From: <M.a.r.k P.r.o.b.e.r.t [email hidden]>
Sent: Thursday, April 01, 2004 7:45 AM
Subject: Re: Meet them, don't eat them
Quoted message said:"Toby Joe" <[email hidden]> wrote
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:Quoted message said:I am a member of an alternative group to PETA, but we
still call it PETA.*P*eople *E*ating *T*asty *A*nimals.
a.k.a Prion Early Testing Assoc.
I wonder what Koko or N'kisi would have to say about
it all:GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
Who eats gorillas and parrots?
According to the info at this link, it is healthier not to:
www.purifymind.com/VegetarianHealth.htm
"Research has proven that vegetarians suffer less from many
of the dieases linked to a modern Western diet: obesity,
coronary heart disease, hypertension, type II diabetes, diet-
related cancers, diverticular disease, constipation and gall
stones (British Medical Association,1986; Dwyer, 1988)."
Also from the site:
MORTALITY Epidemiological studies provide clear evidence
that vegetarians have a reduced general and cause-specific
mortality (McMichael, 1992). In an 11-year study of 1,900
vegetarians in Germany, Chang-Claude (1992) found mortality
from all causes was reduced by one-half compared with the
general population. This was mainly attributable to reduced
cardiovascular disease in both men and women. A longer
duration of vegetarianism was associated with a lower risk,
pointing to a real protective effect of the lifestyle (Chang-
Claude, 1993). A 12-year follow-up study of 6,115 British
vegetarians and 5,015 meat-eaters found all cause premature
mortality to be 20 per cent lower among the vegetarians
after adjusting for the confounding effects of smoking, body
mass index and socioeconomic status (Thorogood, 1994).
Cancer mortality was 39 per cent lower and ischaemic heart
disease 28 per cent lower among the vegetarians. A 21-year
study of Californian Seventh-Day Adventists also revealed a
significant association between meat consumption and all
causes of mortality (Kahn, 1984). While other factors
influencing health such as socioeconomic differences,
smoking and physical activity may play a confounding role in
these studies, there is sufficient evidence to suggest that
a reduced risk of mortality is directly linked to a
vegetarian diet.
CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE Cardiovascular disease is the main
cause of premature mortality in Britain, with most deaths
being caused by coronary heart disease. Vegetarians have a
significantly lower incidence of coronary heart disease than
meat-eaters. Burr and Butland (1988) found mortality from
heart disease was 29 per cent lower in a study of more than
6,000 British vegetarians compared with a control group of
health-conscious meat-eaters. A study of more than 25,000
Seventh-Day Adventists noted a definite dose-related link
between meat consumption and heart disease (Snowdon, 1984).
Among men aged 45 to 64, those who ate meat daily were three
times more likely to die from heart disease than those who
did not eat meat.
The degenerative processes leading to heart disease can
begin at an early age. Atherosclerosis, the forming of
fibrous plaques on arterial walls and one of the first
stages in the development of cardiovascular disease, has
been observed in young children and adolescents. The
Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA)
study examined the relationship between diet and health in
more than 5,000 young adults aged 18 to 30 (Slattery 1991).
Vegetarians were found to have a greatly improved
cardiovascular fitness and a lower risk of heart disease.
One way that a vegetarian diet is thought to protect against
heart disease is the lower cholesterol levels seen in
vegetarians. Raised cholesterol is widely recognised as a
primary risk factor for heart disease and studies have
consistently demonstrated serum cholesterol levels in
vegetarians as being around 10 per cent lower than in non-
vegetarians (Burr, 1981; Knuiman and West, 1982; Thorogood,
1990). This figure may result in a 20 to 50 per cent
reduction in the incidence of heart disease (Law, 1994). The
lower serum cholesterol levels in vegetarians is largely due
to lowered low-density-lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. This
is the cholesterol fraction associated with heart disease.
Healthy eating advice aimed at reducing the risk of heart
disease often encourages the use of lean meat cuts. However,
in a comparison between a vegetarian diet and a lean meat
diet (Kestin, 1989), the vegetarian diet was shown to lower
cholesterol more effectively and so lessen the risk of
cardiovascular disease. The California Lifestyle Heart Trial
indicated that a low-fat vegetarian diet together with other
lifestyle changes such as increased exercise and stress
management can actually reverse the progress of heart
disease by reducing cholesterol plaques in arteries (Ornish,
1990). Barnard (1992) has shown a low-fat vegetarian diet
can achieve high levels of compliance and acceptability
among patients with heart disease.
OBESITY Obesity is a major health problem in the UK and its
incidence is increasing in both adults and children. Around
12 per cent of women and 8 per cent of men are clinically
obese (Gregory, 1990) and many more are overweight. Obesity
predisposes sufferers to a range of conditions including
cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, and hormone-
dependent cancers such as breast cancer. Vegetarians are
typically leaner than meat-eaters and obesity is less common
in vegetarian populations. Body mass index (BMI) for
vegetarians is lower than in meat-eaters and closer to
desirable levels (Thorogood, 1989). Levin (1986a) found the
prevalence of obesity to be 5.4 per cent in a vegetarian
group compared with 19.5 per cent in non-vegetarians. This
may be due to vegetarians' lower energy intake overall, with
a lower proportion of energy being supplied by fat.
HYPERTENSION Hypertension, or high blood pressure, can
contribute to heart disease, strokes and kidney failure.
Both cross sectional populaton studies (Armstrong, 1977;
Rouse, 1983) and controlled trials in hypertensive subjects
(Margetts, 1986) provide evidence that vegetarians have
lower blood pressure than non-vegetarians. The reason for
this is unclear. Studies suggest that the effect is not due
to changes in any specific nutrient intake but the overall
effect of combined nutrient change (Beilin, 1990).
DIABETES Around one million people in the UK suffer from
diabetes. Of these, about 75 per cent have type II diabetes
(non-insulin dependent). Snowdon (1985) found vegetarians
had a substantially lower risk of type II diabetes than non-
vegetarians. The link between meat consumption and incidence
of diabetes remained after contributory factors such as
weight, physical activity and other dietary factors were
accounted for. Dietary recommendations for diabetics
encourage a high intake of complex carbohydrates and fibre
and low consumption of total and saturated fat (British
Diabetic Association, 1982). Vegetarian diets tend to match
these recommendations more closely. The relative leanness of
vegetarians also protects against diabetes, obesity being a
major risk factor.
GALL STONES Gall stones are composed af cholesterol, bile
pigments and calcium salts. They form in the gall bladder
and can cause severe pain. A study of more than 750 women
found that non-vegetarians were almost twice as likely to
develop gall stones as vegetarians (Pixley, 1985).
DIVERTICULAR DISEASE AND BOWEL FUNCTION Diverticular disease
is widespread in the UK. Symptoms include abdominal pain and
a disturbed bowel habit, usually constipation but sometimes
diarrhoea. Gear (1979) found it to be significantly less
frequent among vegetarians, probably due to the higher fibre
content of vegetarian diets. The high fibre content of
vegetarian diets has also been linked with decreased
incidence of constipation, appendicitis, irritable bowel
syndrome, haemorrhoids and varicose veins (Dickerson, 1985).
CANCER Cancer is second only to coronary heart disease as a
cause of death in Britain. Accounting for around 25 per cent
of all premature deaths with lung, breast and colo-rectal
cancers being the most common. It is estimated that at least
one third all cancers are directly related to diet. Research
has indicated that vegetarian diets may offer protection
against diet-related cancer. PLANT FOODS AND CANCER
Plant foods contain a number of substances which are
believed to protect against cancer. Indoles, lignans,
isoflavones, protease inhibitors and others have all been
shown to be potent anti-carcinogens and may play an
important role in the lower cancer incidence among
vegetarians. In contrast, cooked meat and fish contains
carcinogens known as heterocyclic amines (HA's). These are
present at high levels in the urine of people consuming
cooked meats and have been shown to be metabolically
active in humans. Evidence suggests meat-derived HA's may
play a role in breast, colon and pancreatic cancer
(Snyderwine 1994).
COLON AND RECTAL CANCERS Vegetarians have significantly
lower rates of colon cancer than non-vegetarians (Phillips,
1975; Chang-Claude, 1992) and incidence of both colon cancer
and rectal cancer has been strongly linked to meat
consumption (Willett, 1990; Bidoli, 1992). The protective
effect of a vegetarian diet against colon and rectal cancer
is probably due to increased fibre intake and increased
consumption of fruit and vegetables together with a lower
intake of both saturated and total fat. Vegetarians have
lower levels of colonic bile acids and other faecal mutagens
that can promote colon carcinogenesis (Johansson, 1992; de
Kok, 1992). Certain dietary components which are present at
increased levels in plant-based diets such as folate,
phytosterols and protease inhibitors, have been shown to
inhibit colon carcinogenesis and may play an important role
in its lower incidence among vegetarians (Troll, 1991; Rao,
1992; Giovannucci, 1993a). Vegetarian diets also usually
include high levels of antioxidant nutrients, the main ones
being beta-carotene, vitamin C, and vitamin E. Antioxidants
protect the body against damage from highly reactive
molecules known as free radicals, generated naturally as a
result of oxygen metabolism. Environmental pollutants,
cigarette smoke and processed foods can all increase levels
to which the body is exposed. Mounting evidence suggests
antioxidants exert a considerable protective effect against
both cancer and heart disease (Diplock, 1993).
BREAST CANCER Breast cancer accounts for around 15,000
deaths each year in the UK. Known risk factors include age,
obesity, early menarche, late menopause and family history.
Some studies have suggested a casual relationship between
dietary fat intake and breast cancer, populations with diets
high in animal fat and animal protein having the highest
breast cancer mortality rates. However, other studies have
found little or no relationship between fat intake and
breast cancer, though it has been suggested that this may be
due to insufficient between-person variations in fat intake
within populations as well as methodological limitations
(Rose, 1990; Hankin, 1993). Evidence suggesting vegetarian
women are at lower risk than non-vegetarian women is limited
as differences in the incidence of breast cancer between
vegetarian and non-vegetarian women are inconsistent. Mills
(1989a) found no difference during a six-year study.
However, among women with a relatively early menopause (48
years of age or younger) meat consumption and risk of breast
cancer were linked (Mills, 1988). Certain of the known risk
factors for breast cancer may be lessened on a vegetarian
diet. Obesity is less common and age of menarche may be
delayed (Sabate, 1992). Vegetarian women
oestrogens (Goldin, 1982; Bennett, 1990). Adlercreutz (1992)
has suggested that lignans and isoflavonoid phytoestrogens,
present at high levels on
breast cancer. It is also believed that dietary fibre may
play a protective role (Baghurst, 1994).
PROSTATE CANCER Prostate cancer has been strongly linked to
meat consumption. In a study of nearly 48,000 men aged
between 40 and 75, those eating red meat five or more times
a week were 2.6 times more likely to suffer from prostate
cancer than those who ate it once a week or less
(Giovannucci, 1993b). Mills (1989b) also noted a link
between meat consumption and prostate cancer risk.
LUNG CANCER Vegetarian populations show lower mortality
rates from lung cancer compared with non-vegetarian
populations. This is largely due to the fact that
vegetarians tend to be non-smokers but dietary factors may
also play a role. A high level of fruit and vegetable
consumption has been shown to be protective against lung
cancer (Marchand, 1989; Fraser, 1991). Goodman (1992)
suggested that smokers who also had a high intake of animal
fat and animal protein had a greater risk of developing lung
cancer than other smokers.
OSTEOPOROSIS Osteoporosis is a condition in which bone mass
decreases, making bones more susceptible to fracture. It is
a major cause of bone fractures in post-menopausal women and
older people in general and is a considerable public health
problem. It is linked a number of risk factors, including
diet. Cross-cultural studies have suggested osteoporosis and
associated hip fracture may be related to high animal
protein intake (Abelow, 1992). Dietary protein has been
shown to increase the loss of calcium from bones and urinary
calcium excretion. Calcium loss is greater on a diet high in
animal protein (Breslau, 1988). Animal protein has a higher
sulphur content than vegetable protein and this is believed
to lead to raised metabolic acid production and so increase
bone calcium loss. Marsh (1980) found vegetarian women aged
between 50 and 89 years lost 18 per cent of bone mass while
a control group of non-vegetarian women had a 35 per cent
bone loss and suggested a vegetarian diet may be beneficial
in protecting against postmenopausal osteoporosis. Other
studies have found no difference in bone density and bone
mineral content between vegetarians and non-vegetarians
(Hunt, 1989; Tesar, 1992).
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:
--
costofwar.comcostofwar.comOpen ↗ www.unicef.org/sowc02/g31.htm