VEGETARIANISM AND ITS BENEFITS
By Stayapal Khera, Rockville, MD
”Ahinsa Parmo Dharma", says a saint when he was asked "What is religion?" Hippocrates, the philosopher, said”Soul is the same in all living creatures, although the body of each is different.” "You shall love each other. Thou shall not kill”, says one of the Ten Commandments that Christians believe in. Mahatma Gandhi said, "To my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being. I should be unwilling to take the life of a lamb for the sake of the human body." He also said, "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Albert Einstein, the well known physicist, had the view that nothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet. He opined that the vegetarian manner of living by its purely physical effect on the human temperament would most beneficially influence the lot of mankind. Sri Aurobindo, poet laureate and a philosopher, said,”Life is life whether in a cat, dog or man. There is no difference between a cat and a man. The idea of difference is a human conception for man’s own ad-vantage...” George Bernard Shaw, a playwright, declared, "Animals are my friends...and I don’t eat friends." What are all these people saying?
Food has great impact on your mental health. The proverb "Thoughts arend in its original condition is the best for your mental health. Dr. Gabe Mirkin of Silver Spring, Maryland, a specialist in allergy and sports medicine, says that a diet of fruits, vegetables, grains and beans is the best diet for any body and every body. "If you do want to take dairy products”, says he,”limit your self to the ones with the least amount of fat". He advises that we should not eat products made from refined wheat, like pasta, and white rice. Instead eat the wild or brown rice and products made from wheat berries. Both have large amounts of fiber. ”Fiber and photochemical are needed for cancer prevention”, he adds,”and they are available only in fruits, vegetables, grains, and beans, not in meat or poultry." Be a vegetarian.
The question is "Who is vegetarian or what is vegetarianism"? Vegetarian foods include fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, and dairy products. Those who eat only plant-foods and dairy products are called lacto-vegetarians. Some vegetarians don’t consume even the dairy products and are called vegans, while others also consume eggs and are called ova-lacto-vegetarians. But do we need eggs? Advertising by the egg producers have labeled the eggs as a vegetarian food containing protein but lentils have more protein than eggs and have no cholesterol which is present in the egg yokes. In addition the legumes contain carbohydrates which the eggs are devoid of. If you read about the way hens are raised and treated in the chicken coupes and what happens to them once they stop laying eggs, you will never eat eggs again.
Scientific research has shown that ova-lacto-vegetarians are healthier than meat eaters, lacto-vegetarians are healthier than ova-lacto-vegetarians and vegans are healthier than lacto-vegetarians. Numerous studies have shown that vegetarian diets help prevent cancer. Vegetarians are nearly fifty per-cents less likely to die from cancer than non-vegetarians. Similarly breast cancers are much lower in nations that follow plant based diets. A recent study showed that Japanese women who followed western style meat based diet were eight times more likely to develop breast cancer than the women who followed a more traditional plant-based diet.
Animal products are usually high in fat and are always devoid of fiber. Colon cancer has been directly linked to meat consumption. Vegetarians avoid animal fat that is linked to cancer and get abundant fiber and vitamins that help to prevent cancer. The blood analysis of vegetarians reveals that they have higher level of specialized white cells that attack and kill the cancer cells. Vegetarian diet also helps prevent heart disease. Animal products are the only source of cholesterol and the chief source of saturated fat which are the main causes of heart diseases. Our liver produces enough cholesterol for the need of our body. The fiber in the vegetarian diets not only removes the unneeded cholesterol and other cancer causing agents from our body but also helps in reversing the atherosclerosis hardening of the arteries. Thus mortality from coronary artery disease is lower in vegetarians than in non-vegetarians. A 1990 study demonstrated reversal of even severe coronary artery disease without the use of lipid lowering drugs by using a combination of vegetarian diet deriving less than 10% of its energy from fat, stress management, moderate exercise and cessation of smoking.
Vegetarian diet helps in reducing the blood pressure and control or even eliminates the non-insulin dependent diabetes when such diets are combined with regular exercise and reduced fat in-take. Diets that are high in proteins, especially animal proteins tend to cause the body to excrete more calcium, oxalate and uric acids which form kidney and gallbladder stones. Vegetarian diets have been shown to reduce chances of forming these stones. Because the vegetarian diets do not force calcium out of the body like the meat does, the vegetarians are at a lower risk for osteoporosis, the weakening of the bones. A one year long study conducted in Sweden in 1985 demonstrated that asthma sufferers who practiced vegetarian diet for one full year decreased their need for medications and also de-creased the frequency and severity of the asthma attacks.
Some people tartan diet can provide all the nutrients needed by the body. It is very easy to have a well-balanced diet with vegetarian foods. It used to be believed that various plant foods had to be eaten together to get their full protein value. Now many nutrition authorities and American Dietetic Association have determined that intentional combination of foods is not necessary. Our body builds the proteins for its needs from amino acids, which come from the proteins we eat. Any normal variety of plant foods such as grain, beans, and vegetables, provides enough amino ac-ids. It was thought that athletes needed much more protein than other people, but the truth is that they need only slightly more protein which is easily obtained in larger servings athletes require for their higher caloric intake. Dark green leafy vegetables and beans are loaded with calcium. Iron is plentiful in whole grains, beans and fruits. There is some concern about non availability of vitamin B12 for vegans. Although cases of B12 deficiency are not very common, this vitamin can be provided by taking multiple vitamins or cereals fortified with vitamins. Dairy products and exposure to sun light provide enough vita-min D. But those, who cannot have either one, should supplement their diet with this vitamin.
The high nutritional needs of children can easily be met within vegetarian diet which is "life-extending". Vegetarian children may grow more gradually, reach puberty somewhat later but they live substantially longer and healthier than do meat-eaters.
There is no wonder why so many people, perceiving plant foods as beneficial because they are high in dietary fiber and, generally, lower in saturated fats than animal foods, are turning to vegetarian diets. Certain people, such as Asian Indians and Seventh-day Adventists, choose a vegetarian diet be-cause of religious beliefs. Others give up meat because they feel that eating animals is unkind. Best of all it is the most healthful diet, less expensive than the animal foods and promotes peace through non violence. A Sanskrit prayer says "Serve bhavantu sukhinah ...” meaning May all living beings be happy, in comfort, in good health, and blissfully free from anxiety, want and suffering.
By Stayapal Khera, Rockville, MD
”Ahinsa Parmo Dharma", says a saint when he was asked "What is religion?" Hippocrates, the philosopher, said”Soul is the same in all living creatures, although the body of each is different.” "You shall love each other. Thou shall not kill”, says one of the Ten Commandments that Christians believe in. Mahatma Gandhi said, "To my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being. I should be unwilling to take the life of a lamb for the sake of the human body." He also said, "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Albert Einstein, the well known physicist, had the view that nothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet. He opined that the vegetarian manner of living by its purely physical effect on the human temperament would most beneficially influence the lot of mankind. Sri Aurobindo, poet laureate and a philosopher, said,”Life is life whether in a cat, dog or man. There is no difference between a cat and a man. The idea of difference is a human conception for man’s own ad-vantage...” George Bernard Shaw, a playwright, declared, "Animals are my friends...and I don’t eat friends." What are all these people saying?
Food has great impact on your mental health. The proverb "Thoughts arend in its original condition is the best for your mental health. Dr. Gabe Mirkin of Silver Spring, Maryland, a specialist in allergy and sports medicine, says that a diet of fruits, vegetables, grains and beans is the best diet for any body and every body. "If you do want to take dairy products”, says he,”limit your self to the ones with the least amount of fat". He advises that we should not eat products made from refined wheat, like pasta, and white rice. Instead eat the wild or brown rice and products made from wheat berries. Both have large amounts of fiber. ”Fiber and photochemical are needed for cancer prevention”, he adds,”and they are available only in fruits, vegetables, grains, and beans, not in meat or poultry." Be a vegetarian.
The question is "Who is vegetarian or what is vegetarianism"? Vegetarian foods include fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, and dairy products. Those who eat only plant-foods and dairy products are called lacto-vegetarians. Some vegetarians don’t consume even the dairy products and are called vegans, while others also consume eggs and are called ova-lacto-vegetarians. But do we need eggs? Advertising by the egg producers have labeled the eggs as a vegetarian food containing protein but lentils have more protein than eggs and have no cholesterol which is present in the egg yokes. In addition the legumes contain carbohydrates which the eggs are devoid of. If you read about the way hens are raised and treated in the chicken coupes and what happens to them once they stop laying eggs, you will never eat eggs again.
Scientific research has shown that ova-lacto-vegetarians are healthier than meat eaters, lacto-vegetarians are healthier than ova-lacto-vegetarians and vegans are healthier than lacto-vegetarians. Numerous studies have shown that vegetarian diets help prevent cancer. Vegetarians are nearly fifty per-cents less likely to die from cancer than non-vegetarians. Similarly breast cancers are much lower in nations that follow plant based diets. A recent study showed that Japanese women who followed western style meat based diet were eight times more likely to develop breast cancer than the women who followed a more traditional plant-based diet.
Animal products are usually high in fat and are always devoid of fiber. Colon cancer has been directly linked to meat consumption. Vegetarians avoid animal fat that is linked to cancer and get abundant fiber and vitamins that help to prevent cancer. The blood analysis of vegetarians reveals that they have higher level of specialized white cells that attack and kill the cancer cells. Vegetarian diet also helps prevent heart disease. Animal products are the only source of cholesterol and the chief source of saturated fat which are the main causes of heart diseases. Our liver produces enough cholesterol for the need of our body. The fiber in the vegetarian diets not only removes the unneeded cholesterol and other cancer causing agents from our body but also helps in reversing the atherosclerosis hardening of the arteries. Thus mortality from coronary artery disease is lower in vegetarians than in non-vegetarians. A 1990 study demonstrated reversal of even severe coronary artery disease without the use of lipid lowering drugs by using a combination of vegetarian diet deriving less than 10% of its energy from fat, stress management, moderate exercise and cessation of smoking.
Vegetarian diet helps in reducing the blood pressure and control or even eliminates the non-insulin dependent diabetes when such diets are combined with regular exercise and reduced fat in-take. Diets that are high in proteins, especially animal proteins tend to cause the body to excrete more calcium, oxalate and uric acids which form kidney and gallbladder stones. Vegetarian diets have been shown to reduce chances of forming these stones. Because the vegetarian diets do not force calcium out of the body like the meat does, the vegetarians are at a lower risk for osteoporosis, the weakening of the bones. A one year long study conducted in Sweden in 1985 demonstrated that asthma sufferers who practiced vegetarian diet for one full year decreased their need for medications and also de-creased the frequency and severity of the asthma attacks.
Some people tartan diet can provide all the nutrients needed by the body. It is very easy to have a well-balanced diet with vegetarian foods. It used to be believed that various plant foods had to be eaten together to get their full protein value. Now many nutrition authorities and American Dietetic Association have determined that intentional combination of foods is not necessary. Our body builds the proteins for its needs from amino acids, which come from the proteins we eat. Any normal variety of plant foods such as grain, beans, and vegetables, provides enough amino ac-ids. It was thought that athletes needed much more protein than other people, but the truth is that they need only slightly more protein which is easily obtained in larger servings athletes require for their higher caloric intake. Dark green leafy vegetables and beans are loaded with calcium. Iron is plentiful in whole grains, beans and fruits. There is some concern about non availability of vitamin B12 for vegans. Although cases of B12 deficiency are not very common, this vitamin can be provided by taking multiple vitamins or cereals fortified with vitamins. Dairy products and exposure to sun light provide enough vita-min D. But those, who cannot have either one, should supplement their diet with this vitamin.
The high nutritional needs of children can easily be met within vegetarian diet which is "life-extending". Vegetarian children may grow more gradually, reach puberty somewhat later but they live substantially longer and healthier than do meat-eaters.
There is no wonder why so many people, perceiving plant foods as beneficial because they are high in dietary fiber and, generally, lower in saturated fats than animal foods, are turning to vegetarian diets. Certain people, such as Asian Indians and Seventh-day Adventists, choose a vegetarian diet be-cause of religious beliefs. Others give up meat because they feel that eating animals is unkind. Best of all it is the most healthful diet, less expensive than the animal foods and promotes peace through non violence. A Sanskrit prayer says "Serve bhavantu sukhinah ...” meaning May all living beings be happy, in comfort, in good health, and blissfully free from anxiety, want and suffering.
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