If variety is the spice of life, then food is the main course. Food excites all of our five senses. While it provides us with sustenance, it does more than that. Food can become a religion for us. A lifetime is not enough to master all the possibilities offered by the preparation and consumption of food. An alternative approach to food that many people have never considered, or have never carefully considered, is a diet consisting solely of vegetarian foods.
Eat your vitamins (and minerals)
One of the biggest misconceptions about the vegetarian diet is that humans require meat and meat by-products in their diet to receive all the necessary vitamins. That notion is false. Vitamins exist as organic substances required in small amounts in our diet. Both environmental situations and the methods used to store, process and prepare food can influence the vitamins in food.
The vegetarian can get all the vitamins he needs with a balanced diet. Vitamins can be water soluble or fat soluble. Vitamin C and the B group of vitamins, including water-soluble vitamins. Meanwhile, fat-soluble vitamins include vitamins A, D, E, and K. Water-soluble vitamins are more likely to be lost during cooking and are harder for the body to store.
While the body also requires several types of minerals, the main ones include calcium, chlorine, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, sodium, and sulfur. Milk alternatives for vegetarian food options, such as almond, sesame seed, fortified soy milk, rice milk, hemp milk, leafy green vegetables, and dried fruit, are rich in calcium. Also, while meat is a great source of iron, you can also get it from vegetarian foods (in fact, some studies suggest that higher iron actually comes from plant foods, not meat) like whole wheat bread, green leafy vegetables, molasses, pumpkin seeds, and nuts.
The current nutritional trend encourages people to follow a diet high in fiber and low in fat. By eating a balanced diet that includes a variety of foods, you can meet the nutritional recommendations for a healthy lifestyle. In fact, medical studies are revealing that the foods eaten by vegetarians are less likely to cause diseases such as cancer, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. Therefore, the health benefits alone can make vegetarian foods attractive to anyone who eats them.
Easy as 1-2-Eat
In addition to being healthy, eating vegetarian foods is much easier than one might assume. Whether you want to prepare vegetarian food at home or buy it in restaurants, it is widely available. You can find ingredients like grains, seeds, and vegetables in small shops, markets, and supermarkets. Also, the food is easy to prepare. You can prepare a healthy vegetarian meal in less than 30 minutes! In addition, you can also buy pre-cooked meals for vegetarians, now in many places.
Vegetarianism can be fun and tasty
Next, it could also be assumed that a vegetarian is always miserable eating herbs and leaves. The perception might be that vegetarianism means removing meat from a dish and only eating the vegetables on the side. In vegetarian food recipes, plant components become the main dish! Hundreds of different seeds, nuts, fruits, vegetables, and grains exist on Earth. Even if you have the most creative culinary imagination, it would be impossible to eat every possible vegetarian dish with these ingredients. Also, vegetarian dishes tend to cost less than those that call for meat. So you can treat yourself more often to more expensive treats like asparagus.
food for thought
Here are some tips if you want to eat only vegetarian foods:
- o Buy a vegetarian cookbook o Read food labels o Try different foods you have never tried before o Read more about the vegetarian lifestyle o Visit health food stores o Adjust family dishes o Start small
If you like food but want to opt for a healthier lifestyle, you might consider the vegetarian diet. Vegetarian cuisine is easy to prepare, offers many options, and tastes great!