In an article published in the Medical Journal of Australia, Dr Rosemary Stanton conveys that ‘a vegetarian diet is a good recipe for our own health and for the planet’. This stands true in many respects. Firstly, eating less meat reduces the human impact on the planet considerably. Also, a vegetarian diet has many health benefits.
A plant-based diet aka vegetarian diet is one that is devoid of meat, fish and chicken. Dairy products and eggs are considered acceptable to eat in the vegetarian diet.
A well balanced vegetarian diet provides many health benefits. These health benefits include a reduced risk of chronic illness such as:
- Obesity
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Some types of cancer
- Heart disease
When the choice is made to become a vegetarian, there are certain nutrients that have to be considered. It is therefore important to plan your diet in order to make sure that these nutritional requirements are being met. A nutritionist or dietitian may be helpful in planning a vegetarian diet.
The following nutrients could easily be missed from a vegetarian diet if care is not taken:
- Protein – legumes, nuts, seeds, soy products, eggs
- Minerals such as iron, calcium and zinc – green leafy vegetables, dairy products, soy products, nuts, seeds
- Vitamin B12 – dairy products, eggs
In conclusion, we can see that becoming a vegetarian may be healthy for our bodies as well as the planet. Decreasing many of the health risks of many modern day diseases, vegetarianism has become a lifestyle choice to many. Some have chosen vegetarianism for ethical and moral reasons. By eating less meat, we decrease methane gas emissions, we also save on the water, food and fossil fuels it takes to feed these animals. Many of these animals are treated inhumanely; vegetarians therefore choose to not make meat part of their diet in order not to condone this treatment.
Originally published on Aug 23, 2012
