The Benefits of Vegetarianism and Veganism

It is becoming increasingly popular for people, especially in the United States, to pursue a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle and the number of vegans has increase 160 percent over the past ten years. In fact, over 3 percent of Americans are full-time vegetarians, and a recent poll conducted by the Vegetarian Resource Group found that 37% of respondent say when they eat out they sometimes or always choose vegetarian meals. According to Diana Kelly of WedMD a vegetarian that falls into the "lacto-ovo" category only eat non-animal products, but do consume byproducts of animals such as dairy and eggs.

Vegans, however, do not eat any animal products whatsoever including products including dairy, eggs, and even honey. More strict vegans also tend to not use or buy non-food animal products such as leather and wool clothing.

These lifestyles are pursued for multiple personal reasons including; health, global warming, and the unethical treatment of animals. Vegetarian and vegan lifestyles are beneficial to the environment, to one's health, and also to changing the unethical treatment of livestock while still being a sustainable way of life.

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Firstly, industrial farming has adverse effects on the environment including a rise in greenhouse gases, contributing to global warming. The environment would benefit greatly from a rise in people who live by a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle because the less profit and demand that these factory farms have, the less supply they will need to produce. Others think just the opposite, for example, in "Why Veganism Isn't as Environmentally Friendly as you Might Think," Emma Henderson, a member on the editorial team of Independent Daily, she explains why the healthy lifestyle epidemic is poorly affecting the earth.

Henderson writes that "as we greedily plunder the world's bread basket, [it is] the consumer who benefits, while those at the source can be left high and dry" (Henderson 3).

With this, Henderson is explaining that in countries like America, the people can more easily decide their diet than in less fortunate countries, due to the many imported goods. The problem is that these poorer countries are the areas with the ripest climate for many vegan products and exotic produce, such as avocado or quinoa. Countries like America are buying the tropical countries dry of some of their big staple foods. Similarly, Peter Dockrill, a senior writer and editor at Science Alert, warns that "eating lettuce is over three times worse in greenhouse gas emissions than eating bacon” (Dockrill 2). Though Dockrill has very little facts to back this up, many vegetarians main concerns come from the fact that the production of meat produces greenhouse gas emission that in turn worsens the worldwide issue of global warming.

Dockrill sites a previous study as well by which it was found that vegetarian and vegan diets are actually reducing the greenhouse gas output by a significant amount. He writes, "One study found that following a vegetarian diet would result in a 33 percent decrease in greenhouse gas emissions, and vegan diets go even further, with a 53 percent decrease in emissions" (Dockrill 5). In another article titled "Factory Farming and the Environment" the effects of industrial farming on the earth are brought to light.

It is pointed out that the incredible strain modern animal agriculture puts on natural resources and how “factory farms yield a relatively small amount of meat, dairy, and eggs for this input, and in return produce staggering quantities of waste and greenhouse gases, polluting our land, air, and water and contributing to climate change" ("Factory Farming..."). In conclusion, vegetarianism is proven to be beneficial to the earth especially in terms of greenhouse gas output. Another reason many opt for a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle is because these kinds of diets reflect positively on one's physical health. With a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, vegetarians avoid health issues related to the ingredients in meat. Manys ideas differ though, such as in WebMD's Kathleen Doheny's "Are There Health Downsides to Vegetarian Diets?" she sheds light on why a vegetarian diet can be harmful to one's health and body.

She writes “a recent report found that severe lack of protein, among other diet shortcomings, can lead to it. That's because meat contains iron, vitamin B, and zinc, which are all important to functions like hair loss" (Doheny 3). While a lack of necessary vitamins is a problem, many get nutrients from vitamin and mineral rich vegetables and beans, or even take supplements to ensure one's diet remains healthy. Another thing Doheny points out in her article is the relation of vegetarian diets to mood problems. She writes, "a vegetarian diet was one thing that seemed to make it more likely to be depressed" (Doheny 5). On the contrary, "in another study, researchers compared vegetarians, vegans and people who eat both plants and animals, and found the vegans had lower anxiety and stress levels than meat eaters" (Doheny 5). Similarly, in"Is It Better To Be a Vegetarian?" by Diana Kelly from WebMD, evidence is proving many health benefits to a vegetarian diet.

She writes "According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, an evidence- based review showed that a vegetarian diet is associated with a lower risk of death from heart disease...as well as lower cholesterol levels, blood pressure, rates of hypertension and diabetes, and lowers risk of chronic disease" (Kelly 3). It has been proven that diet, lifestyles, and mental health are very much related. Another reason that meat may be bad for your health is the "...number of antibiotics producers feed farm animals” (“Factory Farming").

The waste of many farm animals contains undigested antibiotics which can potentially contaminate other crops and waterways. For many, the improvement of bodily health and quality of life is enough to have them switching to a meat or animal-product free diet. Lastly, the fight against the unethical treatment of cattle used in industrial farming has many finding themselves second-guessing their own eating choices and choosing a vegetarian diet. In modern farming, cattle are often kept in tight spaces with hundreds of other cattle,limiting their movement.

The animals are treated as mere profit and are often not even allowed to roam around a fenced area. Opposers, such as Yuval Noah Harari, journalist and professor of history, writes "Industrial Farming is One of the Worst Crimes in History" about how "...domesticated cattle...enjoy care and protection from humans" (Harari 234). Harari continues, "People provide cows and calves with food, water and shelter, they treat their diseases, and protect them from predators and natural disasters” (Harari 234). While it may be true that animals gain protection from humans, the quality of life that an animals lives in captivity will prove to be much worse than if the animal were wild or free range.

In another article written by Barbara Kingsolver, an author who has a background in biology, titled "You Can't Run Away on Harvest Day" she explains that farm animals need humans in order to survive. She proposes "If farm animals have civil rights, what aspect of their bondage to humans shall they overcome? Most wouldn't last two days without it" (Kingsolver 221). With this, Kingsolver is arguing that cattle without humans would be lost, for example, a cow needing to be milked or a wild pig not being able to find its own food.

On the other hand, the life that these animals in an industrial farm is nonetheless cruel. In Yuval Noah Harari's article, he writes that "...what makes the existence of domesticated farm animals particularly cruel is not just the way in which they die but above all how they live" (Harari 234). Harari is shedding light on the fact that frequently, the owners of these factory farms only treat these animals well enough to keep them alive and make the largest profit possible. Industrial farming was not made to take the comfort of animals into consideration, it was for farmers to make the most profit possible.

"They lock animals in tiny cages, mutilate their horns and tails, separate mother from offspring, and selectively breed monstrosities" (Harari 235). Even though these animals suffer greatly generation after generation, they live on and multiply. The outcome of all of this is a rise in meat-less lifestyles in hopes and in effort to reduce this cruel treatment of cattle on industrial farms. In conclusion, the meat industry adversely affects the environment, consumer health, and treats animals poorly.

The output of carbon dioxide during the raising, killing, and production of meat is vastly contributing to global warming and other environmental tragedies. Consumption of meat has been proven to be a leading cause of many health problems including high cholesterol and heart disease. Lastly, practice of raising and slaughtering cattle for sheer profit, without taking the well-being of the animal into consideration. For these reasons, there has been a sizable increase in people going vegetarian or vegan, in hopes that they can somehow make a difference.