You have undoubtedly had people tell you to eat all of your vegetables because they are good for you. You may not know why these foods are so good for your body but you eat your vegetables anyway.
Why Humans Started Eating Vegetables
The real reason that we started eating vegetables as a species is because plant based foods were more readily available than meat products were. Plant based foods were also easier to digest and easier to prepare. Most of them could be consumed raw and the majority of them had a delicious taste that appealed to us.
As time passed we began to learn more about the vegetables that we included in our diets. Most of the research into what benefits we gained from the eating of vegetable matter over the eating of animal products came about when it was noticed that people who had more vegetable matter in their diets were generally healthier, and had more energy, than people who consumed mainly meat products.
Why Do Vegetables Increase Our Energy?
Since we discovered that vegetables seemed to make people feel better and look better research was done to find out why. The researchers discovered that vegetables had many different vitamins, and minerals, and antioxidants, and other things that you needed to have a healthy body.
Once this was understood about the plant matter we eat researchers discovered that eating meat products that contained fat made the body feel sluggish and sleepy. Vegetables had fiber in them to help keep our digestive system functioning correctly and they do not weigh us down. They have fewer calories per serving than the meat products have and they provide all the different parts of the body with the different vitamins they need to do their jobs.
Read: Healthiest Fruits and Vegetables
Should We All Be Vegetarians?
Although there are some benefits to be gained from some meats and meat products, a person can become a vegetarian and be healthy and happy. Vegetarians eat less fat and for that reason they are generally thinner than people who eat both vegetables and meat.
A lot of diseases can be prevented by eating vegetables that have different properties.
- People who have heart conditions or high cholesterol problems in their families can lower their chances of having these conditions by maintaining their weight and eating more vegetables and high fiber foods.
- Type II diabetes can be prevented if you eat more vegetables and natural fruits and avoid refined sugars, and the extra weight that the meat products can cause you to have.
- The vitamins in carrots and other brightly colored vegetables can improve your vision.
- Eating a diet that is rich in vegetables can prevent problems associated with the gallbladder and the formation of gallstones
What are the Best Vegetables to Eat?
There is not a bad vegetable to eat. Each of them have different vitamins and health benefits for you but two of the vegetables that have the most over all health benefits are:
- sweet potatoes
- beets
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