Pescetarianism is a new trend in nutrition, which is increasingly popular and easily tolerated by the body. Proponents of this diet can eat dairy products, eggs, fish and seafood, but completely refuse to eat meat from warm-blooded animals. Many experts praise the pescetarian system of dieting, which helps to reduce weight and cleanse the body of toxins by limiting animal fat.
What kind of diet is a pescetarian?
Some scientists believe red meat causes many chronic diseases. In addition, they tend to believe that eating animal protein foods provokes heart attacks, strokes, and certain forms of cancer. You have also heard that chicken meat, for example, is full of antibiotics and hormones that are given to chickens to make them grow faster and bigger.
There is a lot of information about sausages and smoked meats, and it all boils down to the fact that there is not much good stuff in them. Usually the meat is left for texture, the rest is flavorings, coloring and flavorings.
And when a person thinks about eating right, for many people giving up meat is a real disaster. In this case, pescetarianism comes to the rescue.
Becoming a pescetarian means changing your lifestyle and reconsidering your diet. Such a diet involves the right selection of products and saturation of the body with enough useful elements and amino acids.
The pescetarian diet is similar to the vegetarian diet system, but the former includes the consumption of seafood and fish. Supporters of the modern trend do not deprive themselves of the pleasure of eating and successfully combine different cuisines — Mediterranean, Scandinavian and Japanese. This flexible diet allows people to have a balanced diet, to get rid of toxins and to prolong their youth by satisfying their gastronomic needs.
That’s interesting. Today, the exact origins of the diet are unknown. Pescetarianism became popular in the 1990s in America and Europe. The name of the diet means «fish» in many languages: pescado in Spanish, pesce in Italian and piscare in Latin.
A typical pescetarian’s diet includes the following foods:
- Fish and seafood — menus may include shrimp, squid, scallops, and mussels. Any fish — mackerel, tuna, pike, perch, salmon, and mullet are excellent additions to the diet. The main thing is not to forget about the principles of good nutrition and not to fry healthy food.
- Vegetable diet — fruits, vegetables, grains and berries are a good addition to the fish menu and help diversify dishes.
- Dairy products — in the diet of pescetarians there are eggs, milk, sour cream, cheese and butter. The important principle is to observe the sense of proportion and to use the products without fanaticism.
- Carbohydrates — this group of products complements the diet and allows you to come up with a variety of dishes. You can use pasta from durum wheat, cereals, nuts and chickpeas.
- The benefits of such a diet
- Many supporters of the pescetarian diet make a choice in favor of such a diet for good reasons. Some give preference to such a system of food for better health, others justify it on moral grounds.
Nutritionists approve of the pescetarian diet, arguing the choice by the potential benefits. This food system has a positive effect on the body and does not harm health, even with prolonged adherence.
Let’s list the benefits of a pescetarian diet:
- Switching to such a menu normalizes the intestines, improves their peristalsis, promotes the healing of small fissures and eliminates foci of inflammation.
- Fish and seafood have a positive effect on cardiac health — blood circulation is normalized, blood pressure is normalized and overall health is improved.
- A pescetarian menu is suitable for people suffering from diabetes. Plant foods are slowly digested, which ensures that glucose enters the bloodstream in small portions without sugar spikes.
- Avoiding meat and meat-based convenience foods has a positive effect on the body. In this case, the risk of colon cancer is reduced many times over.
- A balanced diet promotes weight loss, improves vision, gets rid of edema and strengthens the immune system.
Comparison of pescetarianism and vegetarianism
Pescetarianism is essentially similar to vegetarianism, but it is worth noting that the latter dietary system is much more limited. The general principle in these diets is the rejection of animal meat. But pescetarianism is much milder than vegetarianism.
Let us list the fundamental differences:
- Vegetarians give up not only meat, but all animal foods. They do not eat eggs, dairy products, fish and seafood.
- Many supporters of the vegetarian current refuse to use furs, leather and any products, the origin of which is associated with animals.
- It is worth noting that vegetarianism is not always a complete rejection of all animal products. There are now several trends in this dietary system that allow for the consumption of eggs and fish — these are lacto-, veggie- and lacto-vegetarianism.
Possible harms of the diet
The pescetarian diet is well tolerated by people of all ages and has almost no contraindications and side effects. The main disadvantage of this diet system is the high cost of products, because high-quality fish and seafood are more expensive than meat. Some experts note such disadvantages:
When consuming low-quality fish, mercury can accumulate in the body.
A monotonous diet can lead to a lack of vitamin B12 in the body.
Take note! Buy fish and seafood from trusted suppliers and keep your diet in balance. Then pescetarianism will benefit you — you will lose weight, your skin, hair, and your general health will improve.
The pescetarian diet is an excellent choice for those who have decided to give up red meat and improve their health. The diet system is popular in many countries around the world, including Russia. If you decided to start life with a clean slate and change your eating habits, try pescetarianism — maybe this trend will win your heart and allow you to become healthier and younger!