Which Diet Is Superior?

But still the question remains: Is a vegetarian diet better than a meat diet? Nutritionists have yet to agree on an answer. Advocates of vegetarianism frequently cite unsubstantiated evidence and present “testimonials” about the relative superiority of a non-meat diet, often claiming “miraculous” cures for asthma, poor eyesight, and even cancer. While such claims may be sincere, they have not been proved.CD-SG 39.5

Scientific evidence suggesting the superiority of a vegetarian diet is offered, not by nutritionists, but by anthropologists. Field investigations of certain nonmeat cultures have documented the excellent health and longevity enjoyed by people such as the Hunzas of Northern Pakistan and the Otomi Indians of Central Mexico. Heart diseases and many forms of cancer appear to be Western diseases in that they are practically unknown in some underdeveloped countries where meat is not part of the diet. That lower incidence, however, may result from the very different life-style.CD-SG 39.6

[In 1973] . . . the National Institutes of Health (NIH) began a $1 million, five-year study to determine what role vegetarianism plays in health. The subject: 100,000 Seventh-day Adventists who neither drink, smoke, nor eat meat, and use limited amounts of coffee and tea.CD-SG 39.7

“Our studies have revealed that the Seventh-day Adventist vegetarians are healthier than the average Californian,” says Dr. Mervyn Hardinge. “There is virtually no lung cancer—in fact, a lower incidence of all forms of cancer. Heart disease is significantly less and, when it does occur, it is an average of 10 years later than in other Californians. Adventist males live 6.2 years longer than the average California male, and women 3.5 years longer.”CD-SG 39.8

The differences have been substantiated, says Dr. Hardinge. The purpose of the NIH study is to see if they are linked, in any way, to a meatless diet. . . .CD-SG 39.9