Benefits And Drawbacks Of Vegan Diets

Big businesses have worked hard to hide the reality of where your food comes from. Throughout the years, advertisements and media have continually stressed the importance of eating meat, dairy, and eggs for maximum health. For example, the dairy industry has conditioned our society with advertising to believe that milk “forms strong bones” and is recommended as “part of a healthy diet,” yet the United States has the highest rate for bone diseases in the world. The phrase “you are what you eat” really does apply to the majority of Americans. Not only is meat, dairy, and eggs harmful to people, prepackaged and manufactured goods could also be considered harmful for humans, as they too carry harmful substances which our bodies cannot process. According to the President of the Physicians committee responsible for medicine, Dr. Neal Barnard states in his book, The Power of Your Plate, he states that “early humans had diets very much like other great apes, which is to say a largely plant-based diet, drawing on foods we can pick with our hands” (Freston). However, due to lack of knowledge, we, for the most part, believed what we see and hear and pass it on to our children, thus creating “traditions” and an endless monopoly for major food corporations. On another note, a diet that consists of mainly fruits and vegetables has been scientifically proven to reduce health complications. A review by “Sabaté and Wien (2010) shows that plant based diets are associated with a lower body mass index (BMI) and lower prevalence of obesity in adults and children” (Dyett). This further proves that a plant-based diet, or veganism, can be enjoyed by people of all ages including elderly, infants, and sportspersons. With that being said, becoming

The reduction of the amount of saturated fats from one’s diet improves health greatly for cardiovascular health. According to nursingdegree.com, ”Eating nuts and whole grains, while eliminating dairy products and meat, will improve… cardiovascular health.” When eliminating food that comes from animals doing so eliminates all dietary cholesterol from one’s diet. Vegan diets go to extreme lengths to prevent heart attack and stroke. Plant-based foods are high in fiber and according to nursingdegree.net, “A diet high in fiber…leads to healthier bowel movements.” While obtaining nutrition from vegan diets also prevent disease at the same time. For example, it is stated in nursingdegree.com,” Eating a diet consisting of whole grains, along with fresh fruits and vegetables, can greatly reduce…chances of colon cancer.”

Harvard Medical School defines a vegan as a person who does, “not eat meat, poultry, fish, or any products derived from animals, including eggs, dairy products, and gelatin.” (p.1). With veganism gaining more and more popularity in the media and in the western culture, debates have sprung up about whether or not this diet and lifestyle proves to be healthy. Countless studies and experiments have been conducted, and the results have shown that a vegan diet can prove to be a more beneficial diet then the standard American Diet. But, with large food corporations and drug companies in the way, Americans find it harder to switch to the plant-based diet. The vegan diet time and time again shows its outstanding power in reducing

disease, colon and lung disease, osteoporosis, diabetes, hypertension, and obesity have all been directly linked to consuming animal products (For Your Health 1). According to the Physician Committee for responsible Medicine, a vegan diet lowers blood pressure and cholesterol levels, reduces breast cancer and

It is becoming more popular than ever to turn to a vegan diet. Why? There are many reasons people decide to go plant-based. Many people choose it for health, morality, social justice, or simple logic. Sure, there is a long list of health benefits, such as increased energy, healthier skin, and reduced risks of heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Yes, many oppose the injustices of animal slavery. Yet, many people do not seem to realize that the most beneficial results of being plant-based are based around the environment. We are going to discuss how the vegan diet would fight against negative environmental changes created by factory farming and dairy industry. We will cover the aspects of climate change, land sustainability, and water pollution.

Living on a vegan diet seems to be a growing trend with younger generations. It seems people everywhere want to jump on board of not consuming animal products for the greater good of humanity. There are many reasons why some might pick this diet; some might do it because their morals, others might find it inhumane, but the main two reasons many go on this plant-based diet is for sustaining one's health and humanity. Both of those reasons are true but only to an

Veganism, a phenomenon of the twenty first century. Nowadays one percent of the population practices a vegan diet; but what about the rest of the population? The other ninety-nine percent follow what many would call a Western diet. In recent years, debate has persisted about which diet is superior and truly more beneficial. In this essay, the issue of a superior diet will be compared in terms of prevention of diseases and rate of mortality, nutrients and vitamins, water conservation, and cost effectiveness, ultimately proving that the vegan diet is more beneficial.

Vegan fat are all natural healthy fat, so vegan diets are free of cholesterol and are generally low in saturated fat. This diet make it easy to get the recommendation given to reduce the risk of major chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease.

“Based on the three sources, what type of eating plan would you be most likely to follow or encourage others to follow?” Based on the three sources I would be most likely to follow or encourage others to would be the Vegan Diet. I chose the vegan diet because referring to source A, a vegan diet “Helps in prevention of chronic diseases” You are still able to meet all nutritional requirements. In a vegan diet you are not aloud to eat meat of anything that came from an animal. You are still able to eat all veggies which still give you your nutrition you need.

Vegans do not get many different nutrients needed for the body. Humans are omnivores and our bodies work better if we eat both animals and plants. There are some nutrients that you can only get from plants and some that you can only get from animals and vegans are missing out on the animal nutrients such as vitamin B12 which is not found in many plants and B12 is a very important vitamin that is involved in the function of every cell in the body. It is also important in the function of blood and the function of the brain. That is just one of the nutrients that vegans miss out on by only eating foods that don’t come from any living thing. Here are some nutrients that are only found in

Rejecting the commodity status of animals and abstaining from animal products may still unconsciously be terrible for vegans. While many animal loving, herbivorous, vegans believe that they are doing what is best for the environment and their bodies, research argues the opposite. From cutting out meat, selecting processed foods, and making pricely decisions, vegans can still be creating terrible decisions resulting in obesity and poor health.

In a country where more than two-thirds of adults are obese, people desperately try to find new ways to improve their health. Vegan diet has risen in popularity in recent years due to its weight loss potential, but some scientific communities are questioning if vegan diet truly possess health benefits over omnivore diets. From evolutionary standpoint, humans were never vegans. The term “vegan” was coined recently in 1944 in England, and the term started out as omnivores that abstained from dairy products, which later developed into abstaining from all animal products. Vegan diet was not created for health benefits but started for ethical reasons of protecting animals from being jailed into factories to provide products for humans. Human health was the last thing considered in the origin of veganism. Veganism is life threatening, and its benefit of weight loss is not worth the risk.

Craig, W. J. (2009). Health effects of vegan diet. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 89(5), 1627S-1633S. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2009.26736N

Studies have shown that veganism can be a healthy diet if the person is receiving all the essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals as well as having a balance between what they are eating. Vegans also commonly have have lower blood pressure and cholesterol, which heavily reduces the risk of them getting a heart disease. They also have a lower risk of being obese, getting some cancers and diabetes, in particular type

Some would not be able to live without eating any animal products in their diets, such as, meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy products, and honey. For vegans, however, this is a normal way of life. Vegans are frequently misunderstood as either people who have eating disorders, or an unnatural passion for animal rights. It is time for people to realize that veganism, a challenging yet rewarding lifestyle, goes way beyond being skinny or caring for animals. In reality, veganism can be extremely advantageous to anyone who adapts it as a way of life and has many different benefits that come along with it.