This volume reviews the current scientific knowledge regarding the nutritional and health aspects of vegetarian diets. It addresses nutrition immediately after the introduction, with eight chapters offering specific focus on protein, fats, fiber, iron, calcium and vitamin D, vitamin B12, zinc, and other vitamins and minerals. Eight chapters then address the role of vegetarianism in dealing with heart disease, cancer, hypertension, stroke, obesity, diabetes, osteoperosis, and certain digestive and kidney diseases. Remaining chapters discuss vegetarian diets and children, pregnancy and lactation, optimal nutrition for active vegetarians and vegetarian athletes, environmental and food safety aspects of vegetarian diets, planning nutritious vegetarian diets, and overall protective factors of the vegetarian diet. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Citing health concerns as the number one reason why people adopt a vegetarian diet, this collection makes important scientific connections between good health and vegetarianism. The Complete Vegetarian examines the diet’s impact on chronic diseases and serves as a nutritional guide and meal-planning resource. Leading vegetarian nutritionists and medical doctors devote entire chapters to nutritional aspects that include fats, protein, and fiber; to diseases such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and high blood pressure; and to vegetarian meal planning, including specialized diets for children, pregnant women, and athletes. The contributors cutting-edge research finds that it is not only an absence of meat that accounts for the health effects of a vegetarian diet; other contributing factors include less saturated fat and more fiber, antioxidants, and unsaturated fats than other diets. The Complete Vegetarian promises to be an essential resource for health professionals and the growing number of people who have adopted or are thinking about adopting a vegetarian lifestyle. Contributors include John J. B. Anderson, Dina Aronson, Peggy Carlson, James Craner, Brenda Davis, Simon K. Emms, Jeanene Fogli, Suzanne Havala Hobbs, Michael A. Klaper, Erin L. Kraker, Valerie Kurtzhalts, D. Enette Larson-Meyer, Reed Mangels, Carol M. Meerschaert, Virginia Messina, Mary Helen Niemeyer, Carl V. Phillips, Sudha Raj, and Cheryl Sullivan. The health benefits of a vegetarian diet
