Cancer Prevention

5 Great Reasons for Becoming A Vegetarian

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Vegetarianism, in modern cultures has been a diet choice practiced on the fringe but in recent years it has gone mainstream due to both health and ethical reasons. Read on to see why so many people are making the switch to a plant based diet.

Reason #1 - You love animals
Many Americans love their pets dearly yet they still eat meat. It is easy to forget what you are actually eating because the meat we purchase in grocery stores and restaurants bears no resemblance to the original furry animal with big brown eyes. Make no mistake however, if you eat flesh, you are eating an animal that had feelings, emotions and most importantly a capacity for suffering.

Over 27 billion animals are violently slaughtered in America each year after enduring lives of neglect, torture, and mutilation in cramped, filthy conditions with virtually no laws in place to protect them from cruelty.

The next time you are deciding what to eat for dinner, picture yourself at the petting zoo before you order.

Reason #2 - You love our planet
Water conservation is a hot topic. You might do your part by using a low flow showerhead or turning off your water while you brush your teeth. What you may not realize is that a whopping one-half of the water supply in the United State goes to animal agriculture.

Our existing air and water supply is contaminated as well from the enormous amounts of excrement produced by these animals, which is far too much to fertilize the local crops so the excess is simply disposed of as waste.

America’s forests are being destroyed to raise cattle. Vegetarians only require 1/6 of an acre to grow their food supply while meat eaters require over 3 acres. If the US population switched to a plant based diet, over 20 million acres could be returned to forest.

The next time you are enjoying a low flow shower after eating steak for dinner, please think about the 2500 gallons of water it takes to make a single pound of beef.

Reason #3 - You love being alive and healthy
What is the one lifestyle choice you can make that can reduce your risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, stroke, Alzheimer’s, osteoporosis, asthma, many cancers and even male impotence? What choice can help make your kids taller and smarter? What lifestyle choice can help you live six to ten years longer? Numerous studies have shown a vegetarian diet to increase your chances of these and other benefits.

Human beings can get all the nutrition they need from plant sources. Organic plants offer antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and fiber while meat offers saturated fat, cholesterol, and contaminants like hormones, pesticides, and antibiotics.

In addition, the human digestive tract is much longer, twisted, and pocketed than the smooth, short tract of a natural carnivore. Natural carnivores also have much stronger stomach acid. This inability to properly digest meat could explain why eating any amount of meat can dramatically increase a persons risk for a multitude of diseases and cancers.

The next time you are deciding what to eat, think about the health and lifespan of yourself and your loved ones.

Reason #4 - You love other human beings
Does it bother you that people are starving to death on the other side of the world? Would you like to do your part to help?

You might be shocked to learn that America could easily wipe out world hunger if we raised crops instead of animals. The world’s cattle alone consume enough food to feed 8.7 billion people.

The next time you are deciding what to eat please think about the 15 million children around the world that starve to death each year.

Reason #5 - You love peace of mind
Wouldn’t it be nice to finally put to rest that little nagging voice inside of you that loves animals? Wouldn’t it feel great to know that you are saving 100 animals a year by adopting a plant based diet? Wouldn’t it be a weight off your shoulders to know that you are doing the right thing for yourself, animals, the planet and humankind? It is a tough step to take and you may have to face opposition from friends, family, and society in general but what an outstanding feeling to finally do the right thing.

Think I’m crazy? Visit a few of these pages and you might change your mind.

• The Issues
• Plenty of reasons to go vegan
• Meet your meat
• Undercover Investigations
• More issues
• Why vegan

The vegetarian benefits list according to goveg.com

* Cruelty to Animals
* Animals are amazing
* Your Health
* The environment
* World Hunger
* Worker Rights
* Factory Farms
* Government Negligence
* Factory Campaigns

by Sheryl Lyon
Image Source: http://flickr.com/photos/calliope/130384035/

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