Ms. Wang advocates vegetarianism, but she has been catching colds frequently recently. She doesn't understand why a young person like her always gets sick. After consulting a doctor, she discovered that her recent consumption of an ultra-low-fat diet and rejection of meat had led to a decline in her physical condition.
In life, many women, in pursuit of slimness and a good figure, alter their normal dietary structure. By excessively adhering to long-term vegetarianism and unbalanced diets, they often have insufficient intake of fat, protein, and other nutrients, which can lead to hypolipidemia.
Everyone knows that high cholesterol can lead to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases such as arteriosclerosis, coronary heart disease, and stroke. In fact, low cholesterol is also extremely harmful to the body. If the cholesterol level in the blood is too low, it can weaken the stability of cell membranes, leading to reduced elasticity and increased fragility of the cell membranes, which in turn increases the brittleness of blood vessel walls. Furthermore, small blood vessels in the brain lack support from peripheral tissues, making them less resistant to changes in blood pressure. When blood pressure suddenly rises, these vessels are very prone to rupturing and bleeding, causing cerebral hemorrhage.
Cholesterol is an important raw material for the synthesis of steroid hormones in the body. After metabolism in the body, it can be converted into pregnenolone, which is then used to synthesize corticosteroids, progesterone, androgens, and estrogens. These hormones play a crucial role in regulating the metabolism of the three major substances—carbohydrates, fats, and proteins—as well as water and electrolytes, and they also have significant effects on stress responses and immune function. If the cholesterol level is too low, it can often lead to reduced synthesis of corticosteroids, resulting in weakened stress response and immunity, which reduces the body's normal disease-fighting ability. It can also lead to reduced synthesis of sex hormones, affecting normal sexual function, both of which are detrimental to human health.
Low cholesterol can also increase the incidence of tumors. Long-term vegetarians often have insufficient protein intake. For many vegetarians, their main source of protein comes from rice and flour. The protein quality in these foods is relatively poor. If vegetarians do not also pay attention to consuming high-quality protein from legumes, they can suffer from protein deficiency. Protein deficiency can make the body weak, reduce its resistance to disease, and lead to various illnesses, including malignant tumors, particularly those of the digestive tract.
Pork, beef, lamb, chicken, duck, fish, and seafood are all rich in protein. Eggs and milk are even excellent sources of abundant protein. From the perspective of a balanced and healthy diet, one must absolutely not refuse to consume protein.