Almost three percent of the population follows a strict vegetarian diet, but the number of non-meat eaters is significantly higher when the number of "part-time" vegetarians is taken into account. The interest in this form of diet is growing as more people discover the health benefits of going vegetarian. Some are also hopeful that a meatless diet will make it easier to shed those extra pounds. Can going vegetarian make it easier to lose excess weight?

    Does It Work?

    There does appear to be some validity to the idea that eating a vegetarian diet helps with weight loss. Several studies have shown that people who eat a vegetarian diet weigh less on the whole than their meat eating counterparts. Other studies have shown that people who follow a vegetarian diet to lose weight are more successful than those who eat meat and dairy products. Although this sounds encouraging, the vegetarian diet used in these studies were low in fat and calories. There's little evidence that a vegetarian diet that emphasizes cheese, pasta, and sweet desserts makes it any easier to lose weight.

    Other Benefits of Going Vegetarian to Lose Excess Weight

    Eating a vegetarian diet to lose weight has other health perks. A study published in the American Journal of Medicine showed that eating a low fat vegetarian diet not only reduces the risk of heart disease and helps to normalize blood sugars, but may actually reverse atherosclerotic disease that can lead to heart attacks. Eating a low fat vegetarian diet improves insulin sensitivity and may reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome – a condition that increases the risk of heart attack and diabetes. Following a low fat vegetarian diet is particularly beneficial for diabetics and those with heart disease.

    The Limitations of a Vegetarian Diet to Lose Weight

    Although eating a vegetarian diet may put a person at a slight advantage when it comes to losing weight, it's no guarantee of success. Losing weight requires making the right food choices regardless of whether meat is eaten or not. A vegetarian diet heavy on potatoes, white rice, white bread, high fat cheese, pasta, and ice cream is more likely to lead to weight gain than to weight loss. The real benefits of going vegetarian to lose weight lies in the fact that most vegetables and fruits are low in calories, but are still nutrient dense. They're also high in fiber and water which makes them more filling. Those who are smart enough to load up on fruits, vegetables, and complex carbs are likely to experience weight loss on a vegetarian diet.

    The Problems with a Vegetarian Diet to Lose Excess Weight

    To successfully eat a vegetarian diet to lose weight requires close monitoring to ensure proper nutrition. Eating a strict vegetarian diet can lead to protein, iron, and B12 deficiencies if the diet isn't carefully planned. Those who go vegan and avoid dairy products also have to worry about calcium deficiency. Good protein sources for vegetarians include tofu, fermented soy such as tempeh, and seitan, a wheat based meat substitute. Soy based foods are the source since soybeans are a complete source of essential amino acids. Most plant based proteins are deficient in one or more amino acids, so must be combined with other plant based protein sources that have the ones that are missing. Good plant based protein sources include lentils, beans, quinoa, and nuts. Only animal based foods contain B12 so it may be necessary to supplement with a good B complex supplement when on a vegetarian diet.

    Should You Eat a Vegetarian Diet to Lose Excess Weight?

    Eating a vegetarian diet can be helpful for losing weight, but requires careful planning to avoid overdosing on carbs and empty calories. It also requires greater attention to nutrition – particularly with regard to iron, calcium, B12, and protein.

    幾乎有3%的人為嚴格的素食者，如果把半素食者也計算在內的話，這個數字還要大大地提高。人們發現堅持"素食"有益于身體健康，因此這種飲食方式如今受到越來越多的青睞。有些人還希望通過"無肉飲食",可以更容易地甩掉身上多余的體重。那么，素食真得能讓減肥變得更容易嗎？

    素食真得有效嗎？

    堅持素食有助于減肥，這個想法在目前的確得到部分的證實。有研究表明，素食者的體重整體上顯得比非素食者的要輕。還有研究顯示，比起攝入肉類及其他日常食品的人 ,堅持素食的人減肥更容易。這聽起來似乎都很鼓舞人心，但是，在這些研究中所使用的素食餐實際上都是低脂肪和低熱量的，所以，就很難證明，那些主要包含芝士，披薩，甜點等的素食餐真得能讓減肥變得容易了。

    減肥素食好處多

    為了減肥而堅持了素食，其實對身體有著其他的益處。由美國醫學雜志的一項研究表示，堅持低熱量的素食餐不僅能夠減低患心臟病的風險，保持血糖正常，甚至能幫助治愈易引致心臟病發的動脈硬化。還有，可提高胰島素敏感度，降低患上代謝綜合征的風險--該癥會增加患心臟病及糖尿病的機率。因此，素食餐，尤其對心臟病和糖尿病的患者，是非常有益的。

    減肥素食的限制

    也許對減肥的人來說，素食餐的確有點幫助，但是卻不是絕對的。不管吃肉與否，重要的是要對減肥的食物做出正確的選擇。一份主要有馬鈴薯、白米飯、白面包和富含脂肪的芝士、披薩、雪糕等的素食餐更可能導致體重的上升而不是下降。真正能助于減肥的素食餐應該是低熱量卻含有足夠營養的蔬菜和水果。它們還富含纖維與水分，更容易讓胃感到滿足。明智的減肥者會懂得選擇蔬果和復合碳水化合物的素食餐，而他們就可能體會到素食給減肥所帶來的幫助。

    減肥素食引起的問題

    要靠堅持素食來實現成功減肥，需要嚴密的指導與衡量，以保證攝入適當的營養。如果不慎重搭配，長期的素食餐會導致蛋白質、鐵和B12缺失。而那些拒絕日常食品的嚴格素食者們還需為鈣缺失而操心。對于素食者來說，富含蛋白質的食物來源包括豆腐，各種發酵的豆類，如印尼豆豉和"seitan"--一種谷物和大豆發酵而成的素肉。大豆本身就含了所有的必須氨基酸，因此它是素食者主要的營養來源。大多數植物的蛋白質可能缺少一樣或以上的氨基酸，所以必須與其他植物的蛋白質相結合才得以補充所需的營養。富含蛋白質的植物來源包括小扁豆，大豆，quinoa（有尾巴的小小米，產于秘魯、玻利維亞、與厄瓜多爾）及堅果。而B12只能從動物類食品中攝取，因此，當進行素食減肥的時候，必須要攝入足夠的維他命B復合物以補充B12.

    應不應該以素食來減肥？

    素食的確對減肥有所幫助，但是必須要有謹慎的計劃，避免攝入碳水化合物過量和熱量不足。更要注意的是，必須保持吸收足夠的營養，尤其是鐵，鈣，B12和蛋白質這類的。