Mar 07 2009
Much ado about nothing
A piece of news I saw on the Latin American news agency Ansa lept to my attention. The headline announced that vegetarianism can have a negative effect on sexual performance, which seems to be the exact opposite of what Peta often says. After reading the article, though, I realized it was just a slack attention-grabbing exercise. The editor must have been short of news on the day in order to indulge in such sloppy journalism.
The article was based on statements made by one Nicola Mondaini, a Florence doctor who was making a presentation about an endocrinology event in Milan, Italy, that will take place later this month. Mondaini said that vegetarianism is not necessarily healthy; it’s what you eat that matters. So far, so good. Variety and balance are very important factors. Zinc is also mentioned and it’s true that it’s a very important mineral. It helps wounding and scarring. Seeds are good sources. Avoiding frying food is also important, said Mondaini, and I couldn’t agree more. Steam those vegetables, I say.
So what about the sex issue? Well, it was limited to a brief statement in the last paragraph where Mondaini suggests a Mediterranean diet in order to have a great sex life. And that’s it. Why vegetarianism is linked to a bad sex life is left unexplained, or, at best, vaguely implied. And even so, that would be a false statement. Vegetarianism does not improve or compromise sex life. It’s irrelevant. This is the kind of biased journalism that really gets on my nerves. All the editor wanted was a headline with the word sex in it and if to achieve that it took some creative editing, so be it. Such a shame.
For more information on zinc, go here.
