Eating meat is pretty much a cultural requirement. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a human society that doesn’t rely on it for survival. But is it necessary? Would a vegetarian diet make you lose weight? Is it even possible to be a vegetarian and still lose weight? Let’s take a look at the facts.
The Benefits of a Vegan Diet
First off, let’s discuss the advantages of a vegan diet. It’s been known for centuries that a vegan diet can help with weight loss. In fact, the Chinese regarded meat eating as a cause of obesity, and they heavily promoted a vegan diet. It wasn’t until much later that scientists began to uncover the truth behind the connection.
Back in the early 20th century, Dr. Abel Stegner conducted clinical research on the benefits of a vegan diet. He found that those who followed this type of eating plan lost more weight than those who ate meat-based diets. Furthermore, Stegner noted that those who ate meat experienced “a temporary decrease in appetite” after each meal.
This is likely because of the way meat is produced. Animals raised for food generally don’t eat much when they’re fed growth hormones and antibiotics. The result is an increase in body weight. So, if you’ve ever tried to lose weight after you ate a meal, you might have felt a bit of an appetite blip. This is totally normal and completely reversible.
Healthy Options Beyond Meat
Beyond Meat is a company that creates vegan meats and plant-based alternatives to traditional animal meats. They started as a plant-based burger company, but have since expanded their product line to include fish, sausages, and chicken. With so many tasty options, you’re bound to find something that suits your taste.
These foods look, smell, and taste just like the real thing, but without the nasty side effects. This is mainly thanks to the magic of plant-based proteins. These proteins are digested differently by the human body, compared to animal proteins. This means that your body doesn’t have to work as hard to digest them, resulting in fewer calories and weight loss.
The Disadvantages of a Vegan Diet
While there are many advantages to a vegan diet, there are also some disadvantages. One of the biggest is the fact that it doesn’t provide your body with necessary nutrients. To make up for this, you have to eat a lot of calories. This is likely why, in general, people who follow this diet plan tend to lose weight. But since vegan foods are abundant in fiber, it doesn’t always result in desirable effects.
Plant-based proteins and carbohydrates offer very few calories. This can help you lose weight quickly, but it also makes you feel hungry more often. You must watch what you eat to prevent yourself from overeating. This can be difficult, especially since it’s easy to convince yourself that you’re hungry when you’re actually quite full.
It’s Not Easy Being a Vegetarian
If you’ve ever tried to follow a vegetarian diet, you’d know that it’s not easy to give up the foods you love. This is mainly because there aren’t many delicious vegan foods that you can eat. This can make it very difficult to maintain a vegan lifestyle, especially if you’re trying to lose weight. For those who want to follow the diet for health reasons, this can be extremely challenging.
It takes a lot of willpower to stick to a diet that forces you to miss out on foods you’re used to eating. Some people succeed in doing this, and manage to keep the weight off. But for the most part, those who try to lose weight through a vegetarian diet fail.
Can You Lose Weight if You Stop Eating Meat?
After going through the disadvantages of a vegan diet, it’s clear to see that this isn’t the best option if you’re looking to lose weight. However, it’s still a popular diet choice among those who want to improve their health. For those who succeed, it’s mainly due to some incredible willpower. But if you’re looking for a quick and easy way to lose weight, it’s not the way to go.
There are many options beyond meat that you can try. You can eat fish or other seafood, for example. Or, you can opt for a vegan diet where you exclude all animal products, including eggs and dairy. These foods offer many advantages, but also have some disadvantages. Like meat, these foods don’t provide your body with necessary nutrients. This is why you should take extra care when eating them if you’re looking to lose weight.
If you’ve tried to lose weight through various diets, what did you find worked best for you? Or, do you follow any particular diet plan to lose weight?