All Meat Diet or Vegetarian Diet
Food is the fuel of our body and it also decides the efficiency and overall condition of it. It is very important that what kind of diet we are choosing in order to drive our body because dietary mistake can cause adverse health conditions like type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, hypertension, high level of cholesterol and heart diseases. You must be wondering that which type of food is beneficial for your body; all meat diet or vegetarian diet.
Pros and cons of meat based diet
Pros
- Protein source – meat is richest source of protein which is important for growth, development and repairing of body tissues. It also helps in production of antibodies and strengthens the immune system. Since it contains all the essential amino acids therefore meat is the best source of protein.
- Minerals – meat contains many important minerals such as iron, zinc and selenium. Iron is the main constituent of hemoglobin and many other biological reactions while zinc helps in tissue formation and metabolism. Selenium is required to breakdown the fats and other chemicals in the body.
- Vitamins – although, plants are rich in antioxidants and minerals but some important vitamins are present in low amount in plants while animal meat is rich in vitamins such as Vitamin A, B and D.
- Other nutrients – some nutrients are absent in plant based food such as creatine, carnosine, Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA), saturated fats and cholesterol which is required in many vital body functions such as functioning of muscles, nervous system, absorption of fat soluble vitamins etc.
Cons
- Saturated fats and cholesterol – the high level of fats in meat can cause health complications like weight gain, diabetes, obesity and heart diseases. Healthy options like chicken and turkey are found to be associated with weight gain.
- Chemical toxins – many animals are treated with chemical injections to increase their mass to yield more meat. The chemical exposure doesn’t stop here because after slaughtering of animals, their meat is processed and preserved with different chemicals to increase their texture and shelf life. Therefore, raw or processed meat has been generally loaded with many chemicals harmful for human body and some of them have carcinogenic properties.
Pros and cons of vegetarian food
Pros
- Gut friendly – vegetarian diet is usually easy to absorb due to its simple composition and thus your body need not to spend much energy to digest the food like in case of meat based diet.
- Nutrients – it offers wide range of different nutrients like carbohydrates, proteins, unsaturated fats, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and many other important nutrients.
- Variety – vegetarian diet is more versatile than the meat based diet and thus offers variety of different flavors, textures and tastes. It caters to all age group, gender and people with health limitations.
- Cost friendly – this diet is very light on your pocket because you can buy many food options in the cost of your one meat based item. Anybody can afford a vegetarian diet but meat based diets are generally costlier.
- Health benefits – apart from having high nutritional value, it also hold insoluble fiber content which is a unique feature of this diet. This roughage acts as a natural detoxification agent of the body.
- Ethical – since animals are not losing their lives to become a part of vegetarian diet therefore it is ethical in every sense.
- Flexible – although, this diet doesn’t contain any animal meat but it contains animal derived products such as eggs, milk, dairy products, honey etc. which can be obtained from animals without causing harm to them. All these animal derived products compensate the requirement of important nutrients which are absent in plant sources.
Cons
If vegetarian diet is not nutritionally balanced then it can cause nutritional deficiency. Therefore, you have to include different plant based nutrient sources and also keep an eye on its total calorie content. Vegetarian diet tends to be low on calories therefore It helps you in losing weight but less calories can make you weak due to less supply of energy. Therefore, you should consult your doctor before taking up any type of diet.
Take home message – the most important thing about any type of food is that it should work in your favor not against you. Therefore, analyze the pros and cons of meat based or vegetarian food from your point of view and then decide on doing any alterations to your dietary habits.