Top 10 personal benefits of adopting a vegan lifestyle
A vegan lifestyle encompasses an entire approach to living, not just a diet. If you are wondering if you can adopt a vegan lifestyle to improve your health, look more closely at a healthy vegan diet. For health benefits, we vegans focus on not just plant-based but also whole foods.
A vegan diet doesn’t sound too appetizing to most animal product lovers. Changing one’s palate overnight is not easy, especially when you are brought up to believe it’s natural to eat meat and dairy.
Yet a vegan diet is kinder to your health and to your wallet. You also gain the benefit of knowing that you’re being kinder to animals and the environment. Making the switch isn’t easy. But knowing more about the benefits that veganism provides may help you lean towards more plant-based choices for your own benefit, and perhaps strengthen your resolve if you are trying to commit to a vegan lifestyle.
You need not be hard on yourself if you find making the transition difficult or slow. It’s not necessary to make a complete change overnight. Make the change slowly over time, if you prefer. Just keep in mind that the more plant-based, whole foods you eat, the happier your body and overall health will be.
A vegan lifestyle has many advantages to offer
Here are my top 10 personal reasons why I benefit from my vegan lifestyle:
- Vegans (who eat whole foods and avoid processed foods) enjoy better overall health. You can count on having lower blood pressure, cholesterol levels, body weight, risk of heart disease, and risk of Type-2 diabetes, according to study results from Harvard Health.
- A vegan lifestyle is better for the environment. The resources necessary for meat production are unsustainable for the health of our planet. Far more water and land are required to provide one serving of beef than one service of fruit, grains, or vegetables. Consider how much grain a cow or pig must consume to reach adult weight.
- Veganism is kinder to animals. Animals raised for meat often live horrible lives, not to mention they all are killed before they die of natural causes. Poor living conditions breeding poor health are the norm for animals produced for meat. Even cows raised for milk production or chickens raised for eggs often endure horrific living conditions.
- Adding healthy plant-based choices to your daily food intake decreases your psychological dependence on unhealthy food choices. Your body receives nourishment, which reduces cravings. Vegans don’t need to restrict their calories, because whole foods provide health benefits. Vegans are much less likely to overeat, unless they continue to indulge in processed foods filled with unhealthy oils, fats, and too much salt.
- Disease prevention. People who adopt a vegan lifestyle can reverse diseases and enjoy lower incidences of breast cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer, macular degeneration, cataracts, arthritis, and osteoporosis. Check out this interview from Nutrition Action.
- Easier body weight control. Vegan populations have lower body mass indices than those that consume meat regularly.
- Increased longevity. Those that avoid meat and milk products live an average of six years longer than those that consume those food products. A vegan lifestyle can be a reliable way to ensure you spend a few more years living your life.
- Migraine relief. Vegans report having fewer migraine headaches than non-vegans. Those that routinely suffer from migraine headaches can often find relief by adopting a vegan diet.
- Fewer contaminants in food. Meat, milk, and eggs can potentially introduce unhealthy chemicals into the diet. Many herbicides, pesticides, and heavy metals can concentrate in animal-based fat. The animals that provide these foods are often given growth hormones and antibiotics that can remain in the products you consume.
- A vegan diet can be less expensive. Meat and cheese tend to be expensive food items. Consider how inexpensive beans, rice, oatmeal, and many vegetables can be. That’s not to say a vegan can’t spend a lot of money at the grocery store, but the option to keep food costs to a minimum is there.
Stick with a vegan lifestyle for your own personal benefits
Sticking with a vegan lifestyle requires dedication and planning. The many benefits you’ll enjoy by eating a vegan diet are priceless. The diet can benefit your health, finances, self-esteem, and your waistline. The environment also benefits when fewer animal products are consumed. Consider these advantages and decide if a vegan lifestyle is for you.
If you still are eating a carnivore diet, try having a few vegan meals each week. Notice how you feel 2-4 hours after consuming them. This alone might be a good enough reason to make the switch. If you really want to commit to a vegan lifestyle and are finding it difficult, simply add more plant-based whole foods to your diet. The nutritious effects you will receive will also help you eventually turn away from bad food choices.