Meatless Mondays!

Change it up a bit: TRY GOING VEGETARIAN ONCE A WEEK!

Even small diet changes can help

Whether you want to lose weight, keep heart disease at bay or just feel healthier, changing your diet can help.

The good news is that you don’t have to turn your world upside down to eat healthier. Making small changes to your diet over time can also make a big difference in your health.

Health benefits of a vegetarian diet

Nutrition experts agree that most people don’t include enough fruits, vegetables and whole grains in their diets. And that eating more of them can really help the body.

Vegetarian diets focus on those foods. Along with seeds, nuts and beans for protein. They generally have fewer calories and lower levels of fat and cholesterol.

As a result, vegetarians tend to weigh less than meat eaters. Their heart disease risk is lower. They are less likely to get:

• High blood pressure

• Type 2 diabetes

• Colon or prostate cancer

Vegetarian diets vary widely

Some vegetarians eat no animal products whatsoever (no meat, chicken, fish, milk, eggs, cheese). But others:

• Allow dairy (like milk and cheese) in their diets

• Include dairy and eggs

• Eat fish, but no chicken or red meat

Then there are the “flexitarians.” They give themselves the opportunity to enjoy an occasional burger, eggs or cheese.

As you can see, it tends to be an individual decision.

So why not flex your vegetarian muscle?

Talk to your doctor about adopting meatless meals once a week. Take advantage of some of the health benefits without committing full time. Maybe even trim costs, since plant-based protein is often less expensive than meat.

Try adding meatless Mondays to your menu

It’s actually a movement: www.meatlessmonday.com. Check it out. You’ll even find recipes to help you get started.

Sources:

National Institutes of Health (NIH). Digging  a vegetarian diet: Plant-based eating can reap rewards. NIH News in Health. July 2012. Available at: https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/issue/Jul2012/Feature1. Accessed October 15, 2015.

Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthy eating: Changing your eating habits. Healthwise®  Knowledgebase. November 14, 2014. Available at: www.healthwise.net/aetna/Content/StdDocument.aspx?DOCHWID=ad1169. Accessed October 15, 2015.

Healthwise, Incorporated. Vegetarian diets. Healthwise Knowledgebase. March 10, 2015. Available at: www.healthwise.net/aetna/ Content/StdDocument.aspx?DOCHWID=zx3391. Accessed October 15, 2015.

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This message is for informational purposes only, is not medical advice and is not intended to be a substitute for proper medical care provided by a physician. Information is believed to be accurate as of the production date; however, it is subject to change. For more information about Aetna plans, refer to www.aetna.com.