How far vegetarianism is a better choice, is wholly dependent upon the age of the person trying to implement the vegetarian diet into his lifestyle and the health risk factors associated with this age. Taking this view of mine as the primary theme of this article, I shall explore the meaning of my statements through the perspective of a four-year-old child, a thirty-five-year-old man, and an eighty-two-year-old patriarch.
That a child should not be made to embrace the intricacies of a vegetarian diet, is quite obvious when we look at an example. Rahul, a nine-year-old schoolboy, makes his way to the centre of the park. His thin and lanky frame sways in great juxtaposition with the comparatively behemoth appearances of his classmates. A slight wind seems to teeter him close to tipping over, but he holds on to his lunch-box containing the cooked lentils his mother had painstakingly crafted into the shapes he liked. Whatever his mother did, she never managed to assuage his feelings of missing out on something significant when the other children and teachers bore their judgemental stares or casual snorts into his frail body. Why is Rahul so lanky and weary? Perhaps, it is because, for a long time, he found it tedious to complete the humungous meal kept in front of him; a meal that tried in all the various ways to extricate the little protein found in most plant-based vegetarian products. Proteins from the peas and lentils, zinc from the bread, iron from the spinach and kidney beans, and vitamin B-12 from the Tofu and Tempeh was too much for him to gobble up in a single day. “Why can’t I get those meaty meals my classmates seem to relish? So little, and yet so filling…,” Rahul wonders to himself, for his classmates never seemed to have a lunch-box as overstuffed as his was. Besides, should Rahul be forced to miss out on all life has to offer just because some grown-up decided what was 'nutritious' for him? Of course not! Rahul should have the option to choose what option he wants and should be made to overcome his finicky tendencies. For a grown, middle-aged man though, the situation with vegetarianism will be different. This will be explored in the next paragraph.
For a 35-year-old man, the situation would be vastly different; this can easily be validated by surveys conducted in recent years. The World Health Organization (WHO) carried out a survey in all its member-nations asking people aged 30-45 whether or not they had adopted a vegetarian diet. This group of people was then asked whether they suffered from any chronic health problems. From a group of 156,100 people who responded, 45,500 people had implemented vegetarianism. Only 15% of these then reported suffering from chronic health problems such as diabetes and arrhythmia. This, in stark contrast to the 45% of people who reported they were non-vegetarians. While elaborating upon these results, Dr. Harshvardhan, a chairperson in the executive board of the WHO, explains, “By the time a person turns 30, their protein requirements greatly decrease, and the red meat most often consumed starts to have net detrimental effects. Plant-based diets; however, often contain antioxidants that protect the eye and the fibre helps in healthy bowel movements while reducing LDL cholesterol and controlling blood sugar.” Indeed, his account is corroborated by Dr. Anthony Hopkins, renowned cardiologist, who states, “I follow a vegetarian diet. Why? It eliminates all the possible carcinogens present in processed food while ensuring I have a statistically lower chance of contracting diabetes compared to the general population.” Do these surveys and expert inputs satisfy you? They should! That the situation is different for the elderly would be an understatement; this will be explored in the upcoming paragraph.
Whether a patriarch aged eighty-two should implement a plant-based diet depends on an enormous array of factors. Statistics make this clear. Research carried out by the Royal Geriatrics Society reported that 11% of people aged over the age of eighty considered themselves fit. Should these continue or start a vegetarian diet? Of course, they should! What about the other 89% who suffer from various medical ailments? Well, it depends. The American Medical Association (AMA) gives us two types of people as shown: People with osteoporosis, a degenerative bone disease, should increase their intake of fish as well as dairy products. People with cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, on the other hand, would need to avoid all meat products for better health. In the end, whether or not the above eighty-year-old should adopt vegetarianism depends on the various ailments they may suffer from that arrive in conjunction with old-age. Even so, as AMA states on its website, “A vegetarian diet would be of benefit to old-age provided it causes no direct complications with the other ailments the elderly may face.” Vegetarianism, on the large, would benefit the elderly significantly if able to be implemented safely and successfully.
Careful consideration of the above factors would lead us to making a conclusion that vegetarianism is only a good choice if implemented correctly, in a manner that it does not stunt a child’s growth or complicate medical ailments. Vegetarianism may not be a magic bullet per se; however, when implemented successfully and at the right age, it is the better choice to make.
Comments