Make tasty vegetarian dishes at home!
Soy chicken nuggets, veggie stuffed bell peppers, baked potato and rice.
OR
Enjoy vegetarian food at a restaurant!
Veggie burger and fries.
The benefits to a vegetarian diet are endless. Choosing to go without meat has numerous positive effects on the your body and on the environment. According to the American Dietic Association (ADA), vegetarians are at lower risk for developing heart disease, diabetes, obesity, hypertension, colon, ovarian and breast cancer. Unfortunately, many individuals believe that it is unhealthy to be a vegetarian. There is a great website that debunks many myths about vegetarianism. According to www.eatright.org :
Myth: A vegetarian diet is too strict and limiting. It would be too hard to follow.
Fact: There are many different types of vegetarian diets. A lacto-ovo vegetarian avoids meat, fish and poultry but may eat eggs and dairy products. A lacto-vegetarian will avoid meat, fish, and poultry but will eat milk, cheese and dairy. They will avoid eggs or derivatives of eggs. Vegans are strict vegetarians who avoid all animal products.
Myth: Vegetarianism is just a fad that will pass in a few years.
Fact: Most people throughout world history have eaten a largely vegetarian diet. Relatively recently, in Europe and North America, where meat and animal products have become affordable, diets centered around meats have become widespread. In other parts of the world, plant-based diets remain more common.
Myth: Vegetarians need to take vitamin or mineral supplements.
Fact: Most healthy vegetarians don’t need to take supplements although there may be exceptions. Someone switching to a vegetarian diet should meet with a registered dietitian to be sure that all necessary vitamins and minerals are being consumed from food sources.
Now that we've debunked the myths surrounding the healthfulness of a vegetarian diet, we will examine some dangers of our over consumption of meat on the environment. One-fifth of the greenhouse gas omissions in the United States are from the production of livestock. The overproduction of livestock has also led to a loss in biodiversity, water shortages, obesity, other health related problems, pollution and more.
Considering the numerous positive effects of choosing a vegetarian diet, we would love to suggest an all vegetarian diet to every reader. However, we understand this may be unrealistic for many of you. Therefore, in true Change Weekly fashion, we are suggesting a much smaller change this week; which is to begin implementing "Meatless Mondays." Obviously, your meatless day does not have to be on Monday. Rather, choose one day each week that will not include meat of any kind. You will be able to implement a change without it being a hassle.
Be sure to check in with our facebook for our favorite vegetarian dishes.
A fabulous website for meatless dishes is www.meatlessmonday.com or www.vegetariantimes.com
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