RICKY ALEJO is probably the healthiest media practitioner in Iloilo City. As a freelance photo-journalist, he seems to be everywhere, tirelessly covering public affairs. With a natural “chest out, stomach in” physique, he could be mistaken for a body builder. What makes him so?
Yes, he does basic exercises like stretching, bending, push-ups and yoga.
No, he does not eat meat; he eats only organic fruits, vegetables and root crops as required by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), a strictly vegetarian branch of Hinduism. As a Krishna, Ricky believes that animals, like humans, are born with a soul.
When I confronted Ricky whether he is that religious, he shook his head. It was initially for health reasons that he turned vegetarian.
In a past column, I revealed that I also dabble in vegetarianism, but not absolutely because I also eat fish almost daily, and occasional meat during fiestas and parties.
Not wanting to be as purely vegetarian as Ricky, I have developed the habit of researching on “meat versus vegetables.”
Traditionally, the Americans consume 15 pounds of beef, chicken or pork per person per month. In contrast, the healthier Japanese eat only a half-pound. They prefer fish.
The American myth misleads us into believing that meat is “first-class” protein while vegetable is “second-class.”
Statistically, however, vegetarians in the United States are slimmer, healthier and usually live longer than carnivores.
Meat in large quantity may be harmful to the body; it is universally accepted.
Protein from plants, on the other hand, can be adequate meat substitute, particularly when supplemented with protein from milk and eggs.
Protein is essential in rebuilding organs, skin, cartilage, nails, hair, muscle and organic bone framework. While the human metabolic system can produce 14 out of 22 amino acids, the remaining eight must be obtained from food.
Nutritionists agree that meat is a complete protein because all eight essential amino acids are present in the proper proportion.
Vegetable foods are incomplete proteins, lacking one or more of these acids.
The good news, however, is that proper intermixing of plant proteins could satisfy the lack. Wheat, which has a deficiency in the amino acid lysine but an abundance of sulfur-containing amino acids, can be combined with beans, which have the opposite enrichment combination. Taken together, they complement each other to form a nearly complete protein.
A diet heavy in meat is also heavy in disadvantages. The primary problem carnivores face is not a deficiency of protein but an excess of calories because it is laced with saturated fat.
Conversely, non-animal foods have no cholesterol. No wonder vegetarians have consistently lower levels of serum cholesterol than do meat lovers.
Carnivores frequently suffer from poor elimination. The reason is because meat has very low fiber content, and so moves sluggishly through the digestive tract in hard and dry form. By contrast, vegetables retain moisture and bind waste bulk for easy elimination.
While nutritionists have yet to agree on whether a vegetarian diet is healthier than a meat diet, anthropologists suggest such a conclusion. Field investigations of certain non-meat cultures have documented the excellent health and longevity of the Hunzas of Pakistan and the Otomi Indians of Mexico.
During World War I, Denmark consumed far less meat than usual because of the British naval blockade, but this resulted in better general health. Likewise, in World War II, Norway adopted a vegetarian diet, resulting in a significant drop of heart diseases.
However, when both nations reverted to meat diets with the passing of their crises, incidence of heart diseases rose. (hvego31@gmail.com /PN)
