Why Go Vegan?

As part of my Nutrition Consultant course, I had to write an essay about why people become vegetarian or vegan. I was asked to write at least 500 words, but well.. I had so much to say so I struggled to keep it under 1400 :P


The vegetarian movement dates from thousands of years ago, but the kind of civilisation we live in exploits animals and the environment, thus putting our health at risk. Over the last few centuries, the awareness of animal welfare started to increase, particularly during the Renaissance but it only boomed recently, when the mass industrialisation of food began. Animals were treated worse, and given unnatural chemicals to then be slaughtered inhumanely. Also, the environment is being destroyed every day to accommodate and feed more livestock, but the industries also pollute the air, soil and water, leading to the destruction of certain ecosystems. However, I believe the most direct reason for people to convert to vegetarianism is the fact that eating animals and their by-products is damaging to their health. Meat-eating has been linked to a variety of diseases, and a wide variety of vegetarians and vegans report feeling much healthier with their new lifestyle.

The subject of animal welfare is a really big issue nowadays: animals are being treated with absolute cruelty, and in some countries, livestock animals are not considered like pets in regards to the legal system. These countries, mainly in the West, are the biggest producers of animal products, but on the other hand, the cow is holy in India, where most people are vegetarian or vegan. Either way, people across the globe are becoming more aware of what happens inside slaughterhouses and dairy factories, and for once the ugly truth is coming out of these sinful places. Luckily for the animals, documentaries and movies like Earthlings are gaining popularity and more people stop eating meat once they discover these atrocities. While most people just give up meat, as it is hard to completely stop eating all animal products by force of habit, vegans see the injustice to cows and calves of the dairy industry and stop consuming these products immediately. There are still some people who discriminate against certain species and not others, for example they would give up eating mammals and birds but still eat fish because they believe aquatic animals suffer differently when caught, although in fact they simply suffer in different ways, like being cooked alive. 

Another reason why people may give up animal products, regardless to the previously stated point, is for environmental conservation. Firstly, in order to raise cattle, a lot of space is needed -even more so for the 'free-range' farms. Then, more land must be deforested to grow crops to feed the animals, and these are usually grains, although cows should be eating grass. Unfortunately, the grains are often genetically modified, meaning they not only produce their own pesticides which are persistent in the environment, but they also end up in the consumer's body through animal fat. Some GMO crops have been even found beyond the boundaries of the farms on which they are grown, causing widespread death of insects like bees. Moreover, farm animals are one of the primary contributors of the greenhouse gas methane, which impacts global warming about 20 times more than carbon dioxide. According to the US EPA, agriculture is the primary source of methane emissions on a global scale. The problem does not stop here, as nearly 5 cubic meters of water are required to produce 1 kg of meat, whilst the same amount of vegetables and grains only requires 1 cubic meter of water. With the water quality problems and scarcity we are facing nowadays, eating meat is extremely unsustainable. The amount of energy (fuel) needed to produce meat is also quite substantial, not to mention the energy used for freezing and transporting it. Furthermore, animal farms usually have bad waste management, with animal manure ending up concentrated in nearby water bodies, leading to eutrophication and water quality deterioration -this is particularly the problem with the leather/fur industry. On the other hand, fishing has also become unsustainable. Not only does one third of all catch go to feeding livestock -who, I repeat, should be eating grass, but the amounts caught are depleting the oceans' reserves. One particular problem is the overfishing of tuna leading to increased numbers of jellyfish, but there is also considerable undesired by-catch like dolphins. Fish farming may be a solution, but these take up space on coasts, meaning they replace wetland habitats and create more pollution from wastes. For the fish to have enough space to swim, instead of being fattened and rendered immobile, more coastal habitats have to be destroyed. There is simply no environmentally sound way of capturing and killing animals for food and leisure.

The last and probably most important reason to give up meat is due to its effect on the human body. For a long time, many people believed animal products to be the only or best source of protein but that myth has been disproved by many scientists over the last century. Although animal products provide complete protein, they are acidic and lower the blood pH, so the body's natural response is to supply calcium from the bones in order to neutralise the blood. This stripping of calcium leads to osteoporosis or general low bone mass, even if dairy products still give some calcium. In fact, the animal protein must be broken down into amino acids for assimilation, so it makes no different if one eats plant-based whole foods and get the amino acids separately. Moreover, a study led by Dr Campbell form Cornell University called The China Study shed light on the link between animal products and cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. Actually, a clear connection was evident and many doctors started seeing it too, and prescribing a vegan diet to their patients. It has even been shown that vegans have a higher bone mass than meat eaters, getting their calcium from vegetables and sesame seeds, and are at least 40% less likely of getting cancer. Casein is thought to be the main cause of cancer in humans, and since it constitutes 80% of cow's milk, vegetarians are still at risk - but it all depends on the amounts ingested. Yet nowadays, when consuming meat or dairy, one does not only get the protein: there are other chemicals in the food like growth hormones, antibiotics, pesticides and pathogens. Hormones and pesticides act as endocrine disruptors and can cause cancer, while antibiotics kill gut flora and weaken the immune system. Moreover, antibiotics get obsolete very fast, and studies have shown that many strains in bacteria found in animal products have grown resistant to them, such as salmonella. Furthermore, pathogens, like the Bird- and Swine-Flu viruses and those responsible for transmissible diseases like BSE, threaten the safety of animal product consumption. While some of these dangers may be avoided by buying organic animal products, these may be quite expensive especially in relation to plant-based foods. The price of meat is escalating in proportion to the price of fuel, so one can cut down their grocery shopping costs by 30%, simply by becoming a vegetarian, and even more so if going vegan.

The plant-based trend is encouragingly increasing, along with organic and grow-your-food movements. It is estimated that 2,000 people become vegetarian every day, as more vegetarian and vegan restaurants are opening up, and there are many meat substitutes like soy and all its by-products, veggie burgers, quorn, etc. More athletes are also abandoning animal protein, thus inspiring some of the big meat consumers that they do not need to let animals be tortured and killed in order for them to fulfil their fitness needs. Many inspirational vegetarian/vegan youtube users are blogging about the benefits of the lifestyle, and sharing great recipes, thus gaining a wider audience using social media. It seems that eating (organic or pesticide-free) plant-based foods is safer to the people and the environment, whilst saving billions of animals every year.