If variety is the spice of life, then food is the main course. Food excites all of our five senses. While it provides us sustenance, it does more than that. Food can become a religion for us. A lifetime is not enough to master all of the possibilities that food preparation and consumption have to offer. One alternative approach to food that many people have never considered, or never considered carefully, is a diet consisting of only vegetarian foods.

Eat Your Vitamins (And Minerals)

One of the greatest misconceptions about vegetarian food diet is that humans require meats and meat by-products in their diet in order to receive all necessary vitamins. That notion is false. Vitamins exist as organic substances required in tiny quantities in our diets. Both environmental situations as well as the methods used to store, process and prepare food can influence vitamins in food.

The vegetarian can get all of his needed vitamins, by eating a balanced diet. Vitamins can be either water-soluble or fat-soluble. Vitamin C and the B group of vitamins comprise the water-soluble vitamins. Meanwhile, the fat-soluble vitamins include Vitamins A, D, E, and K. Water soluble vitamins are more prone to be lost during cooking, and are harder for the body to store.

While the body also requires several types of minerals, the primary ones include calcium, chlorine, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and sulphur. Milk alternatives for vegetarian food choices such as almonds, sesame seeds, fortified soya milks, rice milks, hemp milk, leafy green vegetables, and dried fruit are rich in calcium. Furthermore, while meat includes a high source of iron, one can also obtain it from vegetarian foods (in fact some studies suggest that superior iron actually comes from plant foods not meat) such as wholemeal bread, leafy green vegetables, molasses, pumpkin seeds, and dried fruit.

Today’s nutritional trend encourages people to eat a diet that is rich in fiber and low in fat. By eating a balanced diet that includes a cornucopia of foods, you can meet nutritional recommendations for a healthy lifestyle. In fact, medical studies are revealing that the foods that vegetarians eat are less prone to cause illnesses such as cancer, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. Thus, the health benefits alone can make vegetarian foods attractive to anyone who eats food.

Easy As 1-2-Eat

In addition to being healthy, eating vegetarian foods is much easier than one might assume. Whether you want to prepare vegetarian food at home or purchase it at restaurants, it is extensively available. You can find ingredients such as grains, seeds, and vegetables, in small shops, markets, and supermarkets. Also, the food is simple to prepare. You can prepare healthy vegetarian food meal in less than 30 minutes! Furthermore, you can also buy pre-cooked meals for the vegetarian, in many locations now.

Vegetarianism Can Be Fun And Tasty

Next, one might also make the assumption that a vegetarian is always miserable eating weeds and leaves. The perception might be that vegetarianism means removing the meat from a dish, and just eating the side vegetables. In vegetarian food recipes the components of plants become the main dish! Hundreds of different seeds, nuts, fruits, vegetables and grains exist on Earth. Even if you have the most creative cooking imagination, it would be impossible to eat every vegetarian dish possible from these ingredients. Furthermore, vegetarian dishes tend to cost less than those that require meats. Thus, you can treat yourself more often to more pricey treats, such as asparagus.

Food For Thought

Here are some tips if you wish to eat only vegetarian foods:

o Buy a vegetarian cookbook

o Read the labels of food products

o Try different foods you have never tasted before

o Read more information about the vegetarian lifestyle

o Visit health food stores

o Adjust familiar dishes

o Begin little by little

If you like food but want to choose a healthier lifestyle, you could consider the diet of the vegetarian. Vegetarian cuisine is easy to cook, provides many options, and tastes great!