Could being a vegetarian lower my immune system?

I've been getting sick lately .. in fact i'm sick right now. I've gone vegetarian several times and at the moment i've been vegetarian for two and a half months. since i've tried going veg several times since this last summer i've been getting sick more often than i have any year before. I'm only 16 and without meat i feel a lot healthier and active but could it be having the opposite effect on my body?Could being a vegetarian lower my immune system?
This may be a sign of another health issue or possibly an imbalanced diet. If I were you, I would schedule an appointment with a nutritionist, dietitian or doctor to talk about following a healthy, vegetarian diet and about how you feel that you've been getting sick more frequently.



Being a vegetarian can be very healthy. See this link to the USDA's recommendations for following a vegetarian diet:

http://www.mypyramid.gov/tips_resources/鈥?/a>



However, I would still meet with a health professional who can help you effectively.



Hope this helps!

Linda from Recipes-for-Vegetarians.com
Yes, humans are omnivores, and there is much biological proof of it, so it is unwise to try to be a herbivore. There is much "gou pi" in websites, magazines, TV shows, books, etc. that supports many crazy ideas, so it can be difficult for anyone to find the truth in any subject. It is sad that there are mindless fanatics who tell people to indulge in harmful practices, e.g. vegetarianism.Could being a vegetarian lower my immune system?
Not likely.

As long as you are keeping up with iron and other minerals, not eating meat won't effect your immune system.
I'd guess that going vegetarian has somehow weakened your immune system. There are healthy vegetarians. But you can't replace nutrient dense meat with a green salad and expect to stay healthy. You need to learn what's in meat and what veggies you can replace it with.



But basically you're an omnivore. Your body has evolved (just like mine) to get some important nutrients from meat, eggs, dairy. Protein, for example, is made up of amino acids. Your own body makes some of those, but you need to get others from your diet. Meat, eggs, dairy, contain all the amino acids needed for complete protein. Most veggies only contain some of the necessary ones. So eat a wide variety and a lot of different veggies every day (not necessarily every meal) so your body can combine their amino acids into the complete protein it needs.



Then there's iron. Iron in veggies is non heme iron and your body doesn't use it nearly as well as the heme iron in animal products. Plus some of the veggies that are high in iron and calcium also contain oxalates that inhibit your body's ability to absorb iron and calcium. Soy is high in oxalates.



If you're talking a Vitamin D supplement, be sure it's a D3 (from animals) because it's much more effective than the D2 supplements from plants.



Be sure to supplement for iodine if you're eating much soy. And a B12 supplement is a very good idea unless you eat eggs and dairy products on a very regular basis.



Nutrition is an ever changing field. What works for some people doesn't necessarily work for everyone. Here's a girl's story about how sick she got on the vegan diet. Don't let it happen to you.



http://voraciouseats.com/2010/11/19/a-ve鈥?/a>Could being a vegetarian lower my immune system?
Hi. If your vegetarian diet is well balanced and contains all of the vitamins and minerals which your body needs, then you will be healthy. I would say that a vegetarian diet boosts the immune system, since you will be consuming so much more fruit and vegetables, which are alkalizing for the body. It is true that humans are omnivores and nobody doubts that, however humans who live as herbivores (eating only plant foods) live longer on average than meat eaters. This may be because the foods that they consume are very alkalizing to the body. When the body is in an alkaline state, the body has a great boost to the immune system and it prevents infections. When a body is in an acid state, the immune system becomes damaged. However it is important to have a healthy balance. You can read more here http://www.rense.com/1.mpicons/acidalka.鈥?/a> it sounds really complicated, but it isn't really! I hope this helps you understand why you are becoming ill.
No highly unlikely providing your diet is varied. Vegetables contain much more antioxidants etc than meat ever will, %26amp; high levels of other nutrients found in meat. Your sickness could just be a naturally weak immune system from where you do little excercse %26amp; other such factors or it could just be the common cold going around. I as a vegetarian still get sick i'm very prone to chest infections in winter, vegetarianism hasn't changed that. A knowledge of when my body is starting to feel sick %26amp; taking care before the sickness kicks in is ultimately better.
Only if you haven't bothered to learn how to choose a healthy plant based diet. If you eat a balanced diet with various foods from all the food groups, you should be healthier than those who eat cheeseburgers and fries every day. If you just eat a lot of bread, other processed grains and a few servings of fruit or veg here and there, you will be as unhealthy as if that were your diet but with meat added in.
It could because your blood could not be getting enough nutrition. There is a reason why people who donate blood try to eat meat before and after the donation. A moderate amount of meat enriches the blood. If you eat the right vegetables with the nutrition you need, you shouldn't need any meat to still have a good immune system.