Go veggie – get va-va-voom!

A healthy body is especially important for a healthy love life but impotence, bad breath, obesity and premature baldness are the only delights that meat-eating men (and their lucky partners) can look forward to. It’s not too late, guys! As for fruity Mamas, dropping animal products from their diet means they’re more like to remain ravenous and randy too. Giving meat and dairy the push can give lovers a new lease of life!

Arthritis
It’s a debilitating condition and certainly not embraced at an amorous moment. Research has shown people with a high level of consumption of red meat, meat and meat products combined are at an increased risk of inflammatory polyarthritis. Switching to a vegetarian or vegan diet though has proven to alleviate the symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Bad breath
Okay, it’s bad enough kissing a corpse-eater but ugh! A six month study of people following the low-carb, meat-based Atkins diet reported that 38 per cent of them experienced bad breath (other adverse effects, apart from the rise in cholesterol, calcium loss, risk of diabetes and colon cancer and impaired kidney function, were: constipation, 68 per cent; headaches, 60 per cent; muscle cramps, 35 per cent; diarrhea, 23 per cent; general weakness, 25 per cent). Just say no!

* For more on Atkins, go to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM)’s website: www.atkinsdietalert.org.

Also, when asked by EatVeg.com on whether vegetarians make better lovers people were very positive, referring to cleaner bodies, more appealing skin, fresher breath and saliva and sweeter ‘love juices’!

Baldness
Hair loss is genetically determined, both for men and women, but foods may well affect how early in life it occurs. Harvard researchers found that men with the highest blood levels of a compound in the blood called insulin-like growth factor-1, are more likely to go bald. IGF-1 is found in milk and studies suggest that it passes into the human bloodstream of milk drinkers. Women with high insulin levels are also more likely to have male pattern baldness. High-fat, low-fibre diets interfere with insulin’s actions, forcing the body to make more and more insulin to compensate.

Fertility
Ditching dairy can have a positive effect on fertility in women as lactose in milk can damage the ovaries, as can being obese.

Impotence
…due to clogged arteries from animal fat (and lack of essential nutrients from plants) means it’s not hard to see why meat-eaters face stiff competition from veggies in the love arena! PCRM’s nutrition director Amy Lanou, PhD, says: “Artery blockages don’t just affect the heart. They can hit any organ.” Obesity and diabetes – both linked to meat and dairy consumption – are also linked to impotence. But forget Viagra! The good news is, carnivores who cut out meat can clear their arteries and can soon be feeling themselves again.

Menopause
Hot flushes, loss of libido and mood swings are seen as inevitable to menopausal women in the West so why do women in Japan and the Far East rarely experience them? The answer is in what they eat – a diet based on plant-foods which includes substances called phytoestrogens, and few dairy products.

The menopause occurs when ovaries stop responding to hormones from the brain which control women’s monthly cycle. With the menopause, oestrogen and progesterone levels decrease while other hormone levels increase in an attempt to boost ovulation. The outcome of this conflict are the symptoms women dread – the usual treatment of which is hormone replacement therapy (HRT), much of which comes from mares’ urine which is rich in oestrogen. It is an extremely cruel process with pregnant mares housed in stables so tiny they can’t lie down, and harnessed to a device which collects their urine for up to six months. HRT also includes a higher risk of breast and womb cancer, blood clots, strokes and heart disease.

Growing evidence shows a vegan diet is the natural way to reduce or avoid the distressing symptoms often associated with the menopause. Boost your intake of vitamins A (betacarotene), B complex, C and E, minerals – magnesium, selenium, calcium and zinc, essential fats and soya products, natural high in isoflavones by eating a variety of nuts, seeds, fresh fruit and vegetables, wholegrains and pulses. Avoid meat, dairy, coffee, alcohol, tea and fizzy pop.

Migraines
No more: “Not tonight love, I’ve got a headache.” Dairy foods are one of the main triggers for migraines so a vegan diet can reduce the risk of this passion killer.

Obesity
Sexy curves are one thing but beastly bumps…?! Evidence shows that a plant-based diet is the healthiest option for keeping you lean and lovely and more energetic! It can help weight loss or to maintain a healthy weight and replacing meat with a plant-based alternative can help control weight. The World Health Organisation (WHO) suggest several ways to lose weight including eating more fruit, vegetables, nuts and whole grains; engaging in daily moderate physical activity for at least 30 minutes; cutting the amount of fatty, sugary foods in the diet and moving from saturated animal-based fats to unsaturated vegetable-oil based fats.

and don’t just take our word for it:

“I’m vegan and at the age of 72 I regularly cycle up to 60 miles, swim 2000 metres and enjoy a very active sex life!” Barrie Sheldon, Suffolk

“I suffered Rheumatism from 9 years old to 19 ½ years old, then I went veggie and have not suffered since.” Annie Hinchcliffe, Leeds

“When I changed my diet to exclude dairy it seems I had a lactose intolerance, and my life has been improved so much I still can’t believe it!” Keith Gatrell, Shoreham-by-Sea

“I’ve got the weight, figure and health I never had before I changed my way of eating.” Brenda Clark, Conwy

 “I had two years of hell on HRT, so one day decided ‘no more’. Instead I ate foods such as tofu and soya milk and have never felt bad since. I never really thought my diet helped until I saw my meat-eating friends deteriorating with the menopause and saw it must do. I never used to bang the vegan drum but I certainly do now! I go hill walking regularly and certainly don’t feel my age – and people tell me I don’t look it.” Judi Hewitt, Rhyl

* For more info on any of these issues and free advice on how a veggie or vegan diet can work for you, contact the Vegetarian & Vegan Foundation. And if a vegetarian or vegan diet has helped your health in any way, we’d love to hear about it.

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