From a scientific perspective, common knowledge about nutrition agrees that the human body requires a complete range of nutrients to function well. Many diseases caused by nutrient deficiencies have been reported, and recommendations for the dosage of certain nutrients have been established. For example, the recommended daily intake of calcium for adults aged 19–50 is 1000 mg/day, or for iodine, 140 µg/day (Eussen, S.R.B.M., et al., 2011). The nutritional needs for adults, according to the food pyramid issued by the Ministry of Health, recommend that an adult should consume approximately 850 grams of various foods per day, including grains (300g), fruits and vegetables (500g), and meat and fish (50g), to ensure well-being. Nevertheless, the practice of vegetarians, These people, for example some monks, can be vegetarian for many years, some even eat only 1 vegetarian meal a day, the amount of food is estimated at about 150g of grains and around 200 grams of fruits and vegetables. With this amount of food, the total calcium intake is about 245 mg (grains 30 mg/100g, vegetables 100 mg/100g) (Nguyễn Công Khẩn et al., 2007), which is about 25% of the recommended intake, and the total iodine intake is approximately 63.9 µg (grains 92.6 µg/100g, vegetables 200 µg/100g) (Fordyce, Fiona. 2003), which is about 45% of the recommended intake. Despite this long-term deficiency in the recommended nutrients, he shows no visible signs of illness or fatigue. This raises questions for nutrition researchers: can an ordinary person follow a similar diet? And what impact does such a diet have on overall health?
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| Vegetarian food is still full of Protein(source: https://chaybaoan.com/) |
It is clear that we need more energy for work, we have various concerns, and we also have sexual needs. All these activities require energy and essential nutrients and thus, requires larger quantity of nutrients. For example: bodybuilders need lots of protein to build muscle, women need a certain amount of fat to maintain body shape and skin health (Lobmaier JS, 2018), while men need both protein and fat to maintain normal sexual function. Proteins and fats are key components for most of the cells (Forbes R.M, et al., 1953), and fats are related to sex hormones (Holmes MD, 2000).
However, the ability of vegetarian to maintain health despite a long-term deficiency in nutrients might explain the possibility of maintaining a healthy state with fewer nutrients:
- According to a general mechanism, free radicals, which are considered waste products generated from the metabolic process, are byproducts of aerobic metabolism (Eussen, S.R.B.M., et al, 2011). In other words, the more active the body is, the more calories burned, the higher the amount of free radicals produced which increases the risk of these toxins damaging organs. Research by Fialová J. et al. (2019) shows no correlation between the impact of reduced food intake and usual diet on body odor. However, it does note that the attractive body odor provides signals about the current physical condition and metabolic efficiency, which are related to the absorption of nutrients from food (kind of nutrients and absorption process).
- Mental activity can significantly impact calorie consumption. There is considerable evidence that it can greatly affect the body's state; for example, fear can lead to chills, goosebumps or sweating, while anger can cause blushing and even trigger uncontrollable actions. All these reactions are related to the body's nutrient consumption and the release of its byproducts/waste products. Research by Neumeier WH (2016) shows that a person engaged in mental work has higher energy demands compared to someone at rest (caloric consumption of 633.3 ± 72.9 vs. 533.9 ± 67.7, p = 0.02). A smile or a compassionate thought can give us a sense of calmness, unlike anger or fear, which reflect an enhancement of positive processes in the body and can even improve physical health (Marie P.C, 2022).
- The basic functions of the human body include energy provision, detoxification, and repairing bodily errors to maintain life. These functions can be observed through common life experiences. For example, when a person doesn't eat for several days (due to an accident), their body weight may significantly decrease due to the breakdown of stored components (fat and muscle) to provide energy for survival, but the person generally remains healthy or does not suffer serious damage to the organs. Similarly, when one is ill or fatigued, appetite loss or inability to eat are common, but after some time, as the illness subsides, the appetite typically returns. This may relate to the body's detoxification mechanism: reduced food intake to decrease the amount of toxins produced from nutrient metabolism. Symptoms reflecting an overloaded or dysfunctional detoxification system can include fatigue accompanied by sleep disturbances and mental fog, mood disorders, depression, anxiety, fear, anger; muscle and joint pain; headaches with neck and shoulder pain; premature aging and asthenia (Luke Fortney et al, 2018). In the case of vegetarians, it seems that the body's detoxification system remains effective despite a diet significantly lower in quantity and variety compared to typical individuals.
From these observations, it can be concluded that:
- Our body needs nutrients to perform its functions. When nutrient supply is inadequate, it can affect specific processes such as muscle formation, hormone production, and related bodily functions. However, the basic processes, including energy metabolism, detoxification, and repair, can still operate normally with a diet consisting only of a limited amount of grains and vegetables.
- Limiting activities both physically and mentally (such as thinking, worrying, and anger), helps reduce nutrient demands and decreases the production of toxins from metabolism. This allows the body to maintain a good condition with a lower intake of food in terms of both quantity and variety.
References:
Eussen, S.R.B.M., et al., Functional foods and dietary supplements: Products at the interface between pharma and nutrition. European Journal of Pharmacology, 2011. 668: p. S2-S9.
Fordyce, Fiona. (2003). Database of the Iodine Content of Food and Diets Populated with Data from Published Literature. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/279671236
Nguyễn Công Khẩn, Nguyễn Thị Lâm, Hà Thị Anh Đào, Lê Hồng Dũng, Lê Bạch Mai, Nguyễn Văn Sĩ, (2007). Bảng thành phần thực phẩm Việt Nam. Nhà xuất bản Y học, 2007.
Forbes R.M, A R Cooper, H H Mitchell. (1953). Composition of adult human body as determined by chemical analysis. The Journal of biological chemistry. 203. 359-66. 10.1016/S0021-9258(19)52646-1.
Holmes MD, Spiegelman D, Willett WC, Manson JE, Hunter DJ, Barbieri RL, Colditz GA, Hankinson SE. Dietary fat intake and endogenous sex steroid hormone levels in postmenopausal women. J Clin Oncol. 2000 Nov 1;18(21):3668-76. doi: 10.1200/JCO.2000.18.21.3668. PMID: 11054440.
Lobmaier JS, Fischbacher U, Wirthmüller U, Knoch D. The scent of attractiveness: levels of reproductive hormones explain individual differences in women's body odour. Proc Biol Sci. 2018 Sep 12;285(1886):20181520. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2018.1520. PMID: 30209229; PMCID: PMC6158529.
Fialová J, Hoffmann R, Roberts SC, Havlíček J. The effect of complete caloric intake restriction on human body odour quality. Physiol Behav. 2019 Oct 15;210:112554. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2019.05.015. Epub 2019 May 23. PMID: 31130296.
Neumeier WH, Goodner E, Biasini F, Dhurandhar EJ, Menear KS, Turan B, Hunter GR. Exercise following Mental Work Prevented Overeating. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2016 Sep;48(9):1803-9. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000000961. PMID: 27116647; PMCID: PMC4987226.
Luke Fortney, Rian Podein, Michael Hernke, Chapter 106 - Detoxification, Integrative Medicine (Fourth Edition), Elsevier, 2018, Pages 996-1003.e2, ISBN 9780323358682, https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-35868-2.00106-7.
Biagianti-Risbourg, S., Paris-Palacios, S., Mouneyrac, C., Amiard-Triquet, C. (2013). Pollution Acclimation, Adaptation, Resistance, and Tolerance in Ecotoxicology. In: Férard, JF., Blaise, C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Aquatic Ecotoxicology. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5704-2_81
Marie P.C, Amanda M. A, Kate A L, Sarah D P. (2022). How and Why Could Smiling Influence Physical Health? A Conceptual Review. Health Psychology Review. 17. 1-53. 10.1080/17437199.2022.2052740.
Faculty of food science and technology