The research has been long-standing with evaluating the health of all types of vegetarian diets for decades.
Here’s a top 10 list of health benefits. Can you guess which ones are proven health benefits of a vegetarian diet? The others are possible benefits of a vegetarian diet.
- Hypertension
- Diabetes
- Heart disease
- Obesity
- Cancer
- Osteoporosis
- Kidney Disease
- Gall Stones
- Premature death
- Higher intake of antioxidants
Numbers 1-5 are the proven health benefits of vegetarian diets, 6-9 are possible health benefits of vegetarian diets and 10 is a dietary fact that vegetarians have higher intakes of antioxidants.
There are several different types of vegetarian diets.
A base vegetarian diet includes whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, fruit and vegetables.
Semi-vegetarian – no red meat. It includes a base vegetarian diet plus dairy and eggs.
Pesco-vegetarian – only eats fish (no meat or poultry) and includes the base vegetarian diet plus dairy and eggs.
Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian – eats a base vegetarian diet plus eggs and dairy.
Lactovegetarian – eats a base vegetarian diet plus dairy.
Ovo vegetarian – eats a base vegetarian diet plus eggs.
Vegan – eats a base vegetarian diet. A healthy vegan diet is also called a whole food plant based diet.
There is no other diet that has been studied as long and can report such significant health benefits as a vegetarian diet. Consider what you’re trying to accomplish with your nutrition; Is it to avoid disease? A vegetarian diet seems to be an optimal choice. If you’re interested on learning more about a vegetarian diet and how to make it work for you schedule a consultation today.