Heart disease is one of the most serious conditions facing the world’s population. Even though modern medicine has helped us fight many diseases and prolong life, we are still losing hundreds of thousands of people to heart disease every year. It is a shame that so many people lose their life to this condition, especially because there is a way to combat heart disease. It is not necessarily through expensive, cutting edge medicine - but through an improved diet.
Heart Problems? Go Vegan
Most people who turn to a vegan diet are doing so because they have an ethical issue with consuming animal products. It is a wonderful reason to go vegan. But not everyone has the same morals. Even if you have no problems with consuming animal products, you may want to think about how going vegan would improve your health. Studies have shown that a vegan diet can not only prevent heart disease but may also reverse it.
Have you ever heard the phrase alkalizing your body? It sounds like a gimmick or fad, but it is not. The basic concept is that we consume far too many acidic foods in our diet. If you are eating too many dairy products, fast foods, high fat meals, and animal meat, you have an acidic diet. The problem with an acidic diet is that your body ends up with more acid than it can properly process. The result is harm to your internal organs, including the heart. That is why alkalizing the body can have such a positive impact on your life.
Is a Vegan Diet the Solution?
The idea that a low-fat, vegan diet can help fight heart disease is not a new concept. Doctors proposed such a diet to combat heart disease decades ago. The problem is that no one was listening. Now more people are aware of a vegan diet. They are also paying attention to how eating the right foods can help prevent or reverse heart problems.
Shunning foods including milk, eggs, lean and fatty meats and added fats is said to help reduce the amount of cholesterol-clogged plaque found in your arteries. This plaque in the arteries is one of the major reasons that people suffer from cardiovascular problems. If there is so much plaque around the arteries, the result is a heart that must work too hard to perform basic functions. And the inevitable outcome is heart disease.
Studies Back Up the Hypothesis
A study published in “The Journal of Family Practice” had 198 people go through a plant-centric diet. These individuals all had cardiovascular problems. 177 of them managed to stick with the diet for around four years. And among those 177 people, one person had a stroke. Everyone else was healthy and suffered no heart-related issues. In contrast, 13 of the 21 individuals who did not stick to the diet had a cardiovascular event.
How to Change Eating Habits
It is easy to tell people to go vegan, but making a change is difficult. The older we get, the more we are stuck in our ways. If you are suffering from health problems, or you want to get ahead of any potential heart issues, incorporating a vegan diet can make all the difference.
The best way to find yourself enjoying such a diet is to look at vegan alternatives to the meals you enjoy the most. The world has come a long way where veganism is concerned. There are some incredible recipes, shopping guides and other tutorials available to individuals who are considering this diet.
Vegans who consume a good amount of fruits and vegetables, beans, seeds and legumes will live longer and healthier lives. This diet avoids dairy products, meat, added oils and processed foods. Those are the main culprits behind our poor health.