A person who is vegan, is one who eats a plant-based diet and neither eats nor uses any type of animal products. The topic of veganism has become a very popular debate in recent times. Since this lifestyle is extremely different from a standard “meat-eating” diet, there has been much controversy surrounding veganism and whether it is a healthy way of living. People should switch to a vegan lifestyle in order to become physically healthy while helping the environment and saving the lives of animals.
The meat industry uses so many resources to farm their animals, that in the long run, negatively affects our environment. The journal article states the bad impact from the meat industry by saying, “Plant-based alternatives to eggs, poultry, and other meat could be good for the environment because they could reduce consumption of meat, which requires large amounts of land, water, and crops to produce, backers say” ( 1). In general, the production of animals for food uses so many resources such as land and water, that cannot be recycled again. Through “raising” these animals, we are wasting precious resources that we can use for other important situations. Instead of taking up so much land for the meat industry, that land could be used for grains that could end up feeding many hungry people in the world. Through veganism, land and resources could be used efficiently to feed mass populations at a cheap price, since starches and grains retail for much cheaper then meats. Similarly, Lord restates the misuse of the planet’s resources by saying, “Also noted is that raising animals threatens forest land, uses massive amounts of water, contributes to climate change, and often involves mistreatment of animals” (Lord 1). He repeats the waste of resources, but also brings up the topic of climate change. These manufacturing plants releases smog in the air but more importantly, cows are natural producers of methane so when one consumes beef, they are releasing more methane into the air contributing to the major spike in temperature, which is climate change.
By choosing a plant-based or vegan diet, one lower there chances of contracting life-threatening diseases such as cancer later on in life. The journal article describes the benefits of eating plant-based by stating:
The advice on plant-based foods stems from research showing compounds in plant foods that may help protect against potential cancer-causing agents. For instance, fiber, which is found only in plant foods, has a beneficial effect on the intestinal tract and may reduce the risk for some cancers. Plant foods contain more than just fiber – they are also rich in phytochemicals that may be critical in controlling cell damage from free radicals and in regulating cellular proliferation. ( 24-30)
Consuming meat and dairy has been been linked to an increase in the chance of getting cancer. Through eating vegetables and removing fatty animal products, one will have higher chances of living a longer, healthier life. Additionally the article states the American Cancer Society’s findings by writing, “The study’s key recommendation – to choose a predominantly plant-based diet that includes a variety of vegetables, fruits, and grains – echoes the 1996 ACS recommendation to choose mostly plant-based foods” ( 17-19). To reiterate, the journal article brings up the “plant-based diet” that is recommended from a professional study in order to combat the likelihood of cancer. Through veganism, a person who is vegan is saving themselves the fight with health and disease when they grow older.
Veganism is known for its various health benefits in a person and how it could positively affect their way of living. This article lists all the major benefits of having a plant-based diet by stating:
According to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, the following are some of the long-term health reasons for eating a plant-based diet:
• A vegetarian diet lowers blood pressure in those people who are prone to high blood pressure.
• Vegetarians tend to have lower cholesterol levels.
• After controlling for socioeconomic status, body-mass index, and smoking, vegetarians have cancer rates that are 20 to 50% below population averages.
• When compared to the general population, vegetarians are far less likely to be obese. (Goldstein 46)
Compared to the average “meat-eater”, a person who participates in a plant-based diet is most likely healthier. Animal products increase the risk of diseases by such a high rate, truly showing one of the multiple reasons why so many people have turned to veganism. Likewise, Goldstein lists the effects a vegan diet had on people by stating:
Numerous studies indicate that a low-fat vegetarian diet may be helpful for people with a number of medical conditions. A short-term examination of 500 men and women published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that “a strict, very-low-fat vegetarian diet free from all animal products combined with lifestyle changes that include exercise and weight loss is an effective way to lower
serum cholesterol and blood pressure”
Veganism helps prevent problematic diseases caused by your diet, but also helps “cure” or diminishes diseases that a person may already have. Instead of having to go the doctor, and pay thousands of dollars for medicine and surgeries to stop diseases, a person could just switch to a plant-based diet that would help them slow down or even reverse the diseases they have.
When a person becomes vegan, they are helping condemn the murdering of innocent animals and cruel treatment they face when being raised for later consumption. The author Coe compares humans to animals by stating, “The desires for food and water, shelter and companionship, freedom of movement and avoidance of pain—these desires are shared by nonhuman animals and human beings. As for comprehension: like humans, many nonhuman animals understand the world in which they live and move. Otherwise, they could not survive” (Coe 22-25). People always say that humans are the most intelligent animal out of all other animals, but does that also mean that we can exploit “weaker” animals and treat them inhumanely? All animals, including humans, need the same things meaning that they were are more alike then different just like the article explains. Just like humans feel things like physical pain, so do animals because we are naturally the same. Also, the article by Coe describes the lack of freedom by animals by stating:
What happens in slaughterhouses is a variation on the theme of the exploitation of the weak by the strong. More than ten thousand times a minute, in excess of six billion times a year, just in the United States, life is literally drained from so-called food animals. Having the greater power, humans decide when these animals will die, where they will die, and how they will die. The interests of these animals themselves play no role whatsoever in the determination of their fate. Neither does any law. Lobbyists paid for by the animal agriculture industry have seen to that. Food animals are explicitly excluded from relevant animal welfare legislation. (Coe 34-41)
People nowadays chose “organic” or “free-range” products because they believe that these methods of killing animals is humane. Well, “free-range” nor “organic” is humane because in the end of the whole process an animal is being murdered against its own will. The only true way to save an animal or claim to care for an animal’s life is to not participate in the slaughtering of thousands of animals every single day. Through veganism, vegans are combating these cruel actions by not buying these products in order not to give their money to these inhumane companies.
Although many people see veganism as unhealthy diet that does not give enough nutrients to the body, it is actually a perfectly sustainable way to receive all the nutrients needed for our bodies to grow and develop properly. Goldstein, the author of the article, addresses the proper way to get protein in a vegan diet by stating, “Does such a diet have sufficient protein? Havala writes, “as long as you are eating enough wholesome foods to meet your calories needs and are getting a reasonable mix of vegetables, grains, and legumes over the course of the day, you should not have any problems getting enough protein or the appropriate mix of amino acids”” (Goldstein 46-47). A main issue with a plant-based diet is where a person gets their protein. Through this article, a person can see that simply eating the right foods is where a vegan gets their sufficient amount of protein. Also, Goldstein writes about a doctor who turned vegan himself, she says:
Shortly before his death in 1998 at the age of 94, Benjamin Spock, probably the best-known pediatrician in the United States, advocated vegetarian diets for children. Apparently Spock had become a vegetarian in 1991. According to his wife, that change of diet “greatly improved his health and enabled him to complete the revision of his world-famous book” (Brody: Section F, page 7, column 4). In the seventh edition of Dr. Spock’s Baby and Child Care, Spock and Steven J. Parker wrote, “A vegetarian-based diet for children is generally more healthful than a diet containing the cholesterol, saturated fat, and excessive protein found in meat and dairy products.” But this type of diet—derived from many leafy green vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and bean products—should not necessarily be low in calories. (Goldstein 48)
Even Doctor Benjamin Spock saw the immense benefits coming from changing to a plant-based diet. People of all ages and variations can become vegan and live normally while benefitting themselves and others.
In the end, veganism is the new, hot trend of the 21st century that everyone should take part of. By eating the best and healthiest you can, you are also contributing to the protection and wellness of the environment and animals. Through veganism, we can create more industries that produce more vegetable, grains, and starches. By creating so many of these industries, these products can become cheaper, and eventually help end the problem of world hunger especially in third-world countries.