Why Do People Give Up Meat and How Does It Affect Their Health? A Doctor's Opinion

Veganism has been nothing new for Belarus for over a hundred years. It appeared in our region even before the October Revolution, and became widely popular in the digital era. There are many Belarusian groups in social networks where vegans share their opinions on how to gradually and wisely give up meat and dairy products. And almost every restaurant or cafe has dishes for this category of visitors on the menu, although, according to catering workers, other guests also eat them with pleasure. Vegan food can be ordered with home delivery, bought in a specialty store, or online. The choice is large:Lentil and tofu cutlets , falafel with garlic, coconut MILK , syrniki with espuma (simply foam - editor's note), delicate wakame (dried seaweed ) and other exotic products. There are vegan products in many large supermarkets - there are special shelves for them. Manufacturers are still mainly foreign, but the situation will soon change: scientists from the Institute of Meat and Dairy Industry of the Scientific and Practical Center of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus are developing new-fangled recipes for products based on domestic plant materials. Experts set a goal for vegan sausage to contain protein, fat and other elements and not be inferior in physical, chemical and nutritional properties to its natural analogue.

By the way, vegan products are quite expensive: a falafel roll costs 12 rubles, a Caesar salad costs 15 rubles, a pack of broccoli dumplings costs 9 rubles, a shortbread cake (650 grams) costs 45 rubles, and half a kilo of sandwich sausage costs 20 rubles. Some manufacturers have already realized that the demand for such products is stable and have started producing entire lines of eco-products for vegetarians and vegans, including caviar, pasta, sauces, and pates made from seaweed. They are also bought by allergy sufferers and believers who observe Lent.

Victoria Panasenko has been a vegan for almost a year now and assures that her story of transitioning to this lifestyle is not connected, as for some, with religious beliefs or special concerns about health.

- I am the only black sheep in our family. I had been keeping an eye on vegans for a long time, and shared many of their ideological views, but the turning point was Shaun Monson's documentary "Earthlings" about animal cruelty, which shows horrific scenes from slaughterhouses. I was shocked by what I saw: blood, pain... I couldn't eat or sleep. Every day I asked myself questions: how can a reasonable person be deaf to the suffering of animals, why does he exploit them to get food for himself, if there are many other ways to get enough? - the girl recalls.

She admits that at the very beginning of veganism, she really missed Olivier salad and potato pancakes. And her body didn’t get used to the new diet right away.

- Sometimes my HEAD was spinning, I felt sleepy. But it quickly passed, I began to feel an extraordinary lightness in my body. Now I flutter like a butterfly, - says Vika. - I treat with a degree of skepticism the words of experts that vegans lack vitamins and minerals in the body. For example, the content of the same calcium in sesame is several times higher than in many other products. And, say, vitamin B6, which is rich in chicken meat , is found in potatoes, bananas, cabbage and carrots. But if you are very afraid that you will not get a full set of vitamins and minerals, buy the appropriate complex at the pharmacy - and live in peace! As for vegan products, there are enough of them in stores. True, the prices are still biting. On weekends, I can stand at the stove for half a day to cook something tasty. I even learned to makeaquafaba ice cream is the liquid left over from beans. So far, the only thing that makes me uncomfortable is the teasing from my family, who continue to set me on the right path, and my friends try to "re-educate" me, but I don't give up. I'm happy in my world, where I don't eat anyone.

According to applied kinesiologist and nutraceutical specialist Alexander Erkhov, everyone has the right to choose what type of diet to follow:

- I am for listening to your body, intuition and paying attention to your well-being. Any diet, and veganism is a kind of diet, since it involves giving up certain foods, has more minuses than pluses in the long term. Weak immunity , absent-mindedness, a constant feeling of physical fatigue - this is far from a complete list of symptoms that do not allow you to live in your usual rhythm and experience pleasure at the same time.

Sometimes children become hostages of such a diet , literally from the cradle. After breastfeeding, which does not contradict the principles of veganism, mothers switch to vegan complementary foods. The diet includes cereals, legumes, nuts, flaxseed oil , vegetables, and fruits .

- It is dangerous to accustom children to veganism. This type of diet is for a physiologically and anatomically formed organism, because it is difficult to get the necessary protein in the required quantity from plant foods, - the expert emphasizes. - Of course, proteins, fats and carbohydrates are present in all products, but plant foods contain much less of them than fish, meat, poultry and eggs. To cover the daily protein requirement, you need to eat a very large amount of plant foods. In essence, eat like a horse! Refusal of animal products also carries the risk of losing muscle mass and visceral, internal fat. But they are directly related to life expectancy.

Veganism, according to the nutritionist, is not suitable for everyone, since the large amount of fiber can cause digestive problems, heaviness, and bloating.

- With long-term vegetarianism, the enzymatic digestive system changes. If a person wants to return to the previous diet or eat meat after a few years, it will take more time for the necessary enzymes to begin to be produced. This recovery period will be accompanied by discomfort, heaviness, bloating, - explains Alexander Erkhov. - Also, hydrochloric acid, measured in medicine in pH, is produced when animal protein enters the stomach. Vegans will always have a higher pH level, and the production of hydrochloric acid will be lower, which will inevitably lead to negative consequences, because hydrochloric acid plays a large role in digestion and disinfection of food.

In fairness, Alexander Erkhov noted that veganism works well as a temporary detox, unloading and cleansing of the body. When switching to such a diet, more strength and energy appears, because the diet includes many products with a negative ORP (oxidation-reduction potential). And the lower it is, the less energy the body spends on digestion. In turn, food gives up its electrons (energy), and the alkalization process occurs.

- I am a supporter of a mixed diet. After all, humans are omnivorous creatures, - summarizes Alexander Erkhov. - So far I have encountered more negative consequences of veganism than positive ones. Although, of course, there are exceptions to every rule. If a supporter of this type of diet looks good, does not complain about his health, is in a great mood, then I do not want to judge him harshly. Nevertheless, I would advise taking basic blood tests at least once every six months.

People come to veganism for various reasons: ethical, ecological, medical, religious. The most common is disagreement with the killing of animals for food. Unlike liberal vegetarians, ascetic vegans do not eat not only meat, but also dairy products, eggs , honey. They believe that the "extraction" of milk or honey is associated with violence against animals and insects.

| Elena NIKOLAEVA, newspaper "7 days", photo from open Internet sources.

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