Vegetarianism – A Way to Avoid Your Parents’ Disease

You look at the crowded blocks on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. You see Candle Café West, Peacefood Café, Blossom Du Jour – all these names convey good health and clean eating, while selling the concept of healthy vegetarian food. These vegetarian restaurants, which have cropped up in the last few years over a 15 block radius, have become extremely popular.

You look at the menus posted on the window. You see the customary salads, Tempe Avocado Sandwich, Spaghetti and Wheatballs, and Quinoa burger with Chickpea fries, all healthy vegetarian food.

You look inside the restaurants. They are packed and there is a line waiting to get in. You see teenagers on their way home from school, families with young children who pick these restaurants instead of the Shake Shack nearby, and many groups of college aged people. Why has health become such a priority for young people and why are they choosing a meatless life?

Vegetarianism is becoming popular in the U.S. especially among young people. It is no longer a mere fad, but is now a valid dietary option because of its proven health benefits. A decade ago, there was widespread concern about the nutritional sufficiency of vegetarian diets. Now, several studies have shown that vegetarian diets are healthy, and more importantly, they have nutritional value that lowers the risk of chronic diseases like Type 2 diabetes.

A vegetarian diet can significantly reduce the risk of Type 2 diabetes. Diabetes leads to a high risk of cardiovascular disease, and also to other serious health problems, such as, nerve damage, kidney disease and blindness. Young people are becoming vegetarian as they want to lead healthy lives early on and are anxious to avoid diabetes, the disease that befalls many older people. A vegetarian diet not only reduces one’s weight thus leading to lower glucose levels, but the constituents of a vegetarian diet have been proven to provide several nutritional benefits that reduce the risk of diabetes.

A 2016 national poll shows that 3% of the population is vegetarian (including vegans) and about 5% always eat vegetarian meals when eating out. While 5.3% of people in the age group 18-34 are vegetarian, the number falls to 2.2% in the 45-54 age group. Some youth are motivated by the desire not to harm animals or the environment, but more youth are becoming vegetarian today for health reasons. Cher Pastore, a registered nutritionist and dietician in New York City, who is also a certified diabetes educator, observed that while the earlier studies focused on how increased meat consumption led to a higher risk of certain cancers and cardiovascular disease, in the last few years there has been more research on the connection between vegetarian diets and diabetes, thus making vegetarianism an even more promising option. Pastore remarked that as more physicians recognize that vegetarian diets help with glucose control, they are recommending it to their diabetic patients.

Young people realize that if they become vegetarian they can potentially avoid the many awful consequences of diabetes. Diabetes is a “key factor in the predictive equations for cardiovascular disease” and leads to a much higher risk that the individual will suffer from cardiovascular disease “possibly by 3-5 fold.” Diabetics are also at danger of getting nerve damage, kidney disease, and blindness. They also get infections more easily and their risk of amputation is 25 times greater than non-diabetics.

Many diabetics get fatal heart attacks. A vegetarian diet helps control diabetes and therefore lowers the risk of heart disease. One of the largest studies involving more than 76,000 participants showed that vegetarians were 25% less likely to die of heart disease. Regular nut and whole grain consumption, an intrinsic part of the vegetarian diet, decreases cardiac risk, while animal fats consumed by non-vegetarians increases cardiac risk. Nuts have a low glycemic index, and certain nuts, like walnuts, are highly recommended as being good for the heart, because they contain Omega-3, just like salmon. Increased consumption of fruits and vegetables also leads to more fiber and less saturated fat in the diet, thus reducing LDL cholesterol and blood pressure, both major cardiac risk factors.

Yasmin Ali, a 60 year old woman, has suffered from diabetes for the last sixteen years even though she has been taking diabetes medication. While she lowered her rice and other carbohydrate consumption, she still ate meat for at least two meals a day. After a recent warning from her doctors, she has followed a doctor prescribed diet for the last four months, consisting mainly of vegetables, such as, broccoli, cucumber and kale, and soups made of celery stock. She found this diet difficult to follow at first, but is now “used to it.” Ali lost a significant amount of weight and her glucose level went down to 137, a safe level. She now realizes that “diet plays a big role” and that it is “essential to eat mainly vegetables for lunch and dinner.”

Weight loss is one of the main advantages of a vegetarian diet, since lowering body weight is key to preventing diabetes. Meat has more fat than vegetables, so a non-vegetarian naturally consumes more calories and saturated fat than a vegetarian, and so weighs more, and has a higher body mass index (BMI) leading to obesity. Obesity frequently leads to diabetes. The American Dietetic Association says that “appropriately planned vegetarian diets” are nutritionally adequate and contain numerous health benefits. Choosing “appropriate” vegetarian foods is important. Doctors and nutritionists advise people to avoid high carbohydrate vegetarian foods, such as pasta and pizza; instead the carbohydrates should be rich in fiber. The key is to eat more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and also replace saturated fats with good fats such as those found in nuts and olive oil. Vegetarian diets increase satisfaction possibly due to the amino acid composition or the sheer bulk of the diet, leading to lower food intake and weight loss.

Vegetarian diets, such as Ali’s, have several metabolic advantages and lower the risk of diabetes. Studies have shown how nuts, whole grains, and legumes, all vegetarian staples, have a low glycemic index, important for alleviating diabetes. Studies have also shown how increased consumption of fruits, vegetables and whole grains reduces the incidence of blood glucose and insulin resistance in obese individuals. A study found that while 43% of patients on a low calorie vegetarian diet were able to reduce their diabetes medication, only 5% of patients on the regular low calorie diabetes diet could do that. The reason is vegetarian diets increased insulin sensitivity, loss of visceral fat, and the oxidative stress markers.

Saadiqua Ali, the thirty-one year old daughter of Yasmin Ali, has witnessed how diabetes has been the “silent killer” in her family. Her mother has suffered from it for years, and her grandmother lost her eyesight because of diabetes. She realizes the “role of genetics” and how she and even her five-year old daughter could potentially get it. She makes sure her daughter eats well and “makes her active.” She ate a lot of meat as a child, but now focuses on vegetables, fruits and whole grains in planning her family’s daily meals.

Diabetics who are thinking of becoming vegetarian are advised not to move too fast, but to gradually wean themselves away from meat, perhaps for one meal a day, and to slowly start consuming more vegetables and whole grains. Pastore commented that she never asks her patients to cut out meat completely, but she advises them to eat more fruits, vegetables, and healthy oils and fats. Diabetics like Ali, or potential diabetics like her daughter, who embark on the path of vegetarianism will soon learn to embrace their new meatless lives.
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