Have you heard about Meatless Mondays? This is an international movement to help people reduce their meat consumption by 15% by not eating meat one day a week – on Monday. On average, Americans consume 8 ounces of meat per day. This is 45% more than the USDA recommends. Experts agree that this is bad for your health. It’s also bad for the planet. Meatless Mondays are now happening in many countries like Britain, Brazil, Holland, Canada, Finland, Taiwan, and Australia. Famous chefs, celebrities, and leaders like Al Gore, Sir Paul McCartney, and Mario Batali are backing the movement.
Going meatless is kind to your body in six important ways. You can
1. Reduce heart disease – Fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and seeds contain little or no saturated fat. Reducing saturated fats can lower cholesterol, which cuts your risk of cardiovascular disease.
2. Limit your cancer risk – Hundreds of studies report that diets high in fruits and vegetables can reduce cancer risk. Red meat consumption is associated with several kinds of cancer, especially colon cancer.
3. Fight diabetes – Increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables and decreasing consumption of red meat can reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes.
4. Curb obesity – People on vegetarian or vegan diets have significantly lower body weights than meat eaters. A plant-based diet is a great source of fiber, which leaves you feeling fuller than meat, which has no fiber.
5. Live longer – Consumption of red and processed meat is associated with higher total mortality rates, especially deaths from cancer and heart disease.
6. Improve your diet – Eating legumes and vegetables increases your intake of fiber, protein, folate, zinc, iron and magnesium while it lowers your intake of fats.
In addition to these health benefits, less meat consumption can benefit your wallet, too. Every time you buy meat, you are paying for the feed and transportation costs involved.
A great way to see if you’ll like Meatless Monday is to take a look at Claire Gosse’s delicious recipes in Are You Sure That’s Vegan (Breakfasts) and Are You Sure That’s Vegan (Desserts). These recipes are identical clones of breakfasts and desserts we all love. They’ve been tried by many vegans and non-vegans who all say they are the best they’ve ever tasted. Click on the links to see the beautiful photos and amazing testimonials.
Source: Meatlessmondays.com
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