You’ve just gotten home from a hectic day at work and all you want to do is unwind, let the stress dissipate.  The last thing on your mind is taking the time to prepare a nutritionally sound vegetarian meal, but choosing a refined or enriched carbohydrate in a lazy moment, will defeat the purpose of living a vegetarian lifestyle.  A solid, well-balanced vegetarian diet offers many health benefits, but consuming refined carbs presents many hazards to your health.

Consuming too many refined carbohydrates and sugars can cause a build up of insulin in your bloodstream.  Excess insulin in your bloodstream results in your glucose being converted to triglycerides and stored in your body’s fat cells.

Refined carbohydrates create increased risk for many diseases. 

According to one study, a high intake of refined grains could increase your risk of getting stomach cancer.  Another recent study implicated refined sugars and carbohydrates as a contributing factor in increased gallbladder disease.  It showed a direct link between the amount of sugars eaten and the incidence of gallbladder disease.

Researchers in another study noted a higher level of triglycerides in the blood as carbohydrate consumption increased, and that diets low in fat and high in carbohydrates significantly reduced levels of HDL, the “good” cholesterol.  Both conditions that increase your risk of heart disease.

Eating too many refined white sugars also increases the rate that your body excretes calcium, causing a decrease in bone density.   

Think of all this the next time you get a little lazy.  Your body will thank your for taking the time to prepare a nutrient-dense vegetarian meal.