Why is every vegetarian I know, very slim? - Page 2

[fresh_veggie]

Originally Posted by chanale

I always gain weight averaging 2,000 calories daily, even though the maddening calculators claim that at my age/weight/height I should burn that much lying in bed 24/7 (and here I work out for an hour 4-5 days a week).

The same is true for me - I'm not overweight, but I maintain at much lower - say, 1600-1800 kcals a day. If I truly eat 2000 kcal/day, I gain weight.

[Jugs]

I found that, for me anyway, its easier to maintain a healthy weight because veg'n meals are so lite that I tend to graze more than I did as an omni, which helps speed up your metabolism. What I used to consider a snack (a small cup of dried fruit and raw nuts, for example) I now treat as a small meal, whereas as an omni, I rarely ever snacked because 3 meat-containing meals was so filling for me. I guess it helps that I've never had much of a sweet tooth and I've never liked richer foods.

[Jadzia]

I am pretty sure there have been studies that found that, on average, vegetarians are slimmer. It doesn't mean that all vegetarians are skinny (I'm not!), but overall that tends to be the case.

Meat is higher in calories than veggies and grains, so it makes sense.

When I eat vegan, I easily lose 10 pounds because cheese is pretty fattening.

[kathymuggle]

If the stats in this are to be believed:

http://www.goveg.com/obesity.asp

Vegetarians are 3 times less likely to be obese than meat eaters, and vegans are 9 times less likely to be obese.

I also found a more conventional source (mayo clinic) while googling and it said vegetarians are less likely to be obese, but did not say by how much.

I do not think it is a straight cause and effect, however. My money is on "vegetarians probably care more about what they put in their bodies in general" - hence the proper caloric and nutrient intake - hence the normal weight.

[phathui5]

I think this is a British study:

Obesity predisposes sufferers to a range of conditions including cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, and hormone-dependent cancers such as breast cancer. Vegetarians are typically leaner than meat-eaters and obesity is less common in vegetarian populations. Body mass index (BMI) for vegetarians is lower than in meat-eaters and closer to desirable levels (Thorogood, 1989). Levin (1986a) found the prevalence of obesity to be 5.4 per cent in a vegetarian group compared with 19.5 per cent in non-vegetarians. This may be due to vegetarians' lower energy intake overall, with a lower proportion of energy being supplied by fat.

http://www.vegsoc.org/health/vital2.html

[samy23]

Interesting discussion. After looking at those studies, makes me want to try veganism to lose weight...9 times less likely to be obese...even vegetarians at 3 times less likely sounds worth a try to me! lol

Guess I was wrong to assume all vegetarians are slim from what people have said in this thread, but honestly all the ones I've met/known have been, then again yes they did seem more into health in general.

[NYCVeg]

If I recall from The China Study, vegetarians ARE statistically less likely to be obese than meat-eaters, and vegans are statistically less likely to be obese than either group. But statistics just represent general trends, not individuals.

I was vegetarian for nearly 20 years and now am temporarily omnivorous. I was my heaviest as a teenage vegetarian, when I ate a junk veg diet: pizza, chips, grilled cheese, Taco Bell burritoes, doughnuts, etc. I was probably what would be considered on the upper end of normal for my height. I was wearing mostly vintage clothes then, but I would guess that I was a size 6/8. In college, I learned more about food, started eating better, started exercising, and slimmed down a bit to a size 2. After pregnancy, my shape changed a bit, but I'm still pretty slender as a meat-eater--now a size 4. The point of all this navel-gazing is that, in my case, I think my size probably has more to do with my metabolism and avoiding a whole lot of crap food, not whether or not I eat meat.