Going Green: Should I Become A Vegetarian

Going Green

Anthony Eid

Notre Dame University, Louaize

Course: ENL 110

Instructor: Astrid F. Kraidy

Date of Submission: Thursday, December 3rd 2015

Outline

An increasing number of people choose to adopt a vegetarian diet, but when doing so one needs to think of whether one gets enough of all the oils, proteins, and vitamins that the body needs to function normally.

I. One of the nutrients that a person who decided to switch to a vegetarian diet should think of is oils and lipids.

A. Lower total cholesterol level

B. Essential fatty acids like omega 3 are found in fish

C. Omega 3 prevents heart diseases and helps blood clotting

II. Proteins are another major nutrients needed in a person’s diet.

A. Vegans eat less protein

In “Should I Become A Vegetarian?” (2002), the author explains that by shifting to a vegetarian diet; one can lower the risk of coronary heart disease. Also, he adds that vegetarians have lower LDL, which is the bad cholesterol, and higher HDL, which is the good cholesterol. The author also adds that a vegetarian diet has less calories and fat, but is rich in fibers. This means that vegetarians have a slightly lower risk of obesity than non-vegetarians does. This is for example seen with most vegetarians, as they are often skinnier and look healthier than meat eaters. However, there are also essential oils found in meat and fish. Even though it is said that people should reduce high amounts of fat, consuming a little bit is essential. These fats and oils are significant for the joints, hair, skin and protein utilization. Moreover, omega 3 is essential for brain functioning and lowering factors that causes cancer such as the damage that free radicals cause. Unless a person is not a vegan, he can still get omega 3 fatty acids from fish and fish oils (Ladock, n.d). In addition to that, as time passed, scientist found that fats, especially trans fats, causes some serious damage on one’s health, but they also found that omega 3 is significant. This fatty acid helps in maintaining the normal functioning of the heart, balance the cholesterol level, and prevent blood

According to Jason Ladock, an expert author and one of the administrators and publishers of Health Guidance, by becoming a vegan, a person will eat lower amounts of protein (n.d). Since protein is one of the building blocks of the body, it is fundamental. It is true that some beans and even broccoli do contain protein. However, the human body cannot use it effectively as it is from meat because the structure of the protein in plants is more complex to the human body than the protein’s structure of meat (Ladock, n.d). Finally, concerning protein deficiency, Ladock adds that low amount of proteins will lead to slower healing of wounds, and struggling of muscle tissue development. Thus the body will become, to a certain extent, weaker (n.d). This is why, for example, most of the body builders and athletes ingest a large number of proteins whether from meat or shakes. However, that doesn’t eliminate the fact that there are some gymnasts who are vegetarians and look the same and sometimes even healthier and bulkier than other gymnasts. If a person eliminated the intake of red meat, he would reduce the risk of colon cancer according to Nurses’ health Study and other similar studies (Should I, 2002). This implies that being a vegetarian, which means eating more vegetables and fruits, one will be more or less protected from cancer. This is why it is advised to eat an adequate amount and a variety of them. Unlike vegans,