Dietary Lifestyles – Vegetarian and Vegan

In the Western world, vegetarianism has gone through varying levels of popularity. And today, being a vegetarian often extends beyond what a person will or will not put in their mouth.

Not All the Same: The Different Types of Vegetarians

The Diet of Vegetarians and Vegans – is it Healthy?

In general, vegetarianism is gaining greater acceptance. Vegetarian restaurants are popping up everywhere. Many Hollywood stars have proclaimed themselves non-meat eaters, thus making vegetarianism a "cool" choice. Reasons for choosing this dietary lifestyle are many and varied: love of animals, religion (such as Hinduism and Buddhism), being health conscious, and simply not liking the taste of meat.

The vegetarian diet involves rethinking attitudes toward food. In general, vegetarians are more aware of what they are consuming than are meat-eaters. Most vegetarians don't use drugs or smoke and drink very little alcohol – as a result, studies have shown they are leaner, have lower blood pressure and serum cholesterol, and have fewer incidences of colon cancer.

A common misconception, however, is that vegetarians will become protein deficient. With the variety of non-animal protein currently available in the developed world – soy products, nuts, chickpeas, lentils, and beans – protein deficiency is highly unlikely. And although vegetarians can be vulnerable to other deficiencies, they avoid these problems by replacing animal products with complementary foods, such as taking vitamin C to increase calcium absorption, or limiting phytates or oxalates which aid in the absorption of iron, calcium, and zinc. In the case of children, who are being raised in the vegetarian lifestyle, this is especially important.

Social Acceptance of Vegetarians

In today's health conscious society, more and more people are dabbling in vegetarianism. But despite this, vegetarians continue to be met with the pressure to eat meat and/or to defend their dietary lifestyle. Some people find it inconvenient to accommodate a vegetarian diet. Others believe the diet is unhealthy. And, in the case of vegans, whose beliefs can include not wearing animal products or not using animal-based medications, the lifestyle can appear to be extremist.

No matter what our dietary differences, however, one thing vegetarians and non-vegetarians agree on is that, in this day of mad cows, modified foods, the fast-food nation, and child obesity, healthy eating isn't as straightforward as it used to be.

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