Vegetarian Diet is Good for Health

People become vegetarians for many reasons, including health, religious convictions, concerns about animal welfare or the use of antibiotics and hormones in livestock, or the desire to eat in a way that avoids overuse of environmental resources. Some people follow a mostly vegetarian diet because they can't afford to eat meat. Becoming a vegetarian has become more attractive and accessible, thanks to the availability of fresh produce throughout the year, more vegetarian dining options and the growing culinary influence of cultures with mainly plant-based diets.

Traditionally, research on vegetarianism focused primarily on possible nutritional deficiencies, but in recent years, the pendulum has swung in the opposite direction and studies confirm the health benefits of eating meatless. Today, plant-based eating is recognized not only as nutritionally sufficient, but also as a way to reduce the risk of many chronic diseases. According to the American Dietary Association, "properly planned vegetarian diets, including all-vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthy, nutritionally adequate, and can provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases.

A recent study involving 48,000 people over the age of 18 compared the health of carnivores, pescatarians, who eat fish and dairy products but not meat, and vegetarians, including some vegans. They found that people who eat vegan and vegetarian diets have a lower risk of heart disease, but a higher risk of stroke, possibly due in part to a lack of B12.

The researchers found that those who didn't eat meat had 10 fewer cases of heart disease and three more strokes per 1,000 people compared to meat eaters. Researcher Tammy Tong, a nutritional epidemiologist at the University of Oxford, says the increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke could be due to several reasons.

Hemorrhagic stroke is caused by a hemorrhage in the brain. While low cholesterol protects against heart disease and ischemic stroke, there is some evidence showing that low cholesterol levels (associated with the vegan and vegetarian diet) may be linked to a small risk of hemorrhagic stroke.