Obesity : An Unhealthy Diet

The fact is that it has been scientifically proven that we do not need to eat animals to survive. This is a common misinterpretation that is causing detrimental damage to ourselves and our planet. In 2009, after conducting extensive research, the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the U.S.’s largest and leading authority on diet and nutrition, recognized and concluded the fact that humans have no inherent biological or nutritional need for animal products. Research has proven that humans can and do obtain all the vitamins and nutrients their body needs on a well balanced vegan diet alone (Greer). Unless you are a bodybuilder and/or pregnant, both of which require a higher intake of protein daily, it is likely you will in fact acquire enough protein to suffice your daily recommended intake without having to drastically change your diet.

Meat is part of a balanced diet. If humans stopped breeding animals for meat, then we would have to hunt all the wild animals for food. The wild animals will be hunted into extinction because of gluttonous meat-eaters. Because of factory farming, meat is now available at all time at the super market. This makes meat convenient to obtain and eat nutritionally. Meat contains all the essential amino acids that we need every day to remain as healthy individuals. Minerals and vitamins that are also beneficial to the growth and development of the human body are found in meat too. Eating specific types of meat such as fish provides healthy natural oils that cannot be found anywhere else. Abandoning meat as a source of nutrition means we will need to compensate with another source of sustenance.

Taking meat out of one’s diet doesn’t mean taking out vital nutrients. Substitutes for protein found in meat without the high level of saturated fat, include: nuts, seeds, soy products, cereal, eggs and dairy. In fact, not eating meat improves a person’s health because eating a great deal of meat means being more prone to have high cholesterol and blood pressure. To set an example, advertisements say lobsters have “fewer calories, less cholesterol, and less saturated fat than chicken” (461). In the quote take note of, “than chicken.” Lobster, a great source of protein, still has high levels of cholesterol and sodium. Although accurate, the quote does not give the full truth. Not to mention, the popular eating habits of adding more fat to meat. Wallace mentions in his article the “common practice to dip lobster meat in melted butter…”(461); all healthy fats evaporate when butter is melted. Advertisements fail to mention facts about butter. To sum up, individuals will improve their health and obtain enough nutrients in their diet by avoiding meat.

I come from a very large Mexican family where there is a lot of meat, cheeses, fried food, butter and of course always a lot of sweets. Due to this diet there are many health related concerns in my family, three being diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, although high cholesterol seems to be more of a genetic issue rather than a food related one. Even so, the diet we maintain does not help lower it. Due to this diet and genetics, I have very high cholesterol myself; my doctor even shocked me by saying that I could have a heart attack by the time I’m 25. This obviously scared me and I knew then that there needed to be a change in my diet.

The Vegan diet also largely consists of potassium, folic acid, magnesium and countless other beneficial vitamins and minerals. Compared to the vegetarian diet, the Vegan diet contains more dietary fiber and less saturated fats, along with high levels of cholesterol. In many cases, Vegans tend to be slimmer and have lower blood sugar levels and lower levels of serum cholesterol, which reduces their risk of heart disease, the current leading killer in the United States. (“57 Health Benefits…”) In a recent report, different plant groups were rated into categories of metabolic-epidemiologic evidence. At the end of the study, their levels showed reduction in chronic disease development. In another study completed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), individuals who consumed more fruits and vegetables than animal products were shown to have reduced risks of cancer. (Craig)

Having a healthy dietary method can reduce the chances of receiving many health diseases. These health diseases include obesity, heart disease, and cancer. By consuming certain foods and nutrients in one’s diet the risk factors for these health diseases can be reduced. A healthy dietary method that is beneficial to reducing and/or improving these health diseases is the vegetarian diet. The vegetarian diet follows a dietary pattern that is characterized by the consumption of plant-like foods and the avoidance of flesh foods (meat, poultry, and fish). The foods in this diet provide the body with many essential nutrients. This is why many health benefits have been associated with the vegetarian

Few factors are as important to human health than one’s diet. A poor diet can have devastating effects to one’s health and well-being. For this reason, there are some key components the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, along with the Department of Agriculture, suggest be part of one's eating pattern. These key components include a variety of vegetables, fruits, grains, fat-free or low-fat dairy or soy, a variety of protein foods, and oils. They also suggest limiting intakes of saturated fats, trans fats, added sugars, and sodium. Overall, the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines suggest that it is not necessarily about each and every individual food or beverage item that is consumed, but how that plays into an entire “eating pattern” and how everyone can make small shifts within their eating pattern to maintain a healthier life and decrease chances of developing a chronic disease. With all of these factors in mind, a diet that claims to be healthier, better for the environment, and help lower chances of disease is the vegetarian diet. There are many arguments for and against vegetarianism however, some of which are contrasting views of the same point. benefits. Because diet is such a key component of human health and wellness, for anyone considering the vegetarian diet, it is important to analyze these contrasting arguments.

Vegetarians say that being a vegetarian is better than having normal diet as it is only plant based, according to the American Dietetic Association, a vegetarian diet can meet protein requirements, provide all the essential amino-acids (the building blocks of protein), and improve health. It can also provide all the necessary vitamins, fats, and minerals, and can improve one’s health. According to the USDA and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, meat is not an essential part of a healthy diet. Also, vegetarians believe that being a vegetarian is better as no animals

Every day we are reminded that our health is the foundation upon which our quality of life depends. Cut back on red meat, reduce trans fats, limit your meat intake and focus on the quality of the foods you eat; those are just a few of the ways we are being told to make changes to our diet in order to maintain or improve our health. More recently we are encouraged to incorporate different things in our lifestyles in order to optimize our health. One of those changes is the encouragement of adopting a vegan lifestyle.

Although most of the population believes that meat and dairy products are necessary to the human health, it is not. It’s killing us by increasing the risk of getting kidney stones, cancer, and type two diabetes. Since childhood, most individuals have been raised on eating large quantities of animal flesh and animal products. It’s burned into their minds that they need the meat and dairy for nutrients, to grow and maintain strong bones. With society also putting into their young minds, that plant based foods are just not enough to keep them healthy. For years, researchers have shown that the standard diet, focusing on large quantities of

In order to seek the amazing health benefits from veganism, one must be proper with their diets to thrive. Firstly, many vegans are potentially at risk for vitamin B-12 deficiency due to the absence of nutrients from the foods they choose not to eat. In order to avoid this deficiency, vegans should regularly consume vitamin B-12–fortified foods, such as fortified soy and rice beverages, breakfast cereals, and B-12–fortified nutritional yeast, or take a daily vitamin B-12 supplement. Secondly, by becoming a vegan, many lose a lot of the calcium that they usually receive from a non-vegan diet. In order to make up for this loss of calcium, one should eat green leafy vegetables, tofu, tahini, calcium-fortified orange and apple juices, soy and rice beverages and soy milk. Thirdly, by becoming a vegan, one may lose a lot of nutrients from the fatty acid ALA. In order to make up for this loss, one must eat foods such as ground flaxseed, walnuts, canola oil, soy products and hemp seed-based beverages. In order to be a vegan that is healthy and beneficial towards the prevention of disease and illness, one must make sure their diet makes up for the losses of nutrients that one would gain from a non-vegan

Cutting off meat from one’s diet comes with many benefits. For example, energy matters: eating meat is “far less energy efficient than relying on a vegetarian diet (and leaves a far greater ecological footprint),” because in the trophic levels, only 10% of energy moves with each level when an animal consumes another (Withgott PAGE NUMBER). By the time a human consumes meat, they only gain about 30% of optimal energy, versus 90% energy in a vegetarian diet (Withgott). Other benefits include lower cholesterol, lower blood sugar, and lower body mass index than meat eaters (Sifferlin). Likewise, there is a reduced risk of heart disease and colon, stomach, and prostate cancer (Beezhold, Le). In a cross-sectional study in Nutrition Journal, Vegetarians have been found to have less negative emotions than omnivores (Beezhold). With a vegetarian diet, there is less negative impact on physically and mentally.

There is little doubt that the evolution of humans has been connected to meat in several ways. Humans are not herbivores in an obligatory way; our enzymes evolved to digest meat whose consumption assisted in higher encephalization and higher physical growth. Cooperative searching of meat promoted the event of language and socialization; the evolution of previous World societies was, to a major extent, supported domestication of animals; in ancient societies, meat uptake, quite the consumption of the other class of foodstuffs, has guided humans to fascinating preferences, bans and numerous food ways; and fashionable Western agricultures are heavily meat-oriented. In biological process terms, the links vary from satiation afforded by uptake fatty mega herbivores to meat as a status food throughout

Cheeseburgers, hot dogs, and pepperoni pizza, foods associated with and common to all Americans, rich and poor. From a young age we are taught that cheeseburgers and hot dogs are the appropriate food for a family barbeque, and pizza is the perfect dinner for a Friday night movie with friends. Hidden behind all of these nostalgic, warm feelings for these foods is unhealthy amounts of fat, cholesterol, and processed carbohydrates. Fortunately, there is a way to eat a full spectrum of foods while still maintaining a healthy lifestyle and balanced diet, known as Vegan. In order to prevent diseases such as diabetes, obesity, and heart disease, a mostly vegan diet is the best choice for the average American. Though a vegan diet consists of mostly plant based foods, there is still the risk of developing certain types of nutrient deficiencies, and some vegan diets do include large amount of processed foods. Considering this, “To consume or not consume,” that is the question.

People in today’s world are always looking for ways to stay healthy and be fit. It is very crucial to have a balanced diet so that their will be a lower risk for disease later in life. Therefore, people in society create diets geared towards their own interests. These interests can include what a person likes, what will be best for their body systems, or even just the persons beliefs or religion. Two common choices of food are vegetarianism or a high protein diet. Carnivores eat meat, while vegetarians substitute that protein for something better. Many tests comparing the two has proven that being vegetarian not only affects the body in a positive way, but is also good for the mind. Overall vegetarianism is a more beneficial way to stay healthy, have less risks of diseases, and help save resources here on Earth because of the harmful toxins from meat production.