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The
word " Vegetarian " was coined by the
Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom in about 1847.
The word does not come from vegetable as is generally
assumed : It is a derivation of the Latin word ‘
vegetari ‘ which means to enliven.
The practice of vegetarianism, however, goes far back in
history. Many noted philosophers and religious teachers
urged their followers to avoid a flesh diet. Brahminism,
Jainism, Zoraostrianism and Buddhism acknowledged the
sacredness of life and the need to live without causing
suffering ; so did many of the early Christians.
There are various types of vegetarians. " Vagans
"are the strictest vegetarians who eat only plant
foods and exclude all animal by-products such as eggs,
milk, cheese, curd, butter, ghee and even honey. There
are " lacto vegetarians " who eat plant foods
as well as dairy products and " lacto-avo
vegetarians " who eat eggs besides plant foods and
dairy products. There are even fish-eating vegetarians.
The common factor among them is that they do not eat the
flesh of warm- blooded animals.
Meat seems to have assumed an exaggerated importance
nutritionally. It is generally mistakenly believed that
nutritional deficiences , especially of proteins and
vitamin B12 and poor health may result if animal foods
are eliminated. Studies however, have indicated to health
problems or deficiency diseases for those on a vegetarian
diet.
Of the 22 amino acids -the essential components of
proteins - needed by the body for its normal functioning,
only nine need be supplied by the diet as the body
synthesies the remaining 13. The body can use 100 per
cent of this protein if all ten amino acids are in ideal
proportions. If, however, one or more of the essential
amino acids are present in less than the ideal amount,
the value of the entire protein is reduced in the same
proportions. On a quality rating scale of 1 to 100, egg
protein is 95, milk is 82, meat and poultry are 67, fish
80, grains are between 50 to 70 and legumes, nuts and
seeds are between 40 and 60.
The so-called protein deficiency in a vegetarian diet is
in fact more imaginary than real as the contribution of
the protein value of the green vegetables has been
ignored and the true protein requirement is less than
that assumed. Green vegetable protein is as high in
quality as milk protein and thus makes a very valuable
contribution to the vegetarian’s protein nutrition.
The high quality of protein balances the lower quality of
other vegetarian proteins such as nuts and beans. The
recommended daily allowance of 70 value proteins is 44
grams per day for women and 56 for men. Researchers have
now discovered that the actual protein requirement is
much less, being 15 grams per day of 100 value protein or
21.5 grams of 70 value protein or 30 grams of 50 value
protein. A wholesome vegetarian diet can, therefore,
easily meet the body’s protein needs.
Moreover, it is possible to combine two low-value plant
proteins to get a protein of higher quality. Thus , wheat
which has a deficiency in the amino-acid lysine but an
abundance of sulphur containing amino-acids can be
combined with beans which have the opposite enrichment
combination. Taken together, they complement each other
to form a complete protein.
As regards the adequacy of B12 nutrition,
laco-avo vegetarians and lacto-vegetarians should not
feel concerned on this score, as the B12 needs
can be easily supplied by dairy products and eggs. A
quarter litre of milk or 100 grams of cheese or 1 egg per
day will supply the recommended daily allowance. This
vitamin once eaten is stored in the liver. Vagans,
however, do not get this vitamin in their food, yet
reliable scientific studies have found no evidence of B12
deficiency diseases. It is therefore, presumed that this
vitamin can be synthesised in the body. Auto-Intoxication
Most diseases
of the human body are caused by auto-intoxication or
self-poisoning. The flesh of animals increases the burden
of the organs of elimination and overloads the system
with animal waste matter and poisons. Chemical analysis
has proved that uric acid and other uremic poisons
contained in the animal body are almost identical to
caffeine, there and nicotine, the poisonous stimulating
principles of coffee, tea and tobacco. This explains why
meat stimulates the animal passions and creates a craving
for liquor, tobacco and other stronger stimulants.
Excessive uric acid resulting from meat-eating also
causes diseases such as rheumatism, Bright’s
disease, kidney stones, gout and gall stones. Meat
proteins cause putrefaction twice as rapidly as do
vegetable proteins. The morbid matter of the dead animal
body is foreign and uncongenial to the excretory organs
of man. It is much harder for them to eliminate the waste
matter of an animal carcass than that of the human body.
Moreover, the formation of ptomains or corpse poisons
begins immediately after the death of the animal and meat
and poultry are usually kept in cold storage for many
days and even months before they reach the kitchen.
Another powerful influence tends to poison the flesh of
slaughtered animals. As is well known, emotions of worry,
fear and anger actually poison blood and tissues. Imagine
the excitable condition of animals after many days of
travel, closely packed in shaking vehicles - hungry,
thirsty, scared enroute to the slaughter -houses. Many
die even before the end of their journey. Others are
driven half dead with fear and exhaustion to the
slaughter pans, their instinctive fear of death augmented
by the sight and odour of the blood shambles.
Flesh is often a carrier of disease germs. Diseases of
many kinds are on the increase in the animals, making
flesh foods more and more unsafe. People are continually
eating flesh that may contain tuberculosis and cancerous
germs. Often animals are taken to the market and sold for
food when they are so diseased that their owners do not
wish to keep them any longer. And some of the processes
of fattening them to increase their weight and
consequently their market value , produce disease. Shut
away from light and pure air, breathing the atmosphere of
filthy stables, perhaps fattening on decaying foods, the
entire body now becomes contaminated with foul matter.
Benefits
of Vegetarianism
A vegetarian
diet can have many nutritional benefits, if it is rich in
fruits and vegetables, and contains moderate amounts of
seeds, nuts, whole grains and legumes. One of the main
benefits of a proper vegetarian diet is its low caloric
content in relation to the bulk supplied, which helps
maintain ideal weight.
Another benefit of the vegetarian diet is the much lower
intake of fat, if dairy products, seeds and nuts are
eaten sparingly. This accounts for lower serium
cholesterol levels found in vegetarians, which
considerably reduces the risk of developing heart
diseases and breast and colon cancer.
A third nutritional advantage of the vegetarian diet is
its high fibre content. Fibre, being indigestible,
increases the bulk of the faces, keeps them soft and
makes them easy to expel. One study has indicated that
lacto-avo vegetarians consume twice as much and vagans
four times as much fibre as non-vegetarians. High fibre
intake has been associated with decreased risks of
diseases of the colon, appendicits, cancer of the colon
and rectum, hiatus hernia, piles and varicose veins.
McCarrison, one of the greatest aurhoties on food, has
outlined a perfect diet. According to him, " a
perfectly constituted diet is one in which the principal
ingredients are milk, milk products, any whole cereal
grain or mixture of cereal grains, green leafy vegetables
and fruits. These are the protective foods. They make
good the defects of other constituents of the diet,
protect the body against infection and disease of various
kinds, and their use in sufficient quantity ensures
physical efficiency. "
Vegetarianism is thus a system based on scientific
principles and has proved adequate for the best nutrition
free from the poisons and bacteria of diseased animals.
It is the best diet for man’s optimum, physical,
mental and spiritual development.
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