Are Vegan/Vegetarian Diets as Healthy as Many Believe?

People become quite passionate at times. Different phases in peoples lives brings out the Bohemian, the political activist, the passionate animal liberationist. Rhyme and Reason is a minefield and a mindfield. I'm finished with arguing for or against most things for the sake of my own sanity! One thing I learned along time ago was the ability to listen to what my body needed as far as sustenance. If I had cravings for broccali, I ate lots of it. Same with meat. There were times when I lacked iron and this came out as a craving for meat. So I ate meat. Tuning into the body is far removed from beliefs. The body is organic and has it's own needs as far as health is concerned. Thoughts on the other hand are what creates beliefs and can actually be quite toxic to the body - not a good marriage there - God may have made a mistake!!! LOL. My body prefers fruit, grains, vegetables, nuts. It will tolerate small amounts of meat but has trouble digesting it. Meat once a month for me, not once a week. My brain tends to induce a wanting for chocolate if I've not had enough water, but my body does not like too much of it. Whilst sodas may feel good on my taste buds, my body hates it. So balance and common sense work for me.

First of all journalists cannot seriously be considered reliable sources of information, if you want factual accounts go to professional journals, written and assessed by scientists, etc. Journalists distort and abuse the truth often to serve their own agendas. And use statistics like a drunk uses a lamp-post, not for illumination but for support. Elsewhere the poster uses logical fallacies and misinformation to distort the truth and listen to her language here: "many vegans and vegetarians are unaware that their diets do not provide enough B12 unless they supplement." On the contrary most vegetarians and vegans tend to be better informed about their diets than most people and the B12 requirement is common knowledge. The poster displays her ignorance of the facts by lumping vegan and vegetarian together. Contrary to what is claimed here a vegetarian only needs a small amount of cheese, 200gms to provide sufficient Vit B12. Whilst it is true that only 100 grams of some meats contain this amount B12 much of that may be destroyed by cooking, cheese, on the other hand, is often eaten raw. So, lets ignore the rants and wild opinions of journalists and look at the real facts supported by scientific studies. In the American Dietetic Association’s 1997 Position Paper on Vegetarian Diets, they stated that, "scientific data suggest positive relationships between a vegetarian diet and reduced risk for several chronic degenerative diseases and conditions, including obesity, coronary artery disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and some types of cancer.” 1. The British Medical Association (BMA) The BMA was one of the first to distill the growing volume of research on diet and health in its 1986 report (3). It said: “Vegetarians have lower rates of obesity, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, large bowel disorders, cancers and gall stones. Cholesterol levels tend to be lower in vegetarians.” It went on to say that when meat eaters change to a vegetarian diet it can actually lower their cholesterol levels. It concluded by saying that vegetarians obtain all the minerals they need and that folate levels are higher than meateaters. 2. The China Study The initial results of this combined Chinese -U.S. - British study, which began in 1983, were announced in 1989 (4). It was a massive piece of work which looked at the health and eating habits of 6,500 people in real life situations. Its conclusions were accurately summed up a New York Times headline on May 8, 1990: “Huge Study of Diet Indicts Fat and Meat.” In short, it found that the greatest single influence on the growth of degenerative diseases such as coronary heart disease, cancer and diabetes was the amount of animal fat and protein eaten - the more you eat, the greater your risk. It highlighted some extraordinary dietary differences between affluent and not so affluent societies. Animal protein itself raises the risks of cancer and heart disease. These are the two biggest killers in the West but there are others, such as diabetes, strokes, obesity and high blood pressure which are associated with the West's affluent lifestyle. They are degenerative diseases and the China study found that they increased alarmingly as people changed from a more simple, predominantly vegetarian or vegan diet, to a Western diet based on meat and dairy products. The study also found that the West's preoccupation with promoting meat as the main source of iron was wrong. The Chinese diet was predominantly vegetarian and yet adults consumed twice as much iron as an adult in the U.S. The Chinese diet also contained three times more fiber than a U.S. diet but there was no evidence that these high levels interfered with absorption of iron or other essential minerals. The conclusions were unequivocal - that a plant-based diet is more likely to promote good health and reduce the risk of degenerative diseases. 3. The World Health Organization Next came an even more detailed report from the WHO in 1991. It was interpreted by many as a call for the world to go vegetarian - and that's precisely what it was (5). It stated that a diet rich in animal products promotes heart disease, cancer and several other diseases. It confirmed the BMA's and China Study's list of degenerative diseases and added others - osteoporosis, and kidney failure as being related to meat eating. It said that diets associated with increases in chronic diseases are those rich in sugar, meat and other animal products, saturated fat and dietary cholesterol, and added: “If such trends continue, the end of this century will see cardiovascular (heart) disease and cancer established as major health problems in every country in the world.” And, of course, its predictions have been proved true. But it went even further and condemned the years of public urgings by governments to eat animal products. It went on to say that in future: “Policies should be geared to the growing of plant foods, including vegetables and fruits, and to limiting the promotion of fat containing products.” The large quantities of cheap meat, which have adversely affected health, are only available because of intensive, factory farming and the WHO also had plenty to say about that: “Farming policies which do not rely on intensive animal production systems would reduce the world demand for cereals. Use of land could be reappraised since cereal consumption by the population is much more efficient and cheaper than dedicating large areas to growing feed for meat production and dairying.” That advice has also been ignored. In fact, as development takes place in previously undeveloped countries there is a shift towards a more affluent diet, the report says. As a consequence, there is a dramatic increase in the incidence of diet related diseases. 4. The Oxford Study In early 1995, an interim report was issued by Oxford University scientists working on another huge piece of research, commonly known as the Oxford Study (6). It is ongoing and is examining the diets of 11,000 people over a period of 13 years. The interim report confirmed lower rates of cancer and heart disease among vegetarians but added a new twist - 20% lower premature mortality. 5. Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) PCRM is a highly-respected group of 5,000 doctors. It includes William Roberts, editor of the American Journal of Cardiology, as well as the late Benjamin Spock (7). In 1995, PCRM confirmed the lower rates of disease among vegetarians and urged the government to recommend a vegetarian diet to U.S. citizens. Before this, the U.S. Dietary Guidelines had never made any mention of vegetarianism. The following year they did so for the first time, stating: "...vegetarians enjoy excellent health: Vegetarian diets are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines and can meet Recommended Daily Allowances for nutrients. Protein is not limited in vegetarian diets ...” (8). The PCRM report reviewed over 100 pieces of published work from across the world and was in no doubt about what we should be eating: “The scientific literature supports the use of vegetables, fruits, legumes (peas, beans, chick peas) and grains as staples. Meats, dairy products and added vegetable oils should be considered optional.” It was another clear and unequivocal statement that humans do not need to eat meat and are healthier for not doing so. 6. American Dietetic Association The ADA is probably one of the most respected health bodies in the world and, in its most recent report on vegetarianism, it kicked off with the words: “Studies indicate that vegetarians often have lower morbidity and mortality rates from several chronic diseases than do non vegetarians” (9). It confirmed that vegetarians are less at risk from the major degenerative diseases, including kidney disease and diabetes, and states that a vegetarian diet can arrest coronary artery disease. The ADA spells out the reason for this by saying that vegetarian diets offer disease protection benefits because of their lower saturated fat, cholesterol and animal protein content and often higher concentrations of folate, antioxidants such as vitamins C and E, carotenoids (vitamin A) and phytochemicals (plant nutrients). all the best urban

The last time I checked... humans were omnivores. I just responded to a discussion where a vegan is accusing people who claim to love animals and still eat meat of hypocrites...and even immoral. I wonder if those people have ever watched any documentary dealing with nature and its wildlife... and what animals do to each other in order to survive. Since the hippie movement of 1970... a lot of people have simply lost the plot. They are living in fantasy land and have thrown reality out of the window. We are anti this and anti that... I honestly cannot take any of those people seriously. If you read the news... the world is currently experiencing a food shortage and the prices are going through the roof. At the rate things are going... those vegetarians will soon be eating each other. lol But despite all the do gooders of this world... the planet continues to go down the tube... because rather than helping... they are just complicating things. I really don't want to waste my time discussing animal cruelty with vegetarians. There is no point in stating the obvious. There is no way to kill a living creature nicely. It will always be gruesome. It is like... I don't support the killing of baby seal... But the baby seal is the diet of the bear. Did you ever see a bear killing a baby seal? The reason for breeding cattle, sheep and pigs... is to prevent us eating the wildlife. If we had not done this... all wildlife would have been extinct a thousand years ago. And where does it stop? Are not fishes living creatures? Don't they have as much right to live as any other animal on land?

To be honest I would tend to agree with you that a totally meat free diet is probably not the healthiest. I have heard that it is necessary to supplement a vegetarian diet and to my mind it begs the question If the diet is "all that" then why would it be so important to supplememt it with vital vitamins? As for the argument that we are not designed to eat meat at all, then why as you say, do we have teeth designed for shredding meat and enzymes to break down protein? I have heard that we are not designed to extract the full range of nutrition from leafy vegetables and have a completely different digestive tract to herbivores. Even our closet animal relatives in the primate world also consume quantites of meat so what makes us think that 2% genetiic difference means we should not eat meat? I tried a vegetarian diet as a teenager and lasted about a week because I just craved meat too much! I freely admit to being a voracios carnivore at times and would much rather tuck into a juicy steak than a nut cutlet. I too am an animal lover and try to source my meat products from reputable sources where the animals are raised to a good standard and well looked after. As you say, farming is a business and you cannot maintain a good business if you produce sub-standard products therefore the animals must be kept healthy. I refuse to eat veal or foie gras because I do not believe in the necessity of the manner in which these animals are kept. As for hypocrisy, to my mind I find those that claim to be vegetarians who eat fish and occasional chicken are somewhat misguided. Surely flesh is flesh regardless of the animal of origin or the colour of the meat? I guess at the end of the day it is down to the individual to make as informed a choice as possible and I hope your article helps people to do that.

My son and his girlfriend are two of the healthiest people I know. He's a vegetarian and she's now made it to vegan. Personally, I still eat some meat. But with my fibromyalgia, I have a terrible sensitivity to chemicals. Meat now seems to hate me! I think that's because of all the antibiotics and hormones and steriods they give the animals. And because of those, I think many vegetarians are more healthy than regular meat eaters. Yes, they do have to make sure they get B12, but that is the only vitamin/nutrient not available from plant proteins. And most vegetarians I've met know what they need in their diets and take more vitamins and supplements than the rest of us. Wise eating, I think, depends on the person. For me, those added chemicals to meats and poultry are not good for my system. I confirmed this not long ago when I discovered some ground beef from cattle that had roamed free and had no antibiotics or steroids. The meat was the best I've tasted in 40 years. And...it didn't make me sick.

Finally! An interesting discussion on mylot! I read all the other responses and agree with most, so I can only add that, yes, I think it is hypocritical to demand that other people conform to one's idea of the perfect diet or risk being called cruel and immoral. Humans aren't perfect. A vegan may think they have the perfect diet, but unless they have the perfect lifestyle and never kill a flea they don't have the room to criticize too harshly. I read somewhere a few years ago that the healthiest cultures are those who eat a mostly plant-based diet with a little fish added in. The traditional Japanese diet would be an example, I suppose. Okinawans are supposed to be some of the healthiest people on the planet. I also tried vegetarian for a couple of years and it really screwed up my blood sugar. I tried to get protein and do balanced combinations, but it was not enough protein for me. Now I don't eat pork or beef, and like to have a vegetarian or animal-free meal every now and then through my week.

We are anatomically herbivorous. We are not able to rip animals limb from limb and eat and digest their raw flesh. I am not here to disagree with anyone. I am just giving my point of view, so please potential fighters to step back. Diet should be personal choice. My choice is Vegetarian. Vegetarians can get B12 from eggs and milk. Vegans can have B12 form B12 fortified foods like veggie burgers and cereals. I am not telling other people what they supposed to eat. I do have a problem with people pushing me into meat eating or making stupid jokes about vegetarians. More than this. I spend many years in my life investigating proper food for my patients. Meat was not on my list. Again, I am giving room for people to do what they want to do with their life. Everybody has a choice and ability to do investigate all possible food options and benefits.

I totally agree we do need meat in out diet. I just cant see how any one that just eats veggies can be healthy Like ya said they lose the very important vit. B12 and even if you take the suppliment how do you know for sure you are getting enough of that per day! for your own body. and I kow we need Iron thats one thing they ordered hubby to take extra was Iron pills to help build him up but alas it was way to late when they told him he was on the not liking food at that time was hard to get him to eat anything!. and I am looking into a place here that sales buffalow(sp) meat It has better properties in it than beef. So veggie aters before warned just veggies aint good for you

hi raia, well you stated here a few different things. and i do want to answer them from my point of view. first of all, each person has the right to live as he wants. i believe that each and every one of us finds what fits him the best at a different stage of his life, and he is entitled to think and act differently in another stage of his life. this world is dynamic and so are we. there are people that have a hard time accepting people acts that differ from their belief, and that is a pity. it has nothing to do with "right" or "wrong" and it has everything to do with a certain insecurity in the way they choose. i really do not understand people that are calling other people hypocrites because they love animals and eat them. i am a vegetarian for 15 years now, but even before that when i ate meat, i loved animals very much and did not see myself as doing somthing wrong. about the b-12, yes it is a problem. alote of veg. are not aware of that, but there is a way to have the b-12 without eating meat. meat of course is the easy way, but there are other ways to complete that. now about what happened to you, with this person that did not want to publish the article because he doesnt share your way of living and your opinion, i really can not understand that, and i do pity him for not being able to give you the "freedom of speech", he has a big problem.

A vegan or a vegetarian diet is great for people as long as they have enough of the right vitamins. I know that as a vegan I must make sure that I have vitamin B12 and iron because it is easy to be short of these. I drink soya and eat nuts to ensure that I have enough calcium as this is good for my teeth and bones. I became a vegetarian at 4 years old and later in my life became a vegan. I have an allergy to cow's milk and as I cut this out of my diet my health became excellent. A diet that includes lots of fruit and vegetables is healthy. I really love animals and do not wish to eat them. I respect your ideas, other people's choices and think that everyone must do what is right for them. For me being vegan is the right thing to do. I feel healthy and know that I am helping animals. I went snorkeling and saw the colorful fish but I didn't want to eat them. I often see cows in a field but I wouldn't want to to hurt them. All animals and people have feelings. I want to care for creatures not kill them. Each to their own opinion, farmers think differently to me and that is fine.

I am a vegan too(though not always - I eat birthday cakes!!). As kalav above said, I too was born in a vegan family and have never had direct meat in any form(except for those eggs in the cakes that I have on birthdays, I take it not to hurt other's sentiments). I can say that I am quite a healthy person so much so that I get jealous of people getting fevers - I remember getting a fever just twice in my lifetime(as far as I can remember). But I do have frequent colds and some gas problems. I never had any problem with not having enough protein or B-12 in my system so far. We include a lot of lentils that are high in protein in our everyday diet, so I guess we never fell short of it. Another advantage of being a vegetarian is that it is much easier to get 5 full servings of fruits and vegetables that if you are non-vegetarian. But I would like to add that whoever charged non-vegetarians of not loving animals and being hypocrites took this business to one extreme. I don't believe that way at all. In fact, I was wondering if I could be as loving to animals as many other people who are non-vegetarians. I guess they see it as food instead of animals. I think one should take whatever one's body is suited for. Since I have never tasted meat, I don't know what it is like for a body that has suited itself to meat to go without it. Also, I feel that the way a food is cooked also determines how much you can stick to it on a permanent basis. Not to hurt anybody's feelings, but I feel this way because when I gave birth to my son and was in the hospital for 4 days, the vegetarian food brought to me wasn't upto my expectations, except the salad. I liked the salad and fruits a lot but the way they make rice, beans and other vegetables there made me desperate to go back home soon . I guess that is the reason why many people here in America cannot eat too many veggies. If we watch our nutrition and cook food that makes us happy, then I guess we will be able to keep being a vegetarian as long as we want to.

Hi Raia, My computer has been giving me trouble all day. This is actually the third time I've tried to respond to this discussion. I am an animal lover who has always eaten meat.I was really beginning to feel like a hypocrite because of all I'd been reading about the treatment of animals. I grew up in a small community where my family like most others, kept a few animals and grew their own vegetables, to supplement their income.The animals were always well treated.I'm sure the same may be true in some cases today,but I've read some horror stories as well. Your discussion is very informative and makes a lot of sense. My main concern is the way the animals are treated. I realize too that there is a lost of misinformation out there. As I doubt if I will be making any drastic changes in my diet now, your post has at least made me feel a little better about myself. Blessings.

I think most medical reasearch has proved that vegetarin especially vegan diets are much better than eating meat. Such individuals blood pressure and cholesterol are lower and Seventh day adventists a relgious group (vegetarian)have a much lower incidence of heart attack than those in the general population. I do eat meat,but I am going to go meatless one day a week,so I can get some health benefits,plus it is cheaper.

I think the Vegan/Vegetarian diets have the potential to be completely healthy and life supporting. But I think (my opinion) that potential is only realized by those who do real-world research into the optimum way of using the vegan/vegetarian formula. Anyone who chooses the v/v lifestyle without fully investigating how to do it safely ... well, it is their health they are risking. As a previous poster pointed out, listen to the body. It heals itself. It knows what it needs to heal itself. It will tell you what it needs to heal itself. So listen up!! Another aspect of the Vegan/Vegetarion issue is the adverse affects on the body of the stress that results from the zealot-like efforts many put into their conversion bandwagons. The intense, sustained emotional stress, which, in my opinion, their passonate endeavours to convert others to their way of thinking/believing puts them under, can only upset the chemical balance of their bodies. And the body will try heal the imbalance. Which requires more nutrients. Which might not be there if they are doing the v/v thing based on hearsay and annecdotal information rather than concrete, scientific facts. If you want to live vegan/vegetarion, more power to you. Do what feels right for you. But get the real facts of how best to thrive the v/v way.

I believe it all comes down to what you eat whether veggie or not. I have been a non meat eater for 25 years and I am very healthy, I do eat fish and make sure I eat pulses and green veg that provide me with iron and B vits. I am not sure you can say that not many animals suffer when there is a demand for meat in most peoples everyday diets, which has led to intense factory farming that goes against how any animal should be reared. Growth hormones and antibiotics are now part of your food chain, which in my opinion is a bad thing. Bird flu has come about from the appalling conditions these animals are reared in and BSE was a big concern and Foot and Mouth disease has reared its ugly head a few times in the UK. I believe everyone has the right to eat what they want, but I also believe moral responsibility has to come with it. To eat an animal that has spent its life in artificial conditions is wrong, take pigs, living their lives on plastic grates is horrific, chickens that are so intensely farmed they have burns that are even found present on the meat you eat cannot be good for you. I can understand why the vegan was against your article as you put your own needs above those of the suffering of many animals, and as he is so against eating animals it will undoubtedly upset him. We all have our own opinions on things and this should be respected. I have no problem in reading your opinion even if I do not agree with it. I just wish you could have mentioned the ethical side, that we as humans, who rule the food chain should take more care in it. We are depleting so much of the worlds resources on domesticated farm animals and for me, I would rather pop a supplement than see this destruction. I know I have gone off the point, but I am one of those animal rights supporters so I will automatically have my own opinion straightaway and always find it difficult to find an argument for eating meat. But you know me by now..lol Much respect x

You know what I think about the healthiness of a vegetarian diet. The information is out there and anyone can find the facts. The fact is it can be healthy as long as you do it right. It is recognized as such, for example, by the American Dietetics Association. I just want to point out that I did not ever question anyone's morals or call anyone immoral and I find it rude and out of line that you actually have the audacity to say that I have. Besides, whether a vegan diet is healthy or not has nothing to do with my discussion, so adding that was pointless.

wow that's really a lot of information. and these are great information too. i learnt a lot going through the entire 'article'. i've entertained thoughts of becoming vegetarian and still am trying. maybe there will be vitamin deficiencies. i guess i wouldn't know until i've really tried it out. maybe there are ways of getting B12 from a vegetarian diet, or it doesn't exist in any plant based food? i guess a lot more research is needed before i embark on a vegetarian diet. as it is, i'm taking vegetarian food only on certain days. i love animals so i hope to do as much as i can. cheers ;p

I don't believe in veganism or vegetarianism. I think it's unhealthy period. It creates stomach problems and all sorts of other medical issues. I can tell from looking at someone whether or not they are a vegetarian, just by their skin. They are usually almost always pale with shadows under the eyes. Not a pretty look, even if you are thin due to the vegetarian diet. There are much more healthy ways to take of yourself, instead of making a "meat is murder" statement while killing yourself in the process. But as always to each their own. Have a great day my friend! XOXOXOXOXO

Too long for me to reday. Would you see it more simply??

I don't like the thought of killing animals, but I do feel a vegetarianlifestyle is healthy and good. Many people are confused by vegetarian and vegan. Vegetarians can still eat meat, but only fish and chicken, two of our most strongly supported agricultural staples. Vegans are strictly vegetarians and will not eat anything involving an animal. It's a complicated issue. Either have your body recieve protein and of course taste unusual and wonderful things, or live a very pure life of natural and prganic vegetation. True, supplements can make up for any loss in nourishment that the lack of meat has, but that's a bit complicated for just a lifestyle that way. I dunno', I could never give up chicken or fish, seeing as to how that's what I mostly eat - or try to eat - already. I've been eating much more salad lately. Yes, animals undergo a cruela nd harsh punishment for the food they provide...And it's very much so unnecessary to be so cruel in the process. It's like...Going to a hospital and beginning to beat-up the terminally ill children and mena nd women. Just because they're destined to die early on doesn't mean they should have to face anymore suffering than fate.