vegetarian vs meat eater

Question
Hi,
I have been hearing a lot of statistics lately about how vegetarians live longer, have reduced risk of heart disease, are slimmer, etc. I understand how these might be true but I'm a little skeptical because they all came from vegetarian sources. As a meat eater myself that exercises regularly and still eats fruits and veggies, I get annoyed when vegetarians/vegans tell me they are healthier. I understand that on average vegetarians may be healthier, but I think that may be because they are more conscious of what they take in. What about a healthy vegetarian vs a healthy meat eater?

My question is:  Is there a real study that actually shows that a vegetarian diet is healthier than a diet with meat? Assuming that both eat balanced, healthy portions, exercise, etc.  

Answer
Hi Michael,

IF they take a vitamin B supplement, they tend to be, and so is the planet as it takes less acreage and chemicals to produce plant food. It is part of a bigger picture and borderlines, crosses into religion.

I lived in Florida for 10 years. In the summer, the sight of raw meat was not at all inviting. When we moved to Seattle in a fall, we couldn't get enough shiny, greasy meat dishes.

Years before that, I was a fish eating veg, and the best shape ever. Then I started dating a carnivore, married 26 years now, that loused up my eating habits.

It is a lot of work to do it right. It is getting easier, but there are way too many bad choices out there.    

From the length of human intestines, we are basically plant eaters.

Dingbats like Atkins, (doctors do not get much instruction on nutrition, Dr Diets are a sick joke to start with) who cash in on oversimplified low carb misinformation did a lot of kidney damage. One serving the size of a deck of cards is all a body can use a day.

Quality carbs are a requirement to be healthy. To generalize with carbs is a mistake. Get your whole grains, and find some common ground to talk about with the veg heads, like a mutual hate of refined sugar and refined flour.

more on real food vs flavored packing material at www.premiumfuel.com

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