A vegetarian diet is healthy but...                                

            There is no doubt that a strictly vegetarian diet is healthier than the all-too-prevalent sugary, fat-laden, high-starch eating pattern that characterizes the average American. It takes some careful planning to take advantage of the benefits of the vegetarian menu and avoid its potential shortcomings.

            Persons who avoid foods derived from animals boast of the longer lifespan and the freedom from several chronic diseases that they enjoy and medical science backs up nearly all of those claims. It’s clear that vegetarians, especially the vegans, who don’t give in even for eggs and dairy products, have less heart disease, stroke and high blood pressure. They are less likely to be obese or to have type 2 diabetes or gallbladder disease, all of which are closely linked. Claims of lower incidence of cancer, dementia or chronic kidney disease are controversial although there is no doubt that they are complications of obesity. Lifestyle factors such as exercise do matter and they tend to complicate any side-by-side comparison between vegetarians and meat eaters.

            Vegetarians eat foods that fill them up, not fill them out. Vegetables and fruits have lots of appetite-satisfying fiber and are calorie-sparse. Of course, a vegetarian diet may also include pastries, candy and soft drinks, a nutritionist’s nightmare.

            When vegetarians develop health problems on that diet it’s usually because they fail to include some key nutrients. Iodine is perhaps the most common deficiency because they avoid fish and may not include enough iodized salt in meal preparation. Anemia might occur because although there is a moderate amount of iron in many plant foods it is not as bioavailable as it is in meat products. Except for the occasional insect that inhabits fruits and vegetables, there is no vitamin B₁₂, another cause of anemia. There is less calcium in plant foods but it is absorbed more readily than from dairy products although some plants have antinutrients that keep calcium from being utilized by the body. Zinc deficiency may occur for the same reason.

            Omega-3 fats are not abundant in plant foods. Strict vegans should take a supplement that is derived from plant sources such as algae.

            Parents should be aware that vegetarianism may be an eating disorder in disguise. They should always help a child to plan his or her menu and to monitor them carefully. Anorexia nervosa and bulemia have severe long-term consequences.

            A vegetarian diet is healthy. Just do it right.