It is becoming more popular than ever to turn to a vegan diet. Why? There are many reasons people decide to go plant-based. Many people choose it for health, morality, social justice, or simple logic. Sure, there is a long list of health benefits, such as increased energy, healthier skin, and reduced risks of heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Yes, many oppose the injustices of animal slavery. Yet, many people do not seem to realize that the most beneficial results of being plant-based are based around the environment. We are going to discuss how the vegan diet would fight against negative environmental changes created by factory farming and dairy industry. We will cover the aspects of climate change, land sustainability, and water pollution. First, we are going to discuss what a plant-based diet could do to combat the issue of climate change. According to the United Nations, “a global shift toward a vegan diet is one of the steps necessary to combat the worst effects of climate change” (1). Carbon dioxide, methane gas, and nitrous oxide emissions combined create most of the greenhouse gasses going in to our atmosphere. These are all produced largely by animal production. Overall, a plant-based diet would assist in lowering the amount of greenhouse gases emissions drastically. Justin Worland has written on hundreds of energy and environmental issues for TIME. According to Worland, climate change’s effects on global food supply could lead to more than 500,000 deaths by
When I was growing up I was taught how to hunt, fish and trap animals for food as well as being fed an omnivorous diet, but today I have found that I no longer need animals in my diet. The Vegetarian Times recently found that out of the 311 million people in the US, 7.3 million eat a vegetarian based diet and 22.8 million eat a vegetarian inclined diet. Over the past century people have begun looking into the health implications of plant based diets as a way of improving their health and increase their longevity. This research paper is intended
Vegan or Go Home!”, Sarah Breslaw asserts veganism as the answer to curbing environmental concerns. Breslaw makes a clear argument in her thesis and explains both negative and positive aspects of veganism but ultimately succumbs to logical fallacies, faulty sourcing and evident subjectivity which weaken her claim.
“Meats, Dairies, and Eggs, Oh Why” (2014) is an argumentative essay written by Rebecca Dent that explains the benefits of eating a plant-based diet and advocates for the better treatment of the animals affected by the meat industry. Dent supports her assertions by discussing the negative health effects of an omnivorous diet, addressing reasons some might be hesitant to convert to a plant-based diet, describing the advantages of substituting meat for vegetables for both the consumers and the animals, and finally, by including expert opinions and statistical facts. Dent’s purpose for this essay is to highlight the benefits of vegetarianism in order to convince readers to convert to a plant-based diet. The intended audience for this argument is those who currently eat an omnivorous diet so that they would assess and change their eating habits.
Going vegetarian can help preserve the limited land and water system that us humans take for granted sometimes. Factory farming along with free range farming are destroying the earth and its biodiversity. When people think of pollution like unnecessary CO2 emissions and deforestation of rainforests, they do not think about the animals being raised for consumption. In an article, “Concentrated animal Agriculture Is The Biggest
Veganism has grown into a widespread trend in the last 70 years; in fact, in the United States approximately 3% of the population reports that they do not eat meat and about a third of this group declare themselves as vegan (Singer and Mason 187). Factory farming is an intensive method of farming that results in inexpensive meat products at the expense of one’s health, the environment, and animals (“Factory Farms”) . Moreover, this form of farming has led to the slow destruction of the planet, the mistreatment of animals, and the increase of various health diseases. Veganism is increasing due to the exposure of the secondary effects caused by industrialized
Everybody loves food! Have you ever met somebody who doesn’t? But when it comes to the foods we eat, we don’t like to ask questions. When you stop and think about it, most of us don’t even consider where our food comes from, much less how it’s made. Meat and dairy products are food staples that are consumed on a regular basis throughout the world. There are many people out there who have chosen to live vegetarian lifestyles because they support animal rights and detest the idea of mercilessly slaughtering animals for food. However, there is a dark secret lurking in the bloody shadows of the dairy machine, one that the food industry doesn’t want you to know. If we could look beyond the dreamy landscapes and happy cows plastered on every milk carton and cheese block to the reality of dairy farming, we would be shocked and horrified at what goes into obtaining a glass of milk. If we really knew what happened on egg farms, we would cringe at the inhumanity of the process. The truth is, even though you may not eat meat, your consumption of dairy products could still be driving the animal-abusing, commercialized, factory of efficiency and monetization that is the dairy business – a business that is taking living, breathing animals and turning them into simply expendable resources. The truth is if you want to be one hundred percent certain that you are living animal-friendly, you must commit yourself to a vegan diet.
For years vegetarian and vegan diets have been gaining popularity. This rise in popularity is due largely to the belief that a vegetarian diet has numerous health benefits and the animals being raised to be slaughtered are not being treated humanely. These are both good reasons for adopting a meat-free lifestyle, but there is an even more pressing reason. The current rate of meat consumptions, especially in developed nations, is consuming natural resources at a rate that is not sustainable. The amount of resources such as land, water, and crops consumed to support meat production is staggering. In addition to the resource consumption, meat production is also contributing to critical global environmental issues such as deforestation and ozone depletion.
For centuries, humans have been obsessed with the idea of a long life. From face creams and diets to climate change awareness and recycling, there has always been a push to keep ourselves younger, healthier and to keep humanity going. That’s why veganism is the way to go. Being vegan does not only benefit your health but the environment as well. The Earth is so important. From its beautiful scenery to all the astonishing life that calls this planet home, most would agee that Earth is absolutely phenomenal. While I understand that veganism isn't an option for everyone, those who have the ability to adopt a vegan diet and/or lifestyle should because it's not only better for the human body but the planet as well.
Many people consider going vegan to reap the proposed health benefits of going without animal products in their diet. Some go vegan in support of protesting the inhumane treatment of livestock during the production of animal food products. While both of those arguments may be justified in their own right; a more recent argument is that all humans should take to a vegetable based diet to save our planet. Some propose that by consuming animal products we may be contributing to global warming. In George C. Wang’s article Go Vegan, Save the Planet, he suggests that we allow ourselves to be called to action as “global citizens” to address
In a study conducted by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2003, it was estimated that there are approximately 2 billion people that live primarily on a meat-based diet while approximately 4 billion people live primarily on a plant-based diet (Pimentel, 2003). With this information we can deduce just how much of a difference in environmental effects there are between a vegetarian diet and a diet that consumes meat. For example, in this study it was found that the average amount of fossil fuel energy used for 1 kilocalorie of animal-based protein was 11 times more than that for 1 kilocalorie of grain protein. This statistic shows that the mass production of animal meat-based foods requires a much larger amount of the already limited amount of fossil fuels that are on Earth than plant-based food. By examining this fact, it is not a broad leap to assume that in reducing the worlds extravagant use of animal meat for consumption we could not only preserve the natural resources we have but also assist in reducing factors that add to climate change. Although the argument could be made that because both the vegetarian diet and a diet with meat in it use a large amount of resources there would be no difference in reducing the effects that the agriculture industry has on climate change but that is simply not true. While it is true that both diets use a large amount of resources, across the board the meat-based diet uses a much larger amount of resources. In fact, in the study conducted by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition it states, “The meat-based diet requires more energy, land, and water resources than the lactoovovegetarian [vegetarian] diet.” Although both are considered unsustainable, this study provides very valid evidence that the vegetarian diet is more sustainable than that of a meat-based
Food powerfully impacts more aspects of life than is known. Plant-based diets have an effect on the physical well-being, economic growth, and ethical burden, or lack thereof. According to the International Vegan Association (IVA), vegan is defined as “someone who refrains from using and consuming animals, and animal products for any purpose, including food, clothing, and entertainment.” There are a variety of plant based diets. but essentially, the goal is to minimize consumption of processed foods, oils, and animal foods, while encouraging vegetables, legumes, whole-grains, and fruit.
Veganism is a food lifestyle based on diet of vegetables, grains, seeds, nuts and fruits. People are being vegetarian because they think it is healthier to only eat vegetables without eating meet or chicken, and they think that they will get a perfect body shape, free of diseases. As in vegetarian, where they feed on foods that do not fit into animal flesh, whether from wild or marine animals. They also don’t eat food that comes directly from the animal, such as: egg that’s comes from the hen, milk that comes from cows, goats and honey that comes from bees. In India, Ethiopia and Jamaica there are a lot of vegetarian people, because they don’t have enough food to feed themselves, so they decided to eat vegetable. This paper argues that veganism is a harmful lifestyle for three major reasons.
As different crazes and fads are appearing each day, we have come to expect them to simply fade away as the hype passes. However, veganism has stood the test of time in our fad society and is still increasing in popularity. Originally only thought to be a religious lifestyle, many people from different walks of life are becoming vegans. However, this poses many questions and sparks heated debates, mainly from omnivorous people who believe that veganism is against life’s natural order. Vegans, then, argue against an omnivorous lifestyle by bringing up facts about humans’ biological makeup and how humans are, contrary to popular belief, herbivorous by nature, not omnivorous. While both sides present good arguments to some, the veganism lifestyle contains more benefits and less harmful cons than an omnivorous lifestyle.
Consumption of meat by humans creates several problems. First and foremost, raising animals for food compromises the environment. For example, it takes a large amount of natural resources to sustain the meat industry. The use of water, land, and food to raise animals for human consumption is not an efficient use of our limited resources. In contrast, it is more efficient to feed humans directly than to use land, food, and water to feed animals to be used as food. There are shortages of fertile land, clean water, and food in several third world countries. Many of these countries’ resources are allocated to produce feed for animals in developed countries around the world. As a result, the citizens of these countries are stricken with water and food shortages, while their crops are feeding cattle from across the globe. However, this problem can be solved by adopting a vegan diet. The vegan diet will allow a more efficient use of resources that in turn can be used to feed starving men, women, and children throughout the world. Consequently, more people in the world could be fed if the land used to grow feed for animals was used to grow food for humans.
There is no denying that the effects of climate change are here. The cause of climate change, however, is often a debatable topic. The livestock industry is expanding at an alarming rate to meet the needs of an increasing population. Throughout the world, between the years 1971 and 2012, meat production has tripled, to 600 billion pounds a year, while the population only grew by 81%. This generation is currently eating meat on a much larger scale than their parents and grandparents ever did, just a few decades ago (Scheer). Climate change can be referred to as “any long-term change in Earth 's climate, or in the climate of a region or city. This includes warming, cooling and changes besides temperature.” according to NASA (Dunbar). To combat these undesirable, extreme temperatures, everyone has been told before to turn off the lights when leaving a room or to plant a tree, but rarely does one hear the suggestion to eat less or no meat. With an increasing threat of global warming largely due to the livestock industry, it is imperative that Americans start practicing vegetarianism to decrease methane produced by farm animals, carbon dioxide from transporting meat and by eliminating the deforestation required to make farmland for the livestock industry.