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Tuesday, January 06, 2009
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Vegetarianism and Women
By Randi Fredricks
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A 1992 study found that of the 12.4 million vegetarians in the US, 68% are women and 32% men. Women are more likely to adopt a vegetarian diet because
women take a more proactive approach to their health.
Among the main causes of PMS pain are chemicals called prostaglandins, made from traces of fat stored in cell membranes. Barnard and his colleagues
hypothesized that, if women reduced their fat consumption, they would decrease their estrogen levels as well, which would, in turn, reduce cell
growth and prostaglandin production. Our goal was to smooth out the hormonal roller coaster many of them experience each month," says Barnard,
who had noticed that former patients overcome terrible menstrual pain after changing to a low-fat diet.
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Women following a
low-fat, vegetarian diet can expect significant reductions in menstrual pain and PMS symptoms. |
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We also hypothesized that high-fiber diets, especially vegetarian diets, would increase a protein in the blood called
sex-hormone binding
globulin, which binds and inactivates estrogen in the bloodstream until it is needed. In essence, it calms down
the hormone swings. The
hypothesis proved correct. Besides a decrease in the intensity of menstrual pain, participants in the study experienced
an average of one
and a half fewer days of pain each month. For some women, the change was profound. Their pain was gone or
dramatically reduced, something
they had not experienced for years. If they needed any pain medicine at all, they needed much less than before.
Many of the women experienced a significant relief from PMS symptoms, most notably with water retention and concentration problems.
Research participants noticed increased energy levels, lower cholesterol, and weight loss. Some of them were so pleased that, when it became their
turn to go off the vegetarian diet for two months (after two months on it), they refused to give it up. For women, a vegetarian diet can also help prevent
and treat vaginal infections, cystitis and urinary tract infections, and fibrocystic breast disease
Women following a low-fat, vegetarian diet can expect significant reductions in menstrual pain and PMS symptoms, according to a study conducted
by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in conjunction with the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Georgetown University
Medical Center, both located in Washington, D.C.
One of the foods that all children and adults should avoid is soy products. For quite some time, people have been
touting soy for women, saying it reduces the risk of breast cancer and helps with menopause. Sadly, these findings
are turning out to be false, and the dangers of soy far outweigh any good. Many women suffer from hypothyroidism and
soy has a detrimental effect on the thyroid. One Japanese study on the effect of soybeans administered to healthy
subjects reported that consumption of as little as 30 grams (two tablespoons) of soybeans per day for one month
resulted in a significant increase in thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), which is produced by the brain's pituitary
gland when thyroid hormones are too low. The findings indicated that excessive soybean ingestion for a certain duration
has the potential to suppress thyroid function and cause goiters in healthy people.
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