Vegetarianism has become popular relatively recently, but the idea itself is not new. Until the middle of the 19th century, when the word "vegetarian" appeared, a diet consisting exclusively of plant foods was known as the Pythagoras diet, which got its name thanks to the writings of the Greek philosopher of the 6th century B.C. Today, people are much more aware of the benefits of giving up meat, and a key reason for changing one's diet is to be healthy.
President Bill Clinton, for example, was known for his unhealthy eating habits. After undergoing major heart surgery in 2004 and undergoing vascular stenting in 2010, he changed his lifestyle. Today, the 67-year-old Clinton fully adheres to a vegan diet, except for the occasional omelet and salmon.
Director James Cameron announced two years ago that he had become a vegan by caring for the world around him. "There's nothing you can do for the future of the world--the world after us, the world of our children--unless you switch to a plant-based diet," the director notes. Last summer, he gave a standout speech at the U.S. National Geographic Society awards ceremony, where he was honored as Explorer of the Year: "By changing what we eat, you change the whole system of the relationship between the human species and nature," Cameron is convinced.
Sometimes a simple contact with the natural world is enough to fundamentally change the diet. Musician Paul McCartney decided to give up meat decades ago after seeing frolicking lambs on his farm one day. Now he suggests that people eliminate meat from their diet at least once a week. In 2009, he launched a campaign in the U.K. advocating giving up meat on Mondays. "I think Monday is a great day to give up meat, because a lot of people tend to overeat on weekends," the musician explains.
Of course, sticking to a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle isn't always easy. Actor Ben Stiller in 2012 in an interview called himself a pescatarian - a person who does not eat any animal food except fish and seafood. Stiller shares how he feels: "Vegans don't talk about it. It's hard. Because you want animal foods. Today I had browncoat chips. I wanted pork ribs, but I ate browncoat chips." Ben Stiller's wife, actress Christine Taylor, supports him and is also following a plant-based diet. "Our energy levels have changed significantly," the actress told People magazine two years ago. - "Sometimes you just don't realize it until someone says, 'Wow, you look dazzling!
If you decide to become a vegetarian, too, you'll be giving yourself, or rather your body, a big gift.
"Such diets help reduce the risks of obesity, type II diabetes, heart attacks and many other ailments," says Marion Nestle, nutritionist and author of What to Eat: an Aisle-by-Aisle Guide to Savvy Food Choice and Good Eating. And if you're worried that giving up meat might lead to health problems, you don't have to worry. "The key to a healthy diet is a varied and complete diet," because "the composition of nutrients in foods varies, and they all complement each other." So the first question about a vegetarian diet is what to exclude and to what extent. If your "vegetarian" diet includes some products of animal origin - fish, eggs, dairy products, poultry meat, there will be no problems with the lack of nutrients.
A strict vegan diet can provoke some health problems. The fact is that vegans who avoid all animal products can be deficient in vitamin B12, which is found almost exclusively in animal foods. Because so many foods are excluded from the diet, vegans are at risk for other nutrient deficiencies, but careful diet planning can help reduce these risks. To diversify your diet, it is recommended to eat as many different cereals and legumes that contain protein as possible, and to find alternative sources of vitamin B12, such as special supplements or fortified foods.
You don't have to completely eliminate meat from your diet to experience the health benefits of a vegetarian lifestyle. The reputable American Mayo Clinic suggests starting following Paul McCartney's guide, which means changing your diet once or twice a week and substituting meat whenever possible: for example, in stews with tofu cheese, in burritos with refried beans, and in crockpots instead of meat stew with beans.
Cookbook author Mark Bittman has somewhat developed the concept of the plant-based, semi-vegetarian in his books VB6 and The VB6 Cookbook. Bittman's idea is not to eat animal products before dinner: the titles of the books stand for "being vegetarian until 6 p.m."
Bittman's diet is quite simple. "I followed the VB6 method for seven years," the author writes, "and it became a habit, a way of life. The reason for introducing such a diet was health problems. After nearly five decades of reckless eating, he developed symptoms of pre-diabetes and pre-infarction. "You probably need to go vegan," the doctor said. The thought frightened Bittman at first, but his medical condition presented him with a serious choice: To survive, he had to either take his medication constantly or change his diet. He eliminated all animal products during the day (along with heavily processed and other unhealthy foods), and the result was not long in coming. He lost 7 kilograms in a month. Two months later, his cholesterol and blood sugar levels were back to normal, his nighttime respiratory stoppages had disappeared, and for the first time in 30 years, he began sleeping soundly through the night - and stopped snoring.
This approach works well because it's not too strict. When you can eat whatever you want for dinner, you feel free. That said, the rules don't have to be categorical. If you feel like adding milk to your coffee in the morning, why not. An unexpected discovery for him was the fact that the foods he eats during the day affect how he eats in the evening. He now quite rarely eats meat.
Returning to the example of famous vegetarians, according to historian Sprintzen, "celebrities do not introduce any cultural trend, but rather reflect a significant cultural shift in time, through which vegetarianism, though not a predominant trend, is widely seen as a path to a healthy lifestyle."
A path that, even in part, can prolong your life.
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