trying to memorise ALL these facts by tmr~! wish me luck~!
Verbal handshake:
Ladies and Gentlemen,
My name is Celia, and it is definitely my privilege and honour to stand upon here today and speak to u.
Opening / Key message:
Today, my group n I will be giving u informative facts and values on Vegetarianism. And hopefully, by the end of our presentation, you will adopt the eating habits of a vegetarian, if not, advised, members in your family, friends and relatives who are vegetarian to take note of these facts, if not, at least take more vegetables than meat, and if not, (again), just take notes. We sincerely hope by the end of this presentation, you will learn and take back something home with you.
Overview:
Firstly, I would like to dissect our presentation into various parts that will be done by our speakers,
- Why Vegetarians and Types of Vegetarians by Celia Jong
- Nutritive Values and Food Pyramid by Raine Ong
- Advantages of Vegetarians by Michelle Poh
- Disadvantages of Vegetarian by Khoo ZhiSin
- Meat Alternatives by Kimberly Tan
Transition:
I will now continue with the Introduction of our presentation, why vegetarians????
Main Point One: Why Vegetarians
Sub Point 1, Reasons:
Vegetarian have been practiced for centuries. People become vegetarians for different reasons. There are those with religious background, who practice not eating meat as they believe in not killing lives for their own benefits. It could be also for ethical reasons, like animal-lovers, who believe it is wrong to inflict suffering upon animals or slaughter them for food. Other reasons could include the environmental devastations it could affect as well as the link between meat production vs poverty and famine in developing countries.
Sub Point 2, Healthier way of life:
There are some that are not bounded by above; they are vegetarians simply for a reason. That it is a healthier way of life. Why so? Let’s look at their basic food groups. Diet of a vegetarian excludes all meat, poultry, fish, shellfish and any slaughter by-products. Vegetarians mainly eat Grains, cereal, legumes, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. As long as one includes the right combinations of the diets, they will be provided with enough vitamins and minerals necessary. Vegetarian diets are lower in saturated fats that are mainly found in meat, as well as high in complex carbohydrate which provide bulk for the diet. They obtain their protein in nuts, seeds, legumes and some whole grains. These food also contain fibre which helps the body to stay HEALTHY. Vegetarian diet makes sense to a lot of people, it is more than just eating like a rabbit, it is a healthy way of life~!
Sub Point 3, Humans are designed to eat plants:
Also, research shows that actually, humans are not designed to eat meat. Let’s take a look at the various areas:
Teeth; Our teeth are basically flat and not pointed nor sharp, unlike carnivores, who have sharp-pointed teeth to bite into meat and chew into the raw flesh. Even when we might have a few pointed teeth, carnivores have more than 30 teeth, all primarily designed to chew flesh~! Try comparing with THAT.
Digestive tract; Our digestive tract is much longer than that of carnivores, the latter have a very short digestive system, designed to move the meat they eat through their bodies as quickly as possible. Believe it or not, out digestive tract is actually 9 metres long, unlike the carnivores, whose digestive tract is simple enough for nutrients to be absorbed into the blood stream readily. Therefore, their digestive system is actually 9 times faster than ours, WOW.
Sub Point 4, Safer way to eat:
Lastly as to why vegetarians, eating mainly plant foods and no meat is a healthier way to eat. Think about all the chemicals and additives they put into meat b4 we eat them. Then, think about the bacteria and diseases that accompany meat products. Mad-Cow disease, H5N1-Bird flu is only the most well-known and common 2, and there are plenty more. Thus, by eliminating meat from our diets, vegetarians also eliminates any of the potential diseases associated with them. And so, vegetarian diets will not cause much health problems.
Main Point 2, Types of Vegetarians:
Moving on to the different types of vegetarians: There are mainly 4 types of vegetarianism practices in our society. The 4 types are
- LACTO-OVO-VEGETARIANS
- VEGANS
- FRUITARIANS
- RAW / LIVINGFOODIST
Sub Point 1, Lacto-ovo-Vegetarians:
Lacto-ovo vegetarians; Lacto or Lactin come from the word Milk, which means dairy products, Ovo comes from the word Egg. Lacto Ovo vegetarians are vegetarians that do not eat meat products, including seafood but either takes eggs or dairy products or both. They are divided into 2 sub-types.
Ovo Vegetarians are those who do not eat meat, but they do eat egg products.
Lacto Vegetarians are those who do not take meat, but take both egg and dairy products.
These 2 are the most common type of vegetarians in our society. Not very strict in their diet combination but still do not consume meat products from/of any animals.
Sub Point 2, Vegans:
Vegans will be the group that is the strictest with their diet. They do not eat ANY meat products. And they only eat plant food. They get their nutrients from plants and fruits, beans, nuts, and seeds. Also, they do not use any of animal related non-food products, like fur coats, leather bags as well as animal tested soaps and shampoos.
Sub Point 3, Fruitarians:
Fruitarians, as the name says it all, are vegetarians who only eat fruits and vegetables that are classified as fruits, examples are; avocados, tomatoes, eggplant…etc
Sub Point 4, Raw/Living Foodists:
Lastly, Raw Living Foodist, are those who eat 50-80% of their food raw in their diet as they believe that cooking will cause enzymes to be destroyed in food. Also, some of these people believe that cooking changes food in a negative way, making it less nutritious, diminishing the vitamins and mineral contents of the food. There is some logic to a raw food diet in the fact that cooking food destroys nutrients in some way or another, but on the other hand, cooking actually makes the food easier to digest and palatable.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, we would better much prefer a lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet than the rest of the 3 types as it is more flexible in their diet as well as having the most well-balanced and nutritive value diet. Hopefully, you will be able to adopt their eating habits and have a healthy well balanced diet.
Sighx..... so stressed...... arghx.......
DJ Out~!
