Over the past few decades society has become more conscientious regarding healthier lifestyles. Today everyone tries to live a life free from diseases and illness, by means of frequent exercise, laboratory made supplements and dieting. Many of these obsessive lifestyles can cause inverse health issues that can have serious consequences. It has been associated that eating meat is an unhealthy choice. Vegetarianism a lifestyle that chooses to exclude meat from the diet is a widely practiced lifestyle. However, many people are unaware of the vulnerabilities and deficiencies associated with the vegetarian diet. As a result, the vegetarian lifestyle can lead to health detriments and can even impose serious health issues. Important aspects that are often over looked include: vegetarians lack invaluable nutrients gained through meat and vegetarians are prone to illness and health problems. .
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First of all, the human body needs nutrients to function. The nutrients known to be essential for human beings are proteins, carbohydrates, fats and oils, minerals and vitamins. Not all of these requirements can be found in a vegetarian's diet. Vegetarians must consume various supplements to achieve their daily requirements, particularly vitamins D and B-12. Omega-3 fatty acids which are found in fish oils, usually cold-water fish such as salmon, trout, sardines and mackerel, help to prevent heart disease in several ways. These fatty acids reduce cholesterol and blood pressure, and raise the levels of HDLs(High Density Level) which is the good cholesterol. By eating "fish twice a week it will help to prevent the formation of blood clots in the arteries, and the thickening of the artery walls in the heart." (Dellerson, Omega-3 fatty acids) To heighten the difficulties that a vegetarian has obtaining adequate levels of nutrition, most natural foods today only contain only about 50% of nutrients that they should have, due to poor soil quality.