17 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF BEING A VEGETARIAN - NUTRITION - 2025

The most important benefits of being a vegetarian are preventing cancer, reducing blood pressure, helping to lose weight, reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, or preventing premature aging. However, it also has disadvantages that we will discuss.

It is difficult to relate being a vegetarian with some type of positive or negative effect, since it is associated with an idea of ​​guaranteeing health, without the possibility of causing problems. And although this statement is not without reason, the truth is that little is also said about the adverse repercussions.

Experts do not recommend converting to this mode of nutrition if you are in a growth period (adolescence) or if you are in an advanced age. Also, people who are breastfeeding should also not adhere to vegetarianism. In short, the ideal age range is between 20 and 60 years.

Advantages of being a vegetarian

1- Reduces the risk of colon cancer

If you are a vegetarian, you can significantly reduce your risk of colon cancer. Increasing your fiber intake and reducing red meat intake are two of the most important keys.

This benefit has already been proven by various investigations, among which we find that of Loma Linda University in California (United States).

In it, they studied 77 thousand adults for seven years, among whom were vegetarians and non-vegetarians. Finally, it was concluded that those who followed a vegetarian diet showed a lower percentage to suffer from colon cancer than those who did not.

Subsequently, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition also reaffirmed these studies.

2- Lowers blood pressure

According to various researches, the vegetarian diet helps to lower blood pressure naturally. So if you suffer from high blood pressure, feel free to try a vegetarian diet.

3- Helps to lose weight

Going vegetarian will also help you lose weight. A well-planned diet can help you lose up to two kilos a week. Therefore, you have to choose which low-calorie foods are appropriate.

This has been confirmed by research conducted in Nutrition Reviews, which stated that weight loss is one of the main causes of stopping eating meats. Similarly, another study carried out with 50,000 people reached the same conclusion.

4- Control and reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes

Did you know that one of the consequences of being a vegetarian leads to a reduction in the possibility of suffering from type 2 diabetes?

The following study found that following a vegetarian diet helps to avoid obesity and consequently reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.

On the other hand, if you already have diabetes, you can help to control it naturally. This has been confirmed by this scientific research. The "fault" is in fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes, which increase insulin resistance, resulting in a lower risk of contracting some type of complication.

5- Reduces the level of cholesterol and triglycerides

When we stop eating foods of animal origin, our levels of triglycerides, general cholesterol and therefore, LDL or bad cholesterol are reduced.

A study carried out by the University of Oxford (United Kingdom), analyzed 2000 subjects, concluding that vegetarians tend to have lower cholesterol levels than the rest.

6- It works to prevent aging

Being a vegetarian results in a production of a higher number of antioxidants for our body. According to research, there is less antioxidant stress and what leads to a better conservation of our body, both externally and internally.

7- Lower risk of degenerative diseases

Derived from the previous consequence, by enjoying a higher concentration of antioxidants, we will tend to prevent our body from wearing out more quickly.

The consequence of this will be a lower risk of suffering from degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's.

8- Lower probability of suffering from cardiovascular diseases

When we stop eating meats, we also stop introducing saturated fat and cholesterol into our body, thus providing soluble fiber.

What does this translate to? At a lower risk of cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks or atherosclerosis.

9- Prevents breast cancer

Several studies have shown that women who are vegetarians have a lower risk of breast cancer.

In addition, the data reflect that this type of cancer is less in places where the consumption of meat is not so widespread, such as the countries of Southeast Asia.

10- Prevents kidney and biliary lithiasis

It is proven that diets that are rich in meat remove large amounts of uric acid and oxalate for the kidneys, which leads to the formation of kidney stones.

For this reason, the vegetarian diet ensures that patients prone to kidney stone formations can effectively prevent them.

Likewise, once meat consumption has been reduced, both the level of saturated fat and that of cholesterol decrease, avoiding gallstones.

Disadvantages of being a vegetarian

1- fragile bones

Bones are nourished by animal protein, and as this study points out, its lack causes our bone health to be weakened.

Other scientific research claimed that vegetarians had approximately 5% lower bone density than non-vegetarians.

That is why you have to take special care with the consumption of proteins, calcium, iron or vitamin D.

2- Vitamin B12 deficiency

Did you know that vitamin B12 is only obtained from meat foods? This is one of the main problems of vegetarians.

The fatal consequence of this is iron deficiency, which leads to the appearance of anemia. According to a study, 92% of vegans have clear symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiencies.

Another of the great problems of vitamin B12 deficiency is the decrease in energy. Vegetarian foods by themselves do not provide the necessary amount to make our body manage to maintain itself in the same way as it would with meats.

The solution results in the intake of supplements or algae that acquire the vitamin through bacterial synthesis or contamination.

3- Vulnerability to diseases

The set of deficiencies, such as the aforementioned vitamin B12, zinc or other types of nutrients make our immune system less strong and increase the chances of contracting some type of disease.

4- Dental problems

If you know a vegetarian, it is very likely that they show cavities and different dental deficiencies.

A study found that meat foods help improve dental plaque and keep various dental diseases at bay. This is because L-arginine, which reduces the microorganisms that cause oral problems.

5- Lower levels of omega-3 fatty acids

With this you have to be careful. In a document published by the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, it was stated that vegetarians have low levels of omega-3 fatty acids.

This is essential to maintain proper cardiovascular health. Now, if you solve the problem with supplements, you will even be able to strengthen your health, as explained in the section on positive consequences.

6- Loss of muscle mass

Vegetarianism is not generally recommended for bodybuilders. Large doses of protein are needed to build muscle mass, something that a vegetarian diet lacks.

For this reason, if what you want is to gain muscle mass and not lose it, you should not stop eating meat.

7- Proteins more difficult to absorb

Plant proteins are termed incomplete. This means that they are much more difficult to absorb than animal proteins.

This will force you to take the appropriate supplements and to make a correct combination of vegetables so as not to suffer any type of problem.

8- Appearance of short-term side effects

Starting a vegetarian diet can lead to a series of unsatisfactory side effects for our body.

Due to the immediate decrease in arachymonic acid, we will be more likely to suffer depressive episodes. This has been proven by research published in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.

Also, another of the effects that usually appear during the first days of a diet is the common feeling of discomfort. This is explained by the lack of tryptophan, a generator of seretonin that is responsible for the production of the feeling of well-being.

As Julia Ross, nutritionist and founder of The Nutriotional Therapy Institute points out: "Vegetarian diets contain low amounts of tryptophan, which makes people vulnerable."

Vegetarian types

There are a large number of types of vegetarians. Depending on the branch, we can find the following:

• Ovolactovegetarian: it is the most common in the West. He does not eat any type of meat, including fish. Now, milk, eggs and derivatives do enter the diet.
• Lacto-vegetarians: the same as ovo- lacto- vegetarians, differing in that they do eat dairy products with the exception of eggs. Very common in countries like India
• Ovovegetarians: they do not eat dairy but they do eat eggs.
• Raw eaters: one of the most curious, since they only eat raw or warm food. They never use cooked ones. Their nutritional reasons are based on the cooking systems that are currently used, since they eliminate a large part of the nutrients from the food.
• Veganisms: the most radical without a doubt. They cannot eat or use any type of food that is of animal origin. That exempts them from wearing wool or leather clothing, for example.