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A healthy lifestyle
Losing
Weight and Feeling Great !
Adopting a vegetarian diet is an easy (and delicious)
way to lose weight. Not only is a plant based diet lower in calories, fat, and
cholesterol, but does not have to be a sacrifice, with so many wonderful
options available. There is more good news. On a vegetarian diet, you feel
better almost immediately and after a while, you lose your taste for animal
products, so are not even tempted by a burger or cheese cake. Somehow, you just
feel you are doing the right thing for your body. This web designer (female) is
5'6", 120lb (167 cm, 55 kg)having lost about 20 lb (9 kg) after "going
veggie."
A Vegetarian
Diet - fit for an athleteThere are many world class athletes who follow a
vegetarian or vegan diet. The idea that an athlete must consume meat and dairy
products to build muscles and for top performance has been dispelled by
successful athletes in a variety of sports. Below is a reference to the
Thrive Diet developed by Brendan Brazier, an ironman
tiathlete.
Disease
prevention (and even reversal !)
Cancer:
It is fairly well known that colon cancer can be
prevented by reducing or eliminating meat, but research has shown that the risk
of breast, prostate, stomach, blood and other cancers can also be reduced with
a plant diet.
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Heart
Disease and Stroke:
Atherosclerosis is a process by which cholesterol
plaques build up inside the walls of arteries, hardening and narrowing the path
for blood flow. When blood flow to the heart is reduced, a heart attack, heart
failure, angina or even sudden death can occur. Similarly, the narrowing and
hardening of the arteries leading to the brain can result in dementia or a
stroke.
Our bodies make cholesterol, as it is required for
some functions. The problems occur when we consume cholesterol from animal
products, including meat, eggs and dairy products. Plant products contain no
cholesterol so consuming them adds no cholesterol to what our bodies already
need.
High
blood pressure can also contribute to heart disease. Although the main culprit
for high blood pressure is salt, there is also evidence that a vegetarian diet
can reduce blood pressure.
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Diabetes:
People with type 2 diabetes have too much fat in their
diet and are usually too fat themselves. Adopting a plant based, low fat diet
not only results in weight loss but can prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes
and even reverse its effects. |
Following
are references on the health benefits, including studies, research, and
personal stories:
CNN
Interview with Bill Clinton on losing weight
Dr.
Oz comments on Bill Clinton's weight loss and other benefits of a vegan
diet
Dr. Dean Ornish on
Eating More (veggies) and Weighing Less
Athletes
Eat Plant-Based Diet for Health, Longevity and Environmental
Concerns
Achieve
Long-term Health and Enhance Performance Through Plant-based Whole
Foods
Vegetarians
less likely to develop cancer than meat eaters, says study
Being
a vegetarian can cut your risk of cancer by a half, claim scientists
Cancer
incidence in British vegetarians
Collards and
carrots may ward off breast cancer
Cancer
Project/Diet and Cancer Research
How to Have a Heart
Attack: Keep Eating the Western Diet
Top
cholesterol-lowering foods - Heart and Stroke Foundation
Can specific fruits and
vegetables prevent diabetes?
Diet and Diabetes:
Recipes for Success
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