Early in the morning, Aunt Wang had a quarrel with her daughter.
"You're getting older, you just need to eat more meat. If you are vegetarian every day, what nutrients do you have for your body?"
" You can't eat meat when you're old, and I've been vegetarian for more than a year, and I feel healthy. And I've heard that vegetarians live longer ."
"I didn't tell you not to be a vegetarian, but when you were a vegetarian, you should also eat some meat and eggs, so that the nutrition is more balanced. Besides, it is clearly stated on the Internet that people who eat meat live longer ."
"Then if I eat meat and eggs, can I still be considered vegetarian? I can't eat it. My friends eat like me."
Aunt Wang and her daughter were very helpless, and the two sides refused to give in to each other. What's the difference between a vegetarian diet and a meat diet? Who lives longer?
1. People who love meat and those who love vegetarians live longer?
Some people say that when you get old, you should eat lightly, so you should not eat meat anymore. Not only are you worried that eating meat will lead to high blood pressure and high blood lipids, but also that red meat, which is classified as a carcinogen, is not good for your health. Others say, I feel healthier and live longer after eating a vegetarian diet. So, is it true that vegetarians live longer than meat eaters?
Generally speaking, vegetarians can be divided into two categories:
①Complete vegetarians, that is, will not eat any food related to animals, but also because of the complete vegetarian diet, such people are prone to lack of high-quality protein, vitamin B12 and minerals, etc., and need to prevent malnutrition problems.
②Vegetarians who can eat eggs and milk or only eat eggs and milk only. This group of people is relatively easy to satisfy their nutrition, but they are still prone to iron deficiency because they do not eat meat, and iron deficiency anemia needs to be prevented.
Regarding the question of whether vegetarianism will make people live longer, in fact, scientists in the United States and the United Kingdom have conducted relevant investigations and experiments earlier, and the results show that the average life expectancy of vegetarians is indeed higher than the average life expectancy of society.
But scientists have other findings, and that is that these longer-lived vegetarians have a stronger sense of health, know how to eat in moderation, and know how to self-discipline in life. If these factors are removed, it is found that there is no direct relationship between vegetarianism and longevity. In other words, the main reason why vegetarians are healthier is not long-term vegetarianism, but a healthy lifestyle.
At the Heart Failure and World Conference on Acute Heart Failure, a survey involving 11 countries found that the mortality rate of the elderly who ate more than 40g of protein per day was about 18%, while the elderly who consumed less than 40g died. The rate reached 31%.
Therefore, the researchers believe that compared with the elderly who are partial to a vegetarian diet, higher protein intake (mainly from meat and eggs) will reduce the risk of death and may live longer.
2. How to eat meat and vegetarian food?
Whether a person eats meat or a vegetarian diet is a personal habit and choice, but if we analyze it from the perspective of health and nutrition, there is no special situation or a combination of meat and vegetarian food. Balanced nutrition is more important.
Let’s talk about the advantages of vegetarianism first.
The green leafy vegetables in the vegetarian diet have the highest amount of vitamins, which can provide the human body with vitamin C, folic acid, carotene, potassium, calcium, iron, etc. Usually, the darker the color of the vegetarian vegetables, the higher the nutritional value.
In addition, vegetarian food such as vegetables and fruits also has a lot of dietary fiber. Although it cannot be absorbed by the human body, dietary fiber has a good protective effect, which can help us prevent diabetes, prevent colon cancer and promote the metabolism of cholesterol in the body.
What about meat? Animal foods are rich in protein, fat and various vitamins, such as natural vitamin A, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12 are rich in meat, and vitamin D is less in vegetarian food, but relatively more in meat, and vitamin D is also It has been shown to be related to immune function.
Since vegetarian food and meat have their own benefits, how should we eat them to maximize nutritional gain?
First, eat less red meat and more white meat. The "Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents" proposes that the daily intake of red meat should be within 50g, while white meat such as fish and chicken has less fat content, which can help stabilize and control blood lipids.
Second, eat less processed meat. Processed meats such as ham and bacon contain more or fewer nitrites, which are likely to produce carcinogenic nitrosamines after eating them, increasing the risk of cancer.
Third, is the "10 fists" principle. According to the summary of the Chinese Nutrition Society, the elderly divide the weight of meat: grain: soy milk: vegetables, and fruits according to the principle of 1:2:2:5 every day according to the size of their fists.
Fourth, if you choose to be vegetarian, you should try to supplement protein without eating meat, such as eating eggs and milk and increase the intake of soy products such as soy milk and tofu.
Vegetarians should choose fresh and dark-colored vegetables, 500g per day, and 200g to 300g of fruits per day. In addition, vegetarians can also eat 35g of nuts every day. At the same time, be careful not to eat too much processed vegetarian meat to avoid excessive intake of fat and additives, which is not good for health.
3. Don't believe any of this health advice
"You can't eat meat when you are old" is a misunderstanding of health preservation. In addition, there are many "health sayings" circulating. Don't believe the following.
1. The "garbage" in the blood is not clear, will it block the blood vessels?
It is rumored that there is too much garbage in the blood vessels, and we need to use our own products to remove the garbage in the blood vessels.
In fact, the garbage and toxins in the blood vessels are just wastes from the normal metabolism of the human body. Under normal circumstances, the excretory organs of the human body will eliminate and will not have any effect on the body. If you want to speed up the removal of metabolic waste, it is more effective to drink more water and go to the toilet on a regular basis.
2. The "stool" in the stomach not pass out and accumulates enterotoxicity?
In fact, neither traditional Chinese medicine nor Western medicine has the concept of "stools" and "detoxification". Ordinary people may defecate once or twice a day, or they may defecate once every two or three days. As long as the defecation regularity is normal.
If you are really constipated, you should consult a doctor instead of trusting messy "cold cleansing" products, otherwise, it will not only disrupt gastrointestinal function but even increase the burden on the liver and kidneys or cause more troublesome problems such as volvulus and intestinal obstruction.
3. Acidic constitution is easy to get cancer?
Robert from the United States proposed the "acid-base constitution theory". A cancer patient gave up regular treatment and chose the alkaline therapy of this theory. As a result, the cancer was not cured but developed to stage IV. Robert, who was sentenced, finally admitted that it was a scam.
"Acid-base constitution" does not exist, and eating any food cannot change the body's pH. Don't be deceived by merchants with such slogans.
4. Red dates and brown sugar can nourish blood?
In fact, 96.6% of brown sugar is sugar. The iron content that can replenish blood is extremely low, and red dates are also not high in iron. Therefore, eating more red dates and brown sugar cannot replenish blood. Instead, it is easy to gain weight because of the high sugar content. It can really replenish blood. It should be pig beef, animal liver, animal blood, etc.
In short, vegetarian or meat, although more of a personal choice, from a health point of view, a comprehensive and balanced diet is better. In addition, although health preservation is good, do not step into the misunderstand of health preservation.
References:
[1] "[Sun Jianqin] Cancer and Nutritional Treatment: Is Vegetarianism Safer? 》.Clinical Nutrition Network.2018-07-24
[2] "Eat meat or vegetarian, which is more likely to develop cancer? 4 truths that subvert cognition! 》. Medical Tumor Channel. 2022-02-19
[3] "These 12 "health tips" are really harmful! 》.Medical Endocrinology Channel.2020-11-06
