Veganism: It’s More Than Just a Diet
Like the majority of teenagers today, I was just browsing YouTube when I stumbled upon a video that has since changed my life. “Earthlings.” The documentary revealed how millions of animals are mercilessly slaughtered in factory farms. Just watching such brutality- void of any type of humanity- was immobilizing. Somehow I made it to the end and came across copious recommended videos, including “Forks Over Knives” and “Cowspiracy.” While they weren’t as graphic as the first, they were definitely informative. After watching these documentaries, I decided to go vegan. This decision wasn’t made lightly, and it wasn’t just for myself. Veganism has long been disputed over, but animal rights activists, environmentalists,
…show more content…
Many people have misconceptions about vegans, specifically that they are weak and unhealthy while it is quite the opposite. Registered dietician, Ashley Koff, points out that “eating meat and animal products...has been associated with inflammation” (Hartke par 17). And inflammation is just one of many health problems linked to diets consisting of meat. Cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, and cancer have also been shown in higher rates among omnivores. Gary Fraser, PhD, MPH, who was a part of the Adventist Health Study observed that there was “12 percent reduction in risk of all-cause mortality in all vegetarians combined versus non-vegetarians” (Palmer par 21). Why would you want to pollute your body with the carcasses of animals and other by-products that we have stolen from them? The myth that cow’s milk makes your bones strong is just one of many falsehoods that agribusinesses and large industries have been telling us. Of course, they want us to buy their milk, cheese, and yogurt. But if you look into the effects dairy has on the body, you will learn the real consequences of consuming dairy and animal protein. In a study observing the bones in omnivore and vegan women, health researchers found that there was a “lower amount of bone formation in the omnivore women” which could lead to a lower bone density and ultimately end in osteoporosis (Wood par 16). Many of the strongest animals on the planet are herbivores. Many of the animals people consume are herbivores. We say that we eat meat to get the protein and to get the nutrients, but look at where these animals get theirs. Plants. If we want to be healthy and get our nutrients in their most pure form, we need to stop filtering them through animals. We’re not just killing the animals and our planet; we’re killing
In 2011, American filmmaker, Marisa Miller Wolfson, made a 76-minute documentary titled, ‘Vegucated.’ Wolfson, a practicing vegan, cites her research on foods and especially animal-based foods as her rationale for opting to go vegan. Notably, upon going vegan, she became healthier, lost weight, and even felt happier because she was no longer contributing to the inhuman treatment of animals. In her quest to become a vegan, Wolfson made the film after moving to New York City. Her concurrent idea in the film is the effects of animal diets versus the effects of vegan diets. Evidently, through its participants, the film illustrates that avoidance of animal products results to weight loss and
I had stumbled on a film titled Vegucated about 6 months ago. It was much like the very well known documentary Food Inc except it focused more on uncovering what really goes on inside a slaughterhouse and dairy farms. The reason I bring up these movies is because they steered me onto a new lifestyle, and that was going vegan. It was hard at first for many reasons. One being, I enjoyed eating dairy products, and the other being how would I get protein from non-animal products. In the beginning there were a few times I cheated and had to have some meat
If a person looked around and consumed the right amount of what they were eating, there would be absolutely no problems while on this diet. Also, there can be more variety achieved in this diet by consuming new and different types of fruits, and vegetables. There are even meat substitutes by a brand called MorningStar. In addition to getting all the correct supplements the human body needs, while on the vegan diet a person would not eat red meat or drink milk. By not consuming red meat, this allows for the digestive pathway to work more efficiently because it takes about three days to fully digest any red meat. Not consuming red meat also lowers your cholesterol, preventing gallstones, plaque buildup in arteries, and heart attacks. As for not consuming milk, the top three countries on the International Milk Genomics Consortium milk consuming list (Finland, Netherlands, and Sweden) are also the top three countries with the weakest bone structure. This appears quite deceiving given that children drink milk so they can develop a strong bone structure. It is also proven that almond milk has 50% more calcium than regular cow 's milk. Given this information, milk does not determine the strength of a person 's bones. Not consuming red meat will also lead a person to a better future with less bills to pay and no health risk. Overall, by switching over to the vegan diet
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
“The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics says that a well-planned vegan diet is ‘healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases,’” which is reported by James McWilliams in The Atlantic article The Evidence for a Vegan Diet in 2012. Humans get 40% of our nutrition value from food, and their are enzymes in raw food that is needed to maintain a healthful life (Food Matters, 2008). But the everlasting question always is: how do you get protein? People all around the world believe that a vegan diet does not compose enough protein for a regular human being. In fact, the foods with the most protein in the world are from plants, not meat. Spirulina, a type of dried, leafy green, is the highest protein content food in the world (Food Matters, 2008). The vegan diet is also healthful for babies. In a study conducted at Queen Elizabeth College in London, a vegan diet was found to be, “adequate during pregnancy and lactation, and healthy normal children are born,” and for mothers who can’t breast-feed, “plant milk is satisfactory for the infants,” and can be just as beneficial as breast feeding (Turner, 1979). The vegan diet can be amazing for any person at any age. A reduction in diseases and cancers, a lower obesity rate, and the opportunity for a healthier life is all that can come from a vegan
Most people around the world weren 't ever -- or are even now -- eating the way some of us do every day: steak-and-egg sandwiches for breakfast, quarter-pound cheeseburgers for lunch, two whole chicken breasts or a half-pound pork chop for dinner. And you know what? They were, or are, often healthier for it (if their diets provide adequate calories and nutrients for basic health, of course). Consider some of the studies reviewed in "Six Arguments," for instance: In one study, vegans (people who eat no meat, fish or dairy products) who added 8 ounces of beef to their daily diet saw their average blood cholesterol levels rise by 19 percent in just four weeks. In another, long-term, study, the American Cancer Society found that the people who ate the most beef, pork and processed meats (bacon, sausage, etc.) also had the highest risks of rectal cancer. And Harvard 's Nurses ' Health Study found that women who drink two or more glasses of whole milk a day substantially increased their risks of a heart attack. On the flip side, a community health program in California found that participants who switched to a low-fat, near-vegan diet -- and also boosted their physical activity -- saw their levels of bad cholesterol drop by 14 percent, their rates of high blood-pressure cut in half, and their weight reduced by an average of 7 1/2 pounds. In other words, meat
The objective of this study is to examine the differences between the vegan and omnivore diet and to study the relationship of these diets to body composition, blood lipids, and the serum hormones vitamin D and parathyroid hormone. As seen previously, those eating an omnivore diet consumed significantly more dietary protein than those consuming a vegan diet (2; 3). The values we observed for dietary protein in both the vegan and the omnivore groups were similar to those seen by Hadded et al. (3) and Janelle and Barr (2). The women in our study eating an omnivore diet exceeded the RDA for protein. In contrast to other studies of vegetarians and vegans, our
I belong to the vegan community. This community is filled with love, tolerance and respect-and I am proud to be a member. Recently, the message of veganism has been widely spread through social media platforms. This has made enriching information easily accessible for those willing to listen and removed many taboos associated with veganism. When the facts are brought to the surface, it is difficult to ignore them. Veganism is a way one
Not many people used to know what a vegan was. Veganism was a completely new idea and has only just started to gather momentum in the last few years. A man named Donald Watson, originally from England, was the first person to found the vegan movement in 1944. This vegan movement emphasized the moral, spiritual, social, health and economic advantages of being vegan. Watson realized he would never eat meat again when he saw a pig get slaughtered on his family farm, and has not for seventy eight years (Rodger 1). Dedicating yourself to a vegan lifestyle can be a challenging thing to do because of the world we live in. “Veganism means living solely on the products of the plant kingdom, to the exclusion of flesh, fish, fowl, animal milk, and
After having my heart shattered into pieces and taken out of my body. I finally decided it was time for me to get up. I couldn’t let this break up get the best of me. So in order to get my mind off the heartache, I decided that I needed to take this break up as a new beginning in which I would focus on myself and my goals. One of my goals was always to be able to get toned and build some muscle mass. In order to achieve this, I needed to learn how to meal prep since I have such a busy schedule from school and work. I went into Pinterest and saw a meal prep that I like, but it was vegetarian. I thought this was good because it was a challenge and it would help me keep my mind off the breakup. Worried just like many other people have about not eating meat, I started to do my research to make sure that I was eating properly and making sure I had enough protein. While browsing for more vegetarian recipes I came into a couple of videos about veganism. I found it interesting and I started to look up more videos and everything clicked on me. I cannot call myself an animal lover and eat meat or support any abuse towards animals. That’s when I decided to go vegan. My decision to go vegan, what people think about veganism and what being a vegan stands for me.
My step sister and I were down In the basement , looking to find something on netflix. We couldn’t find anything good so I asked her “ Want to watch some documentaries about the animal Industry? ”She replied saying “ No?” sounding very shocked that I had asked her that. So I said “ Why not ? “ She replied saying “ Because that’ll make me not want to eat meat and I can’t watch that. I love meat too much especially cows “ I turned my head towards the t.v and laughed. Laughing at the fact If they couldn’t bear to watch an animal get slaughtered then why eat them? Little did she know eating meat doesn’t only just hurt animals , but our planet too. This Is my story on how my life changed forever.
Baby cows were dragged away from their mother’s moments after birth; unable to walk they are thrown into a crate. The mothers helplessly try to follow their babies but are forcefully herded into a slaughterhouse to meet their death. The cows look around frantically; they know what their fate is. One by one the cows get tied up and hung upside. With one quick slit, they bleed out in pain with nothing to do but kick and scream until they die. Blood overflows my screen and I have to turn off my phone. This is how most of my mornings started. After watching the horrific fate of those cows, I was motivated to make a difference. The day before I started my vegan lifestyle, I went to the market to buy a variety of foods that would last me these next two weeks. Most of the food I bought consisted of raw fruits and vegetables, pre-made salads, soup, and oatmeal. I figured if I had a set routine for breakfast lunch and dinner, it would be easier for me to accomplish my goal.
1. “Nearly 70% of married men and 60% of married women have had affairs, and, among my clients, 8 out of 10 who have committed adultery regret having done so. It’s reasonable to conclude, then, that about 80% of all adulterers regret having cheated.” –Holly Hein, Sexual Detours. This passage as an argument because there are 2 or more claims present. I practice using the numbering method to complete this diagram: (1) 70% of married men and 60% of married women have had affairs. (2) 8 out of 10 who have committed adultery regret having done so. (3) A bout 80% of adulterers regret cheating. (1) + (2) = (3). This here shows that (1) and (2) are the foundation for (3) the conclusion. Now, I must decide If this is an argument or
This essay analyzes the ethical argument for veganism through the lens of philosophy using Utilitarianism defined by John Stuart Mill, and Deontological ethics according to Immanuel Kant. Through the use of these theories, I will justify the moral worth and legitimacy of the animal welfare debate that is often used to promote a cruelty-free and vegan lifestyle by analyzing questions of animal sentience, the worth of an animal’s happiness, and the right humanity supposedly has to the lives of other living creatures. Utilitarianism and Deontological ethics will provide two philosophical insights into the reasoning of a life abstaining from harming animals.
The first thing that usually comes to one’s mind when they hear the word Veganism is healthy. However, many points would debate against and for this very statement. There are many researches that prove the vegan diet is a healthy one and that this diet is better than a normal animal product eating one, however none proving that it is better than all the other diets, like some people claim the plant-eating one to be. Being a vegan means that you miss essential nutrients on a day to day basis such as vitamins, iron, zinc and calcium just to name a few. As well as this, when you get rid of all these animal products you are at a much higher risk of developing a nutritional deficiency and becoming under-weight. Looking