Research has shown that meat is not a healthy option in our diet, especially if it is red or processed. Therefore, many people choose a vegetarian diet either because they want to, or they think it is healthier than any other diet. However, for adolescent and young adults, vegetarianism is not an option.
According to a new study published in the April issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, although adolescent and young adult vegetarians have a healthy diet, they may also have an increased risk of binge eating and other unusual behaviors.The study was the work of researchers from the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University, the University of Minnesota and the University of Texas, Austin.
Previous studies have also found a link between vegetarianism and eating disorders in young people. It is common knowledge that some teenagers choose a vegetarian diet as a weight-loss tool, increasing their chance of developing eating disorders once they reached their target.
The current findings are based on a study of 2,516 adolescents aged 15 to 23 who took part in a survey in 31 Minnesota schools. They were divided into three groups: current vegetarians, former vegetarians or never vegetarians.
The researchers found that 19.6 percent of current vegetarians and 20.9 percent of former vegetarians used some form of extreme, unhealthy weight-control behaviors (such as using a diet pill or laxatives or inducing vomiting), and 21.2 percent and 16 percent, respectively, said they had binged on food with a loss of control. On the other hand, just 9.4 percent of the never-vegetarian group had used extreme, unhealthy weight-control behaviors and only 4.4 percent said they had lost control while eating and binged. Overall, however, young adult vegetarians were less likely to be overweight or obese than were those who’d never been vegetarians.
“The majority of adolescents and young adults today would benefit from improvements in dietary intake. However, current vegetarians may be at increased risk for binge eating, while former vegetarians may be at increased risk fro extreme unhealthful weight-control behaviours,” the study’s lead researchers, Ramona Robinson-O’Brien, an assistant professor in the Nutrition Department at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University in St. Joseph, Minnesota, said.
Given the findings of the study, Robinson-O’Brien advised doctors should investigate a person’s motive for choosing a vegetarian diet before allowing that person to follow it.
“When guiding adolescent and young adult vegetarians in proper nutrition and meal planning, clinicians should investigate an individual's motives for choosing a vegetarian diet and ask about current and former vegetarian status when assessing risk for disordered eating behaviors,” Robinson-O'Brien said.
