National Vegetarian Week 19th-25th May

Among the many reasons for being a vegetarian are health, compassion for animals, and religious beliefs.

Recent research commissioned by the Eating Better Alliance discovered that:

• 25% of the British public say they are eating less meat than a year ago

• 34% are willing to consider eating less meat

• One in six (17%) young people say they don’t eat any meat

A vegetarian diet can meet all known nutrient needs. The key to a healthy vegetarian diet, as with any other diet, is to eat a wide variety of foods, including fruits, vegetables, plenty of leafy greens, whole grain products, nuts, seeds, and legumes. Sweets and fatty foods should be limited. Statistically, if you choose the diet above you are choosing an option which should boost your chances of living a long and healthy life.

Compared to meat eaters vegetarians have up to 30% less heart disease, up to 40% less cancer, 20% less premature death, less obesity and lower blood pressure…but why? Well the good vegetarian diet outlined above contains more carbohydrate, more vitamin C, more fibre and more cancer fighting phytochemicals than one where a high proportion of the calories come from meat.

So why not make your greengrocer your new best friend this month and get cooking in celebration of all things veggie!

By Louise Addison

You can order all your fresh veggies on line here My Supermarket, or if you think you may be lacking in something, you can always boost yourself with myvitamins.com