Sunday, May 17, 2009

Healthy In, Healthy Out: Be Careful Of Eating Meat

Once I decided to be a vegetarian, I was very proud of myself. At the time, I wasn't really sure about doing it, but thought I'd give it a try. That was about 35 years ago (wow! Am I that old??). I did slip back into the meat-eating world for a few years, early on (and I have to say, I enjoyed it!). But for the last 30 years I could call myself a vegetarian. I do eat fish. I believe in healthy eating, and the vegetarian lifestyle. I'll tell you why.


I basically try to be a healthy guy. Especially since I'm getting "older," I want to pay more attention to my genetic predispositions, effects of cumulative stress, possible danger lurking in the drugs and food products that people make ga-zillions of dollars selling to us, and my own bad habits. I also feel a responsibility to my family to be as healthy as I can be.




So with all of that in mind, here's what I think. Meat is not good for you. If you're a meat-eater, eat it in moderation. I'm not saying that it's totally bad, obviously it's not. But there are enough bad things about it to pay attention to how much of it you eat. Much of the meat that's sold comes from animals that have been given antibiotics, and other drugs to help them survive unhealthy living conditions. Meat generally has a lot of saturated fat (and if you're going to eat fat, you don't want it to be "saturated"). It's high in cholesterol. It causes an increase in blood pressure that a vegetarian diet does not. The vegetarian diet is high in complex carbohydrates and fiber (found in plant foods), and low in fat and sugar. These are very important things for people concerned about (or having a family history of) diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and cancer. Also pay attention to this if you are overweight, because that can be harmful long term.


All I'm saying is to think about what you eat before you eat it. Especially think about the meat that you eat. While I've got your attention,think about including more fruits and vegetables in your diet. They can be quite tasty, and have long term health benefits. I'll discuss that more in the future. HEALTHY IN, HEALTHY OUT!

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