02-13-2011 18:16     Doctors promote vegetarianism

Medical doctor Kim Jin-mok recommends vegetarianism as the best preventive medicine. By Kim Tae-jong A growing number of people are interested in going vegetarian following the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease and avian influenza. The brutal images of animals buried alive as part of quarantine operations might have made people lose their appetite for meat. But there is still a critical question: Can people really achieve good health without eating meat in terms of nutrition?  A medical doctors’ group says “yes” to the question, claiming a vegetarian diet is the most powerful tool for health. “Going vegetarian can help us stay healthy, prevent and even cure diseases,” said doctor Kim Jin-mok, who serves as chairman of the preparatory committee for Vegedoctor.  The non-profit organization was set up last year by six doctors who shared the idea of vegetarianism as the best preventive medicine. Now, the organization has been joined by over 70 doctors, dentists and oriental medicine doctors, and plans to hold a founding ceremony soon.  “As a medical doctor, all our members are confident about the benefits of vegetarianism based on the experiences of treating patients, and we want to provide people with professional guidelines,” Kim said.  The organization took its inspiration from the U.S.-based Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, which was founded in 1985 to encourage people to become vegetarians, Kim said.  The definition of vegetarianism is to live without eating meat, fish, and poultry. The most common reasons behind a vegetarian lifestyle are moral convictions about animal rights or welfare as well as health and environmental concerns. Kim said Vegedoctor will devote itself to enhance the health of the public as its main activity by informing people of the harmful effects of meat diets and benefits of vegetarian diets.  “A lot of research as well as my personal experiences prove vegetarian diets help you have a healthy heart, lower blood pressure, control diabetes and even prevent cancer while meat diets are the main cause of diabetes, cancer, and other serious conditions,” he said.  As a neurosurgeon and chief of the Family Hospital in Busan, Kim encourages patients to go on a vegetarian diet, especially those with cancer.  But he also emphasized, as with any diet, it is important to ensure that it is well balanced.  “People often conjure up images of ‘plant-based’ food that lack necessary nutrition when they think of vegetarian diets. But you don’t need to worry about malnutrition as long as you eat a variety of vegetables. Marine plants such as dried laver, sea mustard and kelp are rich in vitamin B12 and iron, which people often think can only be taken by eating meat,” he said.  Vegetarianism is on the increase as more people question eating meat. But it is also true that one of the most difficult challenges is to stay a vegetarian in Korean society, which is unfriendly to vegetable eaters. People here have more difficulty in simply excluding meat from their daily diets due to the lack of a vegetarian culture.  “I’m also trying hard to be a vegetarian, but it’s always challenging, mainly because of Korean dining culture. There are only a small number of restaurants offering a vegetarian menu, and people still think vegetarians are picky when it is important to dine together with the people they work with,” Kim said.  To help people who want to live as vegetarians, Kim believes society should change. “We plan to continue to hold campaigns to change the myth of meat diets and promote the benefits of vegetarianism as part of a social movement. I think it will be challenging given the prosperous livestock, fishery, and dairy industries. I think it will be like an anti-smoking movement against tobacco companies,” Kim said. 채식주의를 홍보하는 의사들 구제역과 조류 독감의 발생 이후 많은 사람들이 채식주의자가 되는 것에 대해 더욱 많은 관심을 보이고 있다. 방역 작업의 일환으로 생매장 당하는 동물들의 이미지들은 분명 사람들의 고기에 대한 식욕을 떨어뜨리기에 충분했을 것이다.  그러나, 중요한 질문 하나는 여전히 남아있다. 고기를 먹지 않고 영양적으로 사람이 건강을 유지할 수 있을까? 의사들로 구성된 단체는 이 질문에 대해 채식식단이 건강을 위한 가장 좋은 방법임을 강조하며 “그렇다”라고 답한다.  “채식주의자가 되면 우리는 건강해지고 질병을 예방하거나 심지어 이를 치료할 수도 있다”고 김진목 의사는 말한다. 그는 지금 Vegedoctor라는 단체의 발족 위원회 위원장을 맡고 있다. 이 단체는 채식주의를 가장 좋은 예방 의학이라고 믿는 여섯 사람에 의해 작년에 세워졌다. 현재 이 단체는 70명 이상의 의사, 치과의사, 한의사를 회원으로 두고 있으며 창립 모임을 곧 열 계획이다.

leehs@koreatimes.co.kr

 

이영선 2011/02/15 11:53  댓글주소  수정/삭제  댓글쓰기

 

아주 반가운 소식이네요.

김원장님, 도대체 연세가 어떻게 되시죠?^^ 혹시 뽀샵하신거 아니세요?
하여간 실물도 멋지시지만 사진도 정말 멋지게 나오셨네요~^^

 

설경도 2011/02/15 15:21  댓글주소  수정/삭제  댓글쓰기

 

김원장님...진면목을 보여주시는군요...^^ㅎ

카리스마 있고 멋집니다...^^

 

이덕희 2011/02/15 23:42  댓글주소  수정/삭제  댓글쓰기

 

 
현미채식이 가장 최선의 예방의학이라는 말씀에 예방의학을 전공한 의사로써 100% 공감과 지지를 보냅니다.

 

그리고 아주 photogenic하세요^^.