(06-25-2021, 07:54 PM)confusedseeker Wrote: India has a huge issue with anemia as well, especially among women; it's really a shame. Theoretically vegetarian diet just doesn't have enough iron, and their menstrual cycles make it necessary (depending on genetics) to replenish. Anemia is much more prevalent amongst women for this reason. A LOT boils down to personal genetics and the diet of geographical ancestors. As an Indian, my ancestors ate a ton of fiber and dairy, so I do quite well with those two elements. Someone with eskimo/nordic lineage would probably do great with lots of fish (raw). Price noted that Eskimos were some of the healthiest specimens he encountered, and their diet consisted of tons of raw seafood, and very little plants....but keep in mind they would eat the ENTIRE animal, with all the organs. Organ meat is some of the most nutritious food on the planet.
I think about 80% of vegans in the US are women. About 80-85% of vegetarians return to eating meat. I think plant based is great if you can handle it, just don't force it on to developing children...and I grow skeptical when it's promoted by big corps and elites who promote it as part of a "Green" movement.
"Even though iron in the right amounts is good for you, Epstein-Barr, shingles, and other pathogens feed on this metal. Almost all cases of anemia are caused by a low-grade viral infection. You should therefore avoid iron supplements that are not plant-based. Increase your iron naturally by eating spinach, barley grass juice powder, parsley, wild blueberries, grapes (black, purple, or red), blackberries, cilantro, burdock root (juiced), potatoes (with skins), kale, sprouts, squash, pumpkin seeds (in small amounts), asparagus, sulfur-free dried apricots, and other fruits, leafy greens, herbs, wild foods, and vegetables with relatively high amounts of iron. EBV, shingles and others are unlikely to consume iron from these sources because fruits, leafy greens, herbs, wild foods, and vegetables contain natural anti-pathogenic properties." - https://www.medicalmedium.com/blog/suppl...ic-illness
dairy feeds viruses and pathogens. if dairy is popular in india, then that would help explain why anemia is a prevalent issue. a vegetarian/vegan diet has plenty of iron if you eat foods with iron. saying it "theoretically doesn't have enough iron" is simply biased and uninformed. if someone doesn't put in any effort to include essential nutrients like iron in their diet, that's not the diet's fault, that's their fault. omnivore and vegan diets can both be done healthily or unhealthily. i looked up where cattle gets their iron and apparently it's supplemented, unless they have access to grass (74% of farmed land animals are factory farmed so most don't). if you're getting your iron from meat that isn't free range, you're essentially getting your iron supplemented secondhand.
you mention vegetarians returning to eating meat. have you asked why? your comment comes across as insinuating that a vegetarian/vegan diet isn't healthy/viable. you must know that stat includes all number of silly reasons like the massive amount of societal pressure to eat meat/animal products, people not putting in effort to meet their nutritional needs, not getting enough carbs, not having a strong motive in the first place, etc. not to mention the massive amount of chronic illness with people who eat an omnivore diet, so it's not like returning to eating meat magically solves everything.
about not forcing plant-based on children.. have you ever considered that we force animal products on children? you know in the u.s. the obesity rate hit 42% in 2020. that's obviously not all because of animal products, but it is a large component as meat and dairy are high in fat and calories. there's also the issue of feeding kids the suffering energy that comes along with meat, especially if it was factory farmed. i follow someone online who said she didn't want to eat meat as a kid and questioned it and her family pressured her into it saying things like "this is what's normal." she was upset telling this story and clearly very empathetic towards animals, she's vegan now.
kids need glucose to develop. glucose is what the brain is made out of, it's the the main building block of muscle growth and it's what fuels the body. fruits and starchy vegetables are the cleanest, most easily digestible ways to get glucose, while also being very nutritious and low in calories. the fuel you get out of meat is literally the blood sugar leftover in the flesh. that's some vampire sh*t! if i had a kid, why would i want to feed them THAT, when i could feed them fruit and potatoes? if someone is having issues with their kid getting iron, they can incorporate more iron-rich foods or a plant-based iron supplement.
not saying you're doing this, but i know a lot of people try to paint vegetarianism/veganism as being unhealthy/unviable as a way to justify eating meat to themselves and not feel guilty about it.
ultimately all nutrition comes from plants, whether it's an herbivore eating plants directly, or a carnivore eating an herbivore that ate the plants. we're humans, it's the modern age and we're smart and resourceful so why not cut out the middleman and save killing animals if we can.