Humanities: Room 319

The healthiness of a vegetarian diet is shown in a variety of ways. Research indicates that vegetarians visit hospitals 22% less than meat-eaters, and vegetarians tend to be overall more fit and healthier than meat eaters. Furthermore, there is no longer any doubt about the fact that eating meat is actually bad for our health. Meat-eating has been linked with countless diseases and health issues from  acne, arthritis, gum disease, obesity to cancer, heart disease, strokes, diabetes, hypertension, osteoporosis, kidney stones, and many other devastating diseases. By choosing to eliminate meat from diets people can take a crucial and positive step towards a long life of health and happiness.

Many (carnivorous) people like to claim that vegetarians are deficient in essential nutrients. However, there is no nutrient necessary for optimal human functioning which cannot be obtained from plant food, including protein and calcium. In fact, meat is the product actually lacking in essentials. For example, meat is deficient in carbohydrates, particularly the starches which are so essential to proper health. Additionally, meat is largely deficient in most vitamins.

One important health issue that many meat eaters fail to recognize is that animals are higher on the food chain, and animal foods contain far higher concentrations of agricultural chemicals than plant foods, including pesticides, and herbicides. These pollutants ultimately land in people’s bodies when they consume meat. Furthermore, there are over 20,000 different drugs, including sterols, antibiotics, growth hormones and other veterinary drugs that are given to livestock animals. These drugs are ingested by people when animal foods are consumed.

Worms, parasites, bacteria, viruses, and pathogenic microorganisms are also riddled within meat products. There are a host of bacteria and viruses, some quite dangerous, that are common to animals. When people eat meat, they are eating the organisms in the meat. Sure, micro-organisms are present in plant foods too, but their number and danger to human health is by no means comparable to that of those in meat.

While meat is clearly hazardous to health, there are also plenty of other reasons beyond health to consider further related to becoming a vegetarian. These are not limited to, but also include personal finances, ethics, and the environment. The video below further highlights the negatives regarding meat eating as related to all of the above:

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