Veggie Love Planet

HEALTH TIP : We eat with our eyes first, don’t we? God made food attractive so we would choose to eat what’s good for us. The truth is that foods with vibrant and rich colors aren’t just “pretty” … they’re also “ healthy .” There are literally thousands of health promoting phytochemicals found in plants, and that’s why it is essential to eat a wide variety of colorful yellow, red, orange, green, purp le, and blue fruits and vegetables every day! Eating plenty of healthy vegetables and fruits helps prevent heart disease and strokes, diverticulitis, control your blood pressure, prevent prostate cancer, colon cancer, and protects against cataracts and macular degeneration or vision loss. By eating fruits and vegetables from each color group, you will benefit from the unique array of phytochemicals, as well as essential vitamins, minerals, and fiber that each color group has to offer. Colorful fruits and vegetables are chock full of “flavonoids” and “carotenoids” (powerful compounds th...

People are drawn to vegetarianism by all sorts of motives. Some of us want to live longer, healthier lives... People are drawn to vegetarianism by all sorts of motives. Some of us want to live longer, healthier lives or do our part to reduce pollution. Others have made the switch because we want to preserve Earth's natural resources or because we've always loved animals and are ethically opposed to eating them. Thanks to an abundance of scientific research that demonstrates the health and environmental benefits of a plant-based diet, even the federal government recommends that we consume most of our calories from grain products, vegetables and fruits. And no wonder: An estimated 70 percent of all diseases, including one-third of all cancers, are related to diet. A vegetarian diet reduces the risk for chronic degenerative diseases such as obesity, coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and certain types of cancer including colon, breast, prostate, stomach, lun...

Most non vegetarians wonder what drives people to convert to vegetarians and give up their daily meat intake in order to adopt an entirely different way of lifestyle. There is no single answer to this question. Non vegetarians become vegetarians for a lot of different reasons - some even for multiple reasons. Most vegetarians claim that they became a vegetarian for one of three main reasons. The first reason , which most vegetarians claim, is that they have serious ethical problems with eating meat. Most disagree with how chickens are debeaked, forced to live in small cages, and are then slaughtered when they do not produce eggs fast enough. Most vegetarians also disagree with the crowded and stressful environments that animals are forced into; and the hormone-laden daily feed used to make them grow faster and produce more. People who become vegetarians for this purpose often draw ethical boundaries in different spots, depending on their indept personal beliefs. For instance, some...

Vegetarian diets can meet all the recommendations for nutrients. The key is to consume a variety of foods and the right amount of foods to meet your calories needs. Follow the Dietary Guideline for Americans food group recommendations for your age, sex and activity level to get the right amount and the variety for nutrient adequacy. Nutrients that vegetarians may need to focus on include protein, iron, calcium, zinc and vitamin B12. 1. Think about protein Your protein needs can easily be met by eating a variety of plant-based foods. Sources of proteins for vegetarians include beans, nuts, peas, and soy products (tofu, tempe, veggie burgers). Build meals around protein source that are naturally low in fat, such as beans, lentils, and rice. 2. Bone up on source of calcium Calcium is used for building bones and teeth. Sources of calcium for vegetarian include fortified breakfast cereals*(this is generally refer to USA residents only), soy products (tofu, soy-based beverages), calcium-fo...

If there was an eating style that made you happy, would you do it? What if that same eating style helped keep your weight in the healthy range?  And reduced your risk of breast, bladder, and other cancers?  Would you then? Vegetarians have been studied extensively and recently, studies reveal that a vegetarian lifestyle is healthier overall.  In Nutrition Journal, vegetarians had less depression, anxiety and stress and overall, better moods than meat-eaters in the U.S.  The reason?  Vegetarians eat less animal-based essential fatty acids and more omega-3 from plants.  People with diabetes have a higher incidence of colon, liver, pancreatic, and endometrial cancers.  The American Diabetes Association and American Cancer Society suggest more whole grains, fruits and vegetables and less red and processed meats which reduces the risk. In the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers say postmenopausal women can lower their risk of breast canc...

It has been well documented that people who choose a vegetarian diet enjoy superior health with lower risks for a variety of disorders, such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. Now, science has presented us with yet another reason to choose the healthful vegetarian lifestyle. A new study published in Journal Nutrition has linked the vegetarian lifestyle with healthier mood states. It turns out that vegetarians are not only a lot healthier than the rest of the population, apparently, they are a lot happier, too. How does this finding challenge current recommendations? According to the researchers at Arizona State University, the vegetarians in their study experienced significantly less negative emotion than the omnivores. This is good news for everyone, because consuming fish is often the subject of government health advisories. The oceans are increasingly polluted and contain unacceptable levels of contaminants, such as dioxin and PCPs, and a recent government study revealed wid...

Here are six reasons of why vegetarian diet is so good for you: Vegetarian cuisine is naturally low in saturated fats, and foods of plant origin contain little or no cholesterol. Plant foods are also much higher in fiber than animal foods. Many plant foods contain significant amounts of vital B-vitamins, and folic acid: and fruits and vegetables are powerful sources of phytochemicals - nutrients that help every organ of the body work better. Vegetarians tend to eat fewer calories, since grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables, volume-for-volume, tend to be lower in calories than meat and poultry. Studies have shown that as long as their diet is balanced and nutritious, the people who consume fewer total daily calories live longer and healthier lives. Veggie lovers believe that foods from plant sources, which are lower on the food chain, are safer than animal foods, since pollutants tend to concentrate in fatty tissues. While raw fruits and vegetables can carry harmful ba...

Raising a little vegan requires more planning and nutritional know-how to insure that the child gets enough calcium, vitamin D, iron, vitamin B-12, and some of the other B-vitamins. Yes, children can grow normally on a diet of grains, legumes, and greens, yet it's a bit risky. A wise parent should seek periodic advice from a nutritionist experienced in vegan diets and practice these precautions: Protein is not a problem, children can get all the proteins they need from plant foods only; especially whole grains, soy products, legumes, and nuts. Calcium may present a challenge, since traditional plant sources of calcium are not big favorites with children. (Good luck getting your child to eat kale and collards.) But many foods today are fortified with calcium, including calcium-fortified soy milk and orange juice, so a vegan child can get enough calcium without relying on supplements. Fortified foods, such as cereals and soy beverages, can also be a dietary source of vitamin B-1...

Maximize iron absorption by combining plant sources of iron with foods high in vitamin C. Be sure to tell your healthcare provider you're a vegan, and have your hemoglobin checked at least every other month. Because you can still feel anemic with a normal hemoglobin level, your doctor may want to do an iron profile, which is a more accurate measure of iron-sufficiency in your blood than is measuring your hemoglobin. (Research whether the increased fluid volume artificially dilutes the hemoglobin, giving a falsely low value.) If your practitioner recommends that you take iron supplements, protect yourself from discomfort by taking smaller doses with meals, for example, 100 milligrams of ferrous sulfate tablets three times a day. To increase the amount of iron absorbed from these pills, down a 100-milligram vitamin C tablet at the same time. Lean on sunlight as a valuable source of vitamin D. Since vitamin D is not stored in the body, you may need to take a supplement daily. ...

Vegetarian diets—naturally low in saturated fat, high in fiber, and replete with cancer-protective phytochemicals—help to prevent cancer. Large studies in England and Germany have shown that vegetarians are about 40 percent less likely to develop cancer compared to meat-eaters. In the United States, studies of Seventh-Day Adventists have shown significant reductions in cancer risk among those who avoided meat. Similarly, breast cancer rates are dramatically lower in nations, such as China, that follow plant-based diets.6 Interestingly, Japanese women who follow Western-style, meat-based diets are eight times more likely to develop breast cancer than women who follow a more traditional plant-based diet. Meat and dairy products contribute to many forms of cancer, including cancer of the colon, breast, ovaries, and prostate. Harvard studies that included tens of thousands of women and men have shown that regular meat consumption increases colon cancer risk by roughly 300 percent. High-fa...