association of vegetarianism with non-violence and compassion is nothing new. Many great spiritual and political leaders have adopted it to make a case for compassionate living throughout their lives.
Buddhism and Hinduism are the major faiths in this regard, barring people from killing animals or being compassionate towards other living things.
Caring for sentient beings instills a sense of love for everything around us, and we appreciate the beauty of the world even more, when every living thing lives to its fullest.
Leads to a Peaceful Life
Vegetarianism and a peaceful life go hand in hand. Vegetarians often report how they feel lighter and more content after quitting meat.
It leads to better sleep and a positive mood, giving you a healthy lifestyle devoid of any stress. Because of that, you are more positive in your daily affairs and take challenges with a winner’s attitude.
Builds a Stronger Connection with the Planet
The Earth is our home, and it is our responsibility to take care of it. The world-ecology comes from “Oikos,” meaning home. If we plunder its resources endlessly, we usually develop a cold attitude towards the suffering of others at our hands, especially animals that end up on our plates.
On the other hand, a vegetarian diet reverses all of these ills. Instead of eating meat burgers, we can use the same resources to feed hundreds and thousands of people worldwide.
More efficient use of Earth’s resources can improve our connection with it and helps us care more about our surroundings. It makes us selfless and pushes us towards a better planet where resources are for responsible use and not abuse.
Improves Your Meditation
The quality of meditation depends on how pure and noble your actions are in real life. The more compassionate you are, the more you will enjoy meditating.
Meditation brings you to the realm of pure love, possible only if you practice compassion towards other living things.
Economic Reasons to Become Vegetarian
As our planet heats up at a scale never seen before, it will have a devastating economic impact, especially on the global poor. Therefore, the need for switching to vegetarianism is more important than ever. Let us discuss some of the economic reasons for adopting a plant-based diet.
Are there economic benefits to becoming a vegetarian?
Believe it or not, a vegetarian lifestyle does much more than just help you lose weight or lower your cholesterol. Switching to a plant-based diet can potentially save billions of dollars for countries worldwide. You don’t need to source animals for food and clothing to create a healthy, thriving lifestyle.
First off, shifting to a vegetarian diet in the US alone can produce surplus food that can feed around 350 million additional people. Now imagine what vegetarianism can do to end world hunger. What’s more, a PNAS study states that the Standard American Diet can cost the US as high as $197 billion to $289 billion annually. Moreover, the global economy will lose up to $1.6 trillion by 2050 on the animal-based dietary lifestyle.
And considering that the US plant-based food industry is predicted to bring in around $13.3 billion in tax revenues alone over the next decade, it’s no wonder that celebrities are so keen to invest in plant-based businesses. This proves that a plant-based lifestyle can go a long way in strengthening the global economy and reducing world hunger. Meanwhile, our planet Earth will get a much-needed break from the damage created by the livesto
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