The Pros of Being a Vegetarian

There are vegetarians all over the world. They just want what most people want: good food and a choice. And some people become vegetarians because of their religion, their culture, and the place they live.

“Against Meat” by Jonathon Safran Foer (2009, New York Times Magazine) is intended to educate current non-vegetarians on what vegetarianism is, the benefits of it in terms of health and animal rights, and also the struggles of consistently being a vegetarian. Although Foer does not specifically express what a vegetarian is we can assume he is going off the generally known definition of a person who does not consume the meat of an animal, as oppose to a vegan who does not consume any animal products at all. According to an article about vegetarian Americans, 5% or 16 million Americans classify themselves as vegetarian in 2015, compared to the 1% back in 2009, making vegetarianism a growing trend throughout the US (Raw Food World). Foer proves his opinion on vegetarianism by backing it up with facts from the USDA and his own personal experiences with his babysitter, growing up struggling with being a vegetarian that loves meat, and the decision to marry and raise his child vegetarian. Foer does, however, have a few gaps in his argument about nutrition, the costs associated with vegetarianism, and the lack of a definition of vegetarian.

The idea of abstaining from meat has been around for a long period of time. According to Claus Leitzmann from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition it has been around since the sixth century B.C. and originated from the Orphic mysteries followers. A greek philosopher by the name of Pythagorean, and other influential persons promoted ethical vegetarianism until the 19th century. After that it begin to fade away until it was reintroduced during the Renaissance Era and the Age of Enlightenment. When people were informed of the benefits of becoming a vegetarian or vegan, a person that does not consume or use

Brought up in the southern of China, I often heard about that people from there “eat anything with four limbs except tables, anything that flies except aero planes, and anything that swims except ships”. Nevertheless, I eat more fruit, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains but less meat to make careful choices for environmental protection. Similarly, Kathy Freston argues that animal agriculture is one of the top contributors to global warming. In her Huffington Post selection “Vegetarian Is the New Prius,” Freston lists how many emissions of greenhouse gases people make when they eat meat and illustrates the consumption of tree in animal agriculture. She effectively convinces her audiences that the livestock results in the most serious environmental problems and encourages people to lead a greener diet to protect our environment. However, ardent craving, poor health, and perpetual hassle and cost prevent all Americans from being vegetarian.

Some people choose a vegetarian diet for ethical and environmental reasons and some choose to be vegetarian because of food safety issues.

Vegetarianism is a custom practiced in six out of the seven continents and has become more popular over the years. Vegetarianism can be defined as the exclusion of animal products such as meat and fish from one’s diet. Dairy products and eggs are often times excluded as well. Although there are many reasons one may decide to become a Vegetarian or follow such a code of ethics, the most common include: moral, religious or health reasons.

Why vegetarianism? Because with it, you can give a beacon of hope to those who are not as fortunate to have access to food and water. Did you know that there are thousands that are starving due to not having food? Well you can help. According to IOPScience, there are about 925 million that are suffering due to being hungry. Though if the 36% of the calories, which are produced by crops,

Vegetarianism is not a modern phenomenon. Indeed, as a lifestyle vegetarianism began with the Greek aesthetes and was subsequently adopted by many Romans who thought a frugal lifestyle to be beneficial to themselves and to the state.

Despite the fact that less than half of the population in the United States is reported to be vegan there is no denying that it is a growing dietary trend. Whether or not people are becoming vegan or vegetarian due to reading books like Singer and Mason’s, The Ethics of What We Eat, or watching documentaries similar to Food Inc. there is a revolution happening in the way that people are thinking about their food consumption practices. The media allows one to observe the shortcomings of the agricultural industry and create their own ideas based on what was perceived. Moreover, this exposure allows for people to acknowledge that although the Standard American Diet is convenient and tasteful there are ways to slowly into becoming more ethical

According to Laura Fraser, being a vegetarian is way more complicated than she first realized. It takes a lot more effort being a vegetarian rather than if people just consumed meat like most of our generation does. Vegetarians have to find other ways to get all the proteins and vitamins they need to stay healthy. Since it is rare for people to be considered a vegetarian most people who aren’t have to conform to them to satisfy their needs. She states in her essay that people become vegetarians for several different reasons varying from health related, animal rights activists, and environmental issues.

As we can now observe, vegetarianism has become something fashionable, and the number of people who reject eating meat is constantly increasing. In Britain, for instance, over 5 million people have done it so far. It is obviously connected with the recent animal diseases, but this tendency is likely to spread on the other regions of the world. However, it is not only a fashion or fear of illnesses. I myself became a vegetarian about 2 years ago, and I can see a number of reasons why people should stop eating meat. They are mainly of ethic, economic and health type. Those who think in an ecological way should also be aware of how this meat consumption ruins our environment. I don’t have an intention

Living a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle comes with enormous benefits such as reducing the possibility of diseases and cancers allowing one to live longer and also assist with losing weight through learning how to eat proper portions and the correct types of food. This is proven by Lap Tai Le and Joan Sabaté in their article, “Beyond Meatless, the Health Effects of Vegan Diets: Findings from the Adventist Cohorts.” However, less than ten percent of the U.S population is experiencing these benefits mainly since the public is unaware of the perks of living a vegan or vegetarian

Paul McCartney (1975) had said: “If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian.” Recently, to be a vegetarian is still a controversial issue that attracts people’s attention, so the word “vegetarian” frequently appears on TV advertisement, restaurants or markets. As its name suggests, vegetarian defines someone who lives on a diet of vegetables, fruits, dairy and nuts and they reject eating meat or any products of slaughter. Human used to be the meat-eater, people believed meat gives us protein, also strength; however,

Cows, like every living thing, eat, drink and produce waste. The Worldwatch Institute says, "A single cow used for milk can drink up to 50 gallons of water per day." That means it takes 683 gallons of water to produce only 1 gallon of milk. It takes 518 gallons of water to produce 1 pound of chicken, and 2,400 gallons of water to produce 1 pound of meat. (Goodland, R. & Anhang, J., 2016). Everyone has been taught that to save the planet ride your bike instead of driving or carpool. Take short showers, and change your light

"Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet (Albert Einstein)”.The vegetarian diet has been proposed by many, from philosophers like Plato and Nietzsche to political leaders such as Benjamin Franklin and Gandhi, and modern idols like Paul McCartney and Bob Marley. Science also supports the vegetarian diet, there are many studies demonstrating its health benefits. Being "vegetarian" means not eating any animal products, including all kinds of fish, or poultry. Vegetarians who consume eggs and milk or milk products are called "ovo-lacto-vegetarians" (ovo = egg, lacto = milk). Those who completely avoid all animal products are called pure vegetarians or "vegans." It has been shown that ovo-lacto-vegetarians are healthier than meat eaters and vegans are healthier than ovo-lacto-vegetarians. Vegetarians have a lower risk of hypertension, asthma, diabetes, Biliary and Renal stone disease, and Osteoporosis.