A Meatless Diet Is Better for You--And the Planet
- Scientific American, July 14, 2023
Vegetarian and especially vegan diets can promote better health, help mitigate climate change and reduce inhumane factory farming
The idea that we need to eat meat to get enough protein and iron, a false assumption of some Paleo diet acolytes (https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/human-ancestors-were-nearly-all-vegetarians/), is a common misconception. It ignores the abundance of protein and iron in many plant-based foods such as nuts, seeds and legumes. Similarly, consuming dairy is not necessary to obtain adequate dietary calcium, as this mineral is abundant in soy, lentils, beans, nuts, seeds, grains, leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables.
Likewise, while we typically associate omega-3 fatty acids with fish, fish themselves incorporate these into their tissue by eating algae and seaweed, which we can consume directly without the concerns of exposure to accumulated mercury and microplastics in fish flesh. Indeed, a whole-food, plant-based diet can provide all essential nutrients except for vitamin B12, which is made by bacteria in soil and ingested by animals, thereby incorporated into their tissue, milk, and eggs. While modern sanitation allows humans to consume clean produce uncontaminated by dirt or feces, we can easily and cheaply obtain oral B12 supplements.
Furthermore, significantly reducing our consumption of meat would carry vast benefits. As cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death around the world, poor diet has now surpassed tobacco smoking as the top risk factor for death in the U.S, where life expectancy has now stagnated, in large part because of a plateau in mortality from cardiovascular disease. Eating highly processed foods and red meat has been repeatedly demonstrated to promote underlying mechanisms of cancer and cardiovascular disease, such as inflammation and damage to the lining of blood vessels.
Mounting evidence points to the benefits of a whole-food, plant-based diet. A meta-analysis of scientific studies from 2017 found that a vegetarian diet is associated with a 25 percent relative risk reduction for coronary heart disease and an 8 percent relative risk reduction for cancer, with a vegan diet conferring a 15 percent relative risk reduction for cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified processed meat as carcinogenic, and (unprocessed) red meat as probably carcinogenic to humans. Finally, randomized controlled trials have also demonstrated the benefits of a Mediterranean diet (essentially a whole-food, plant-predominant diet) in both the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease, with enhanced benefits from greater adherence to a provegetarian (more plant-based) dietary pattern.
- More at link: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-meatless-diet-is-better-for-you-and-the-planet/
Note: This is an opinion piece by By Sarah C. Hull, assistant professor of medicine (cardiology) at the Yale School of Medicine, where she also serves as associate director of the Program for Biomedical Ethics.
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cilla4progress
(25,434 posts)substituting some vegan foods for animal products.
Don't have to go whole hog.
Oooops... 😳
Merlot
(9,696 posts)Meat consumption going down by 1/7th would be a good start.
Shh, don't tell the meat industry and factory farmers about this nefarious idea. Didn't they sue Oprah for even suggestion to not eat meat?
DBoon
(22,833 posts)Having a vegan day of the week could be a treat and not a sacrifice.
doc03
(36,181 posts)the plastic tray to catch the drippings was half full of some kind of oil. That oil or whatever it is was like
synthetic motor oil. I washed the grill plates three times and still couldn't break it up. I couldn't even get the
grease off my hands. The burger was dry and had no flavor, so much for that experiment. I don't eat
beef that often but I will stick to real meat when I do.
cilla4progress
(25,434 posts)Have tried a lot and they are our fave so far.
Sorry you had a bad experience.
doc03
(36,181 posts)no grease and they taste OK.
cilla4progress
(25,434 posts)![](/emoticons/hi.gif)
milestogo
(16,995 posts)Plus the Bocas have a lot of protein.
zeusdogmom
(1,025 posts)Processed food - and impossible burgers is a processed food - is not the best thing for our bodies
cilla4progress
(25,434 posts)Unless you only eat organic fruits and vegetables...
DBoon
(22,833 posts)Ersatz meat doesn't do it for me.
OrlandoDem2
(2,184 posts)We are using more oat and almond milk than ever.
EVERYONE need to do their part to save this planet. Its the only one that we have!
I want my kids to have a future with snow, polar ice caps, and cold weather. I dont want this planet to burn!
Waterguy
(258 posts)It takes a substantial amount of water to produce almonds. So I would recommend oat or other milk alternatives.
I don't use milk much myself but I do like cheese.
I have still been using real cheese, from cow and goats milk, but I did have cheese a friend made with nuts and a few different ingredients that was fantastic - sorry I don't have the recipe.
walkingman
(8,085 posts)about twice a month in various dishes. I never planned it but I noticed that I just don't digest red meat well at all. It makes me feel bloated. I much prefer chicken or pork but mostly chicken. It just tastes better to me.
For the sake of our planet I think we will have to change our ways.....
GreenWave
(8,384 posts)Bull!
Rhino!
Kangaroo!
Giraffe!
Brontosaurus!
and the biggest of them all on land (so far!)
Argentinosaurus!
patphil
(6,688 posts)I eat for flavor, and satisfaction.
For me, it's the difference between living and simply existing.
I respect that others feel differently, but I want the real thing.
milestogo
(16,995 posts)We aren't going to exist at all if we don't move away from factory farming. What food we eat is no longer a matter of personal taste; now its about the survival of the planet.
mitch96
(14,399 posts)or so for cervical cancer. Her daughter also. It seems she was given Diethylstilbestrol (DES) to control premature birth and morning sickness.
They both got cancer but it was resolved.
So with this knowledge I'm riding to work one day and I hear the cows in the feed lots are being given diethylstilbestrol to enhance growth.. Hummm
My Mom did not raise no dummy... Give DES to humans and they get cancer.
Give DES to cows that people eat? Ahhh no, not for me. Needless to say I don't eat red meat very often if at all. I'm not a full blown vegan and I dip my toes into the pool every once in a while but I mainly eat veg. Works for me.
BTW DES has been banned from the feed lots since 1972..
m
Fellow geezer here. Im not religious about diet but eat about 90 percent fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, and seeds. The proof is in my annual checkup results, my energy level, and pants size.
In my younger years, I used to consume lots of garbage, without a care in the world, including plenty of saturated fats, simple carbohydrates, and not much fiber. I finally got around to getting an annual physical one year, and the doctor wanted to put me on a statin prescription.
I said No Way Jose and immediately adopted a healthier diet plus moderate exercise. Results were vastly improved in a month, and Ive been able to keep it that way for years.
Plenty of delicious options without the need for processed foods or animal products at every meal.
mitch96
(14,399 posts)A while back a nutrition centered MD mentioned the acronym "G.B.O.M.S" to help remember what to eat. Greens, grains, Beans, berries, fruits, Onions, Mushrooms, Seeds and nuts.
I try to eat a little of each every day. Eat whole foods, mostly veg, not too much..
m
Waterguy
(258 posts)With a little bit of creativity you can make great meatless meals and pretty soon you don't miss meat at all.
I'll never go back.
Pinback
(12,606 posts)When my wife and I first decided to cut way back on meat, we ate a lot of cheese (to get that satisfying wad of fat that comes with a carnivorous gut-bomb, I guess). When you've been conditioned your whole life that a "good meal" is one that leaves you feeling suffused with saturated fat, it's a new experience to have a leaner lipid profile.
When I started getting alarming results from my annual checkup blood work, I realized it was time to quit kidding myself. I'm to the point now where a meal of lentils, seaweed salad, chickpeas, dates, and quinoa (as I had for lunch) is both delicious and satisfying. So glad to have made the transition many years ago. I kind of like living, and would like to keep doing it for two or three more decades.