Can you be as healthy as meat eaters when vegetarian?

Question

Firstly, I know I'm going to sound ignorant here, especially to those of you who have been vegetarian for long periods of time.

I have always loved animals & really wanted to be a vegetarian since the age of 15 (five years ago) However, I took glandular fever & became run down, suffered from chronic exhaustian etc. and since then I've focused on building myself up. However, it's came to the point in my life where I don't feel comfortable eating meat any more.

I'm into my fifth day of not eating meat now & I've had my brother (a junior doctor) and my parents questioning my decision b/c of health reasons. They maintain it is impossible to replace the vitamins, minerals etc. in meat with any other types of food. I know they are only concerned about my health and I've always been naturally slim & pale any way. As well as that my uncle was told by doctors he only survived the amount of blood he lost in a car accident because he ate a great deal of red meat.

Any advice?

Answer 1

tooooo many people with generalizations. although a vegetarian diet is usually healthier most people dont know what to eat for protein and vitamins. truth is that a REAL vegetarian diet should have way more proteins and vitamins then a meat based diet. especially if you eat fake meats. try morning star and boca burger brands. foods like beans and rice and cheese will help to give you proteins and calories too. for vitamins try taking vitamin pills or eating vegetables or drinking jamba juice with vita boost (and even protein boost)

have to add something cuz i just read some entries...dont listen to people that say that you dont get enough nutrition. they know NOTHING about being vegetarian and some even said they have never seen a healthy vegetarian...they need to get out more...ive never seen a fat or even unhealthily skinny vegetarian. and i ve seen MANY fat meat eaters. and the thing with eating meat being natural....watch this clip and see if we naturally and peacfully kill our food. http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/video.asp?video=mym_chickens_egg&Player=wm&speed=_med

Answer 2

anyone can be healthy if they adopt a healthy, balanced lifestyle. this can apply to both meat eaters and vegetarians - i know some vegetarians that have horrendous lifestyle habits and some meat eaters that exercise everyday and eat their fair share of all the food groups. if you eat too much or too little fat, you will not be healthy. if you do not eat enough variety of vegetables, you will not be healthy (all potatoes and no greens makes jack a fat unhealthy boy...). unlike a previous poster said, just because you don't eat meat, doesn't mean you are healthier than a meat eater - and THAT has been proven scientifically.

make smart food choices, cut down on salt, get plenty of exercise, get plenty of rest (8 hours of sleep/night are a must) and drink plenty of water. and, if when you are of age, have a nice glass of beer or wine every now & then. balance & moderation are what is important. if your health demands increased amounts of protein & iron, you may not be able to support a vegan lifestyle, but possibly you could continue to eat dairy, eggs and fish to make up for the loss of meat in your diet.

Answer 3

It incredibly does matter at this manner of meat eater and this manner of vegetarian. in case you're a wholesome meat eater with in trouble-free terms organic and organic, finished poultry, grass fed pork, and fish, then vegetarianism does no longer unavoidably earnings you. in case you crave meat, why no longer in case you're making the ultimate options on what form of meat you consume? some vegetarians actually basically consume bread, fries, milkshakes, and many dairy. Now that may no longer wholesome. no longer eating meat does not propose you will stay longer or be greater healthy. quite some the cases vegetarians pig out on the stuff they'd consume, via fact incredibly it in trouble-free terms restricts meat, that's protein, and protein makes you leaner. in case you are the type that basically eats any form of meat you spot off of a meals truck or McDonalds, that's awfully injected with hormones and all styles of yucky stuff, i'd propose you flow vegetarian. yet, i'd in trouble-free terms propose you grow to be a vegetarian who eats lentils, beans, chickpeas, and wholesome stuff :) yet another large meals plan which restricts all animal products(meat, dairy, eggs), is veganism, which incredibly does prepare you a thank you to along with your well-being. the alternative is yours too make, no longer mine. basically save those issues in ideas mutually as you're making your selection.

Answer 4

It depends what you eat instead of meat.
If you enjoy meat, then choose a good protein substitue. I assume you're in the UK, so look at Quorn, Linda McCartney, Tivall and most supermarket own brand veggie alternatives.
If you feel you're missing out on the iron content of red meat then try an iron supplement, maybe with a vitamin mix too.
My daughter turned veggie aged 7. She'll be 17 next month and is a fit and healthy teenager. She loves the Quorn range - tonight she had a Quorn kiev. Tomorrow she's having sweet & sour Quorn pieces with rice, yesterday she had a veggie mince and onion pie with mash and mixed veg.
She's not missing out on anything!

Answer 5

Your brother and parents need to go back to school

I've been veggie for 27 years, take no supplements and am never ill ( I also get sick of writing that every day to questions that say we need supplements )

A vegetaraian diet witrh a balance of dairy, fruit, cereals, nuts, and vegetables provides all the goodness you need.

There is no need to complicate the issue, its really simple.
Eat a balanced veggie diet, live long and healthy.

Your brother is a junior doctor ??? Ha, Tell him from me - he should be ashamed of himself.

When i pass MCD's I must admit I am envious of the slender highly toned individuals in the queue...or not

Either I'ma biological miracle or all the meat eaters are lying / misinformed / spreading thier cliched mis-information.

Answer 6

Yes Vegetarians can be as healthy as people who eat meat. They just need to supplement their diet correctly. They can eat Tofu which is high in Protein like meat, Mix some rice and steamed veggies and that's a GREAT COMBO of nutrients essential to their bodies! I tend to eat vegetarian, but occasionally I do eat some meat, but not often. You can also buy a multi purpose vitamin to accomodate the stuff you are not eating if it's that much of a problem for your family... Tell you Brother to write you a prescription for a multi vitamin if he is so worried. I don't mean to come a cross a s rude or anything, but as a doctor or Junior Doctor... He must know how to supplement what you aren't getting from eating meat! ANYWHO........
Hope this helped!

Answer 7

to adress their fears - go to a bookstore and invest in a few books on vegetariansim, cookbooks, etc.

it is possible, but not easy, to be as healthy or healthier that meat eaters. you just have to be very aware of what you eat and the purpose it serves. don't get me wrong - i still have a diet coke and doritos sometimes - but i focus on eating a baolanced meal at every meal and getting a variety of veggies and fruits in my diet. that's one of the main problems with vegetarians, they often don't get enough variety to cover all the bases. try new things!!

you could also go to a nutritionist and talk through your diet and ask for their specific reccomendations to fit your needs and suit your lifestyle.

Totally worth the expense to get you eating healthy for the rest of your life!


and that story about your uncle... um... that just don't sound right to me. I don't know, but it might just be a rumor. It sounds like you've got a lot of people in your family who are very attached to eating meat. Don't let them bug you. I stopped eating meat (slowly, cutting things out one by one over the course of almost a year) when I was 13 - and my family is just now beginning to not look at my meals sideways. (I'm 26 now)

Answer 8

I am a vegetarian and am healthier than most of my meat eating friends. I never understood why meat eaters always question my decision to not eat meat. Since going veggie I feel better than I ever have before.

Answer 9

Anything your body needs can be found outside of meat. The issue that I've encountered was not getting enough protein when I first started my life as a vegetarian. Now I'm more wise to that and I eat plenty of beans, tofu, and brown rice.
However, if you decide to become a vegan, you'll need to take B12 supplements.

Answer 10

What a pile of odd answers.

My first reaction to the question was "Huh? Vegetarians are frequently HEALTHIER than meat eaters."

Note 'frequently.' If you're living off cheese pizza, no...

The Wikipedia article is a good place to start.

"The American Dietetic Association, the largest organization of nutrition professionals, states on its website "Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals."

As an example, American vegetarians tend to have lower body mass indices, lower levels of cholesterol, lower blood pressure, and less incidence of heart disease, hypertension, some forms of cancer, type 2 diabetes, renal disease, osteoporosis, dementias such as Alzheimer’s Disease and other disorders that may be diet-related."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetarianism#Health

Entire populations -- Hindus being the most obvious -- would be visibly suffering if there was any truth to the idea that a vegetarian diet is really lacking in some magic nutrients only present in meat.

See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetarian_nutrition

"Evidence suggests that vegetarians are generally healthier and live longer than non-vegetarians. They have lower rates of coronary heart disease, obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes and some forms of cancer. Vegetarian diets tend to be rich in carbohydrates, omega-6 fatty acids, dietary fibre, carotenoids, folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin E, potassium and magnesium and low in saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein.

However, vegetarian diets can also be relatively low in protein, iron, zinc, vitamin B12, calcium and other nutrients. Nonetheless, well-planned vegetarian and vegan diets can meet all these nutrient requirements and are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including during pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence."

Note "relatively low in." I don't think it's much of a problem for the average vegetarian. (Vegans have to work a LOT harder to get a balanced diet, though.)

I've never eaten meat (or seafood, or poultry), and have never suffered in the least for it. My diet is much healthier than the average Westerner's. I did consult a dietician once; the verdict was that my diet was largely admirable but could use a wee bit more iron -- adding a wee bit more spinach fixed things up.