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What does your diet have to do with your sex life? Quite a lot! Adopting a vegan lifestyle can lead to surprising benefits for your reproductive health.
People who regularly consume a plant-based diet alter their body chemistry for the better. This change can improve fertility and even fight off dangerous conditions that can negatively impact sexual function and reproductive health. Read on to discover how switching to vegan eating can help make things hotter between the sheets.
Significant controversy swirls around whether growth hormones used in meat production affect human health. The answer you get to the question depends upon whom you ask. How much hormone is in a hamburger? In reality, scientists don’t know the answer — and that should worry you.
Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH) does appear in milk and dairy. Farmers use this hormone to increase milk production, but it pushes cows to the upper limits of their healthy hormonal range. Meat industry officials insist that the levels found in meat and dairy are lower than those the body produces naturally. But anyone who has ever taken replacement medications knows a little bit can go a long way. Some studies cite rBGH as a potential cancer-causing agent. If there’s no need for humans to eat meat to meet their caloric needs, why take the unnecessary risk?
Phytoestrogens are natural compounds found in soybeans, beans, nuts, cereals and other plant-based foods vegans favor as protein sources. Research indicates that consumption of foods rich in these substances may benefit female reproductive health in many ways.
If you’re trying to conceive, phytoestrogens could help the endeavor. About 10% of women in the U.S. will have trouble with infertility during their reproductive years, often due to conditions such as polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). Eating a hearty, plant-based breakfast can help mitigate the hormonal impact of this disease, making it easier to get pregnant. Additionally, a vegan diet can dilute the concentration of cervical mucus, making it easier for sperm to reach the egg.
A diet rich in phytonutrients helps to minimize the risk of breast cancer, especially in premenopausal women. Rates of this cancer plummet among Asian women who include soy as a dietary staple — women who consumed soy regularly as teens run a 23% lower risk of developing the disease. One out of every eight women develop breast cancer in their lifetimes, and even if they fight it, going through such trauma can make some women feel less sexual after the fact.
Ask any man who takes erectile dysfunction medications, and they’ll tell you that circulation matters when it comes to getting frisky. A vegan diet greatly benefits cardiovascular health and can improve this function.
One recent study followed 100 people who adopted such a lifestyle for eight weeks. At the end of this time, those who followed a vegan diet had 32% lower levels of C-reactive protein (CRP). People with high CRP levels run an elevated risk of a heart attack.
Physicians often tout the Mediterranean diet as the gold standard in lowering cholesterol levels, but veganism may reign supreme. Researchers reviewed 49 studies that compared omnivorous diets with plant-based diets to test their impact on LDL or bad cholesterol. They found that plant-based, low-fat regimens reduced LDL levels by 15 to 30%.
Cholesterol doesn’t dissolve in the bloodstream. It remains in your arteries, where it impedes circulation. If you have circulatory issues and you’re male, you may find it impossible to get or maintain an erection. If you’re female, you may feel unaroused and struggle to produce adequate lubrication.
Whether you want to boost your fertility or make getting frisky more fun, adopting a vegan lifestyle can help. Odds are you’ll start to notice yourself feeling better fairly quickly, and you’ll also increase your chances of having a healthy reproductive system for life.
