Five Health Benefits of Going Vegan

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Earlier this month marked World Vegan Day on November 1st. It was started back in 1994 by the Vegan Society to champion the global plant-based eating movement. Health Magazine interviewed Alicia Romano, a registered dietitian at Tufts Medical, to find out more about the benefits and drawbacks of a vegan diet.

1. Vegan Diets Influence You to Eat More Whole Foods

The vegan diet makes you eliminate meat and dairy, so it forces you to get imaginative with your fruits, veggies, and whole grains. Romano says, “You might be getting in a lot more color and variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains that all have their own beneficial properties.”

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2. Your Saturated Fat Intake Will Go Down Dramatically

Saturated fat increases your cholesterol and is known to contribute to heart disease. It is also found primarily in animal products like meat and cheese. Just by going vegan, you are automatically reducing the amount you consume.

3. Your Risk of Chronic Diseases Decreases

Plant-based eating is very heart-healthy. Romano says, “There’s a substantial amount of research that correlates more plant-based diets with decreased risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.”

4. You Will Cook More

The vegan diet requires you to pay a lot more attention to what you are eating and some nutrients you are receiving in your diet. As a result, you end up preparing more of your food, because restaurants are still catching up to the plant-based diet craze. One of the key benefits is you can cut unnecessary fat, calories, and additives out of your diet.

vegan greens environment5. It’s Better For The Planet

Research has shown that raising meat specifically cattle is detrimental to our environment. It requires large amounts of energy, water, and land compared to the resources needed to grow plants like fruits and vegetables.

A Few Drawbacks to The Vegan Diet

By dropping meat, you are going to lose out on some essential protein and nutrients. You will have to find ways to supplement these back into your diet. Meat gives us a lot of protein, vitamin D3, vitamin B12, and calcium. If you take on a vegan diet, it is essential to focus on your micronutrient intake as you may experience some deficiencies if not monitored carefully. This is one of the reasons; we developed our GrandFusion blends so that everyone can get the vital micronutrients all from plants. Check out our store here.

 

The vegan diet is not perfect, but it is a great way to improve your health and help out the environment in the process.

 

Inspired by www.health.com

High-Sugar Diets Increase Heart Disease Risk

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A new study from the University of Surrey in the United Kingdom found that in only three months on a high-sugar diet, even healthy people had an increased risk of heart disease. The research points to the way the fat metabolism is altered during the diet. The liver deals with fat much different in a high-sugar diet versus a low-sugar diet.

NAFLD Increases Heart Disease Risk

The study showcased the similarities between men’s fat metabolism during a high-sugar diet and those suffering from a non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). NAFLD is a condition that develops when fat builds up in the liver.

“Our findings provide new evidence that consuming high amouts of sugar can alter your fat metabolism in ways that could increase your risk of cardiovascular disease.” – Bruce Griffen, Professor of Nutritional Metabolism

Around 92.1 million adults in the United States are living with some form of cardiovascular disease or the after-effects of a stroke. Their evidence suggests that NAFLD can significantly raise the risk of heart disease adults and children.

Fat Metabolism Changes

heart disease sugar diet fat metabolism NAFLD

 

In the study, men with NAFLD and healthy men were fed one of two different diets, a high-sugar diet or a low-sugar diet. The diets had the same amount of calories, but in the high-sugar, 26% of calories were coming from sugar versus 6% in the low sugar diet.

 

The research was designed as a “randomized cross over” meaning that each participant followed the first diet for 12 weeks then the other diet for 12 weeks in no particular order. Researchers compared multiple biomarkers of fat metabolism like lipids and cholesterol in the blood to determine the results. They found that after 12 weeks on the high-sugar diet, both healthy men and NAFLD men both had increased amounts of fat in the liver that resemble a fat metabolism known to be linked to an increased risk of heart disease.

 

However, the researchers note that most people will probably not consume that much sugar regularly. They did say that some children and teenagers may be reaching that level through candy and sugar-sweetened drinks.

 

Inspired by www.medicalnewstoday.com

Eating Breakfast Every Day Keeps Weight Gain Away

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New research from Loma Linda University School of Public Health is pointing to a link between the impact of meals like breakfast and their frequency to weight gain. The results from Dr. Hana Kahleova’s study were published in The Journal of Nutrition, and she presented the findings at the International Conference on Nutrition in Medicine on July 29th.

Adventist Health Study Participants’ Eating Habits

The researchers chose participants from the Adventists Health Study-2 (AHS-2), because of their peculiar eating habits. Over 96,000 Seventh-day Adventists from the U.S. and Canada are being studied for a variety of reasons because they have shown a lower risk of developing diseases like heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. Dr. Kahleova chose to study 50,660 adults from the population that were 30 and over. Her focus of the study was to look at how often people eat and their body mass index (BMI). Researchers monitored eating habits and BMI for an average period of 7 years.

 

breakfast meal

Breakfast is good…

The study had several unique conclusions. First, they found that people who ate one to two meals per day had a decrease in BMI whereas people who ate three or more meals had an increased BMI. The more meals they ate including snacks, the more weight they gained. An interesting finding was that people who regularly ate breakfast tended to lose more weight. They also found that participants who chose breakfast as their most substantial meal of the day experienced the most significant BMI decrease. This extensive analysis further supports what we have long inferred: Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

 

Inspired by  www.medicalnewstoday.com

 

supplements vs. medications

Supplements and Medications May Not Mix

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Some prescription medications that Americans are taking is directly proportional to the amount of supplements that they also take. However, combining medications with supplements can be detrimental. The effect of taking both at the same time is internal bleeding. Moreover, it can also produce contradictions that can decrease the efficacy of the medication.

 

According to the assistant professor of pharmacy at the University of Illinois in Chicago, Dima Qato, the risk of combining supplements and drugs is a serious concern. In the study conducted by Professor Dima Qato, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, it was found out that many people take multiple supplements and drugs at the same time.

 

medications vs. supplements consumers warningThe research also looked into the dangerous combination of medications and supplements. They discovered that intake of omega-3 fish oil and warfarin together could increase the risk of internal bleeding. Some drugs, when combined with other supplements, is shown to enhance the occurrence of the drugs’ side effects. However, according to Andrea Wong, who is the vice president of the scientific and regulatory affairs at the Council for Responsible Nutrition, the concurrent intake of drugs and supplements has potentially little interaction and thus poses a low total overall risk to the general population.

 

Unfortunately, most patients believe that the products–particularly, supplements–are safe because they are natural, but this is not always the case. In Qato’s study, they noted that more than 25% of ill adults took herbal medicines alongside prescription drugs. Thus, experts urge the consumers to discuss whatever supplements they are taking with their doctor to pinpoint possible drug interactions.

 

Specific Supplements to Watch

So which supplements are known to have deleterious effects when combined with prescription medicine? Below is a list of the different types of supplements and how they may interact with conventional medication.

 

Supplement Possible Benefits Possible Drug Interaction
Calcium Prevents bone loss, cancer, and heart disease. May reduce the absorption of some medicines and antibiotics.
Garlic Can lower blood pressure and cholesterol. May increase the risk of bleeding when taken together with blood thinners. It can also lessen the efficacy of saquinavir (anti-HIV drug) and lowers blood sugar thus insulin may not be needed.
Ginger Relieves vomiting and nausea. It can also stimulate the appetite as well as ease the digestive system. May increase the risk of internal bleeding when taken with anti-clotting medications. It may reduce levels of cyclosporine antibiotic in the blood.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids Obtained from fish oil; it can protect the heart against cardiovascular diseases. It also has protective benefits against cancer and mental health. May increase internal bleeding. It can also increase the side effects of steroids like hydrocortisone and prednisone.
Saw Palmetto Promote urine flow among patients with an enlarged prostate. May increase internal bleeding when taken with anti-clotting drugs. It can also interfere with the enzymes that affect the metabolism of certain drugs.
St John’s Wort Can help reduce depression, premenstrual syndrome, and chronic fatigue syndrome. May reduce levels of the drug in the blood. It can also lessen the efficacy of other drugs like birth control pills, statins, and anti-HIV medication. It can also increase the side effects of anti-depressants as it increases its sedative power when combined with alcohol.

 

Inspired by usatoday.com