Are Vegetarian Diets Healthier?

Many people think that meat is the culprit for a lot of weight gain and consider a vegetarian or part-vegetarian diet in order to lose some weight. While it is true that meat has fat, it also has a lot of protein that people on a vegetarian diet have to make up or in other ways like peanut butter, soy products and tofu. The actual crux of the matter is not the absence or presence of meat but the entire balance of the food groups.

Myths about Vegetarian Diets

A person may not eat meat at all, but the vegetables he devours are laden with trans fat and other unhealthy oils. Green beans may be great but deep fired green beans are another story altogether. Vegetables are great, but if the only vegetable your family likes is French fires or starchy corn and peas then it may not be in the best interest of healthy eating. Contrary to popular pinion, many people on a vegetarian diet often have high cholesterol because they feel they can indulge in oils as they skip the meat.

Similarly people who do eat meat may make healthy choices like lean meats and grilled varieties. They may like the flavor meats add to meals but they don’t go overboard with fried chicken drumsticks and fatty cuts of steak.

Quantity and Variety

If a vegetarian needs to diet to lose weight, he should do two simple things. One is to change the way he cooks the vegetables by switching to steaming, boiling, or stir frying with canola or olive oil or better still, fat-free cooking spray. Second, he can increase the quantity and variety of vegetables he has. Try to pick a different color vegetable for each day of the week. Add spices to make up for the relatively bland flavor due to less oil used. Most spices have zero calories and a dash of coarsely ground pepper or paprika can add zest to any vegetable.

Devour salads whenever you can with little dressing. If you live creamy ranch, have it on the side so you need to only dip your fork in it, not have dollops of fat on your healthy greens.

If you are a vegetarian by religious or social choice than you cans still find lots of ways to make up for protein through pulses, beans, nuts, nut butters, lentils and the like. There are a lot of option beyond chicken and beef; it is up to you to find them and incorporate them in to a healthy vegetarian diet.