Most leather products are made by cows raised purely for leather. They are bred to make better leather, and the meat is unsuitable.
I became a vegan about eight months ago now. I've seen no side affects at all, except for positive ones. I can run faster and longer, I can lift more, longer. It's only been good. Vegan means I "gave up" meat, milk, eggs, and all animal by-products. It was no trouble for me, and it's actually
cheaper to live this way! (What costs more, a pound of veggies or a pound of beef?)
My reasons are many, but I'll compress it here, but first, I'm gonna nip some myths in the bud:
Myth #1.
Vegetarians don't get enough protein. There was a time when nutritionists and dietitians even said this _ but no longer. Now, we know that vegetarians get plenty of protein. What they don't get is the excessive amount of protein found in the typical modern diet. If you eat a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes, then getting enough protein is not an issue.
Myth #2.
Vegetarians don't get enough calcium. This myth is applied, in particular, to vegans - vegetarians who have eliminated meat and milk products from their diets. Somehow, the notion got started that the only good source of calcium is milk and cheese. Granted, milk does have a good supply of calcium, but so do many vegetables _ especially green, leafy veggies. The truth is, vegetarians suffer less from osteoporosis (a deficiency of calcium that leads to weak bones) because the body assimilates the calcium they eat more easily during digestion.
Myth #3.
Vegetarian diets aren't balanced, so vegetarians are risking their health for their principles. First of all, a vegetarian diet isn't out of balance. It has a good proportion of complex carbohydrates, protein, and fat - the three macro nutrients that are the cornerstone of any diet. Plus, vegetarian food sources (plants) tend to be higher sources of most of micro nutrients. Another way to look at it is this: The average meat eater consumes one or fewer servings of vegetables a day and no servings of fruit. If a meat eater does eat a vegetable, chances are it's a fried potato. "Out of balance" depends on your perspective.
Myth #4
A vegetarian diet is all right for an adult, but kids need meat to develop properly. This somehow makes the assumption that protein from plants isn't as good as protein from meat. The truth is, protein is protein. It is all made from amino acids. Children need 10 essential amino acids to grow and develop properly. These amino acids are as readily available in plants as they are in meat.
Myth 5:
Vegetarians are weak and malnourished.
Technically speaking, potato chips and soda are "vegetarian," to use the term loosely, and those vegetarians who choose to subsist on such fare probably
are weak and malnourished. The point, however, is that anyone with a bad diet can suffer ill effects. Vegetarians are no more likely to to be malnourished when following a balanced diet than those who eat meat.
Consider the following vegetarian athletes:
- Dave Scott is a vegetarian who won the Hawaii Ironman Triathlon in 1980, ´82, ´83, ´84, ´86 and 87. Next time you have a steak, try swimming 2.4 miles, cycling 112 miles and running a marathon. You´ll see that eating meat doesn´t instantly equate to peak athletic performance.
- Anthony Peeler is a guard for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Considering the amount of training required to be a professional athlete, as well as the rigorous schedule of the basketball season, Peeler would be foolish to maintain a vegetarian diet if it wasn´t supporting his performance needs.
Granted, a few high-profile vegetarians may not convince any skeptics, but they are living, breathing proof that a sound vegetarian diet can support even the most grueling physical activities. Try incorporating a few of these energy-boosting recipes into your next meal plan and compare the difference to a heavy meat-centered meal.
My reasons to be vegetarian:
[SIZE=+2]World Hunger[/SIZE] Number of people worldwide who will die of starvation this year:
60 million
Number of people who could be adequately fed with the grain saved if Americans reduced their intake of meat by 10%:
60 million
Human beings in America:
243 million
Number of people who could be fed with grain and soybeans now eaten by U.S. livestock:
1.3 billion
Percentage of corn grown in the U.S. eaten by people:
20
Percentage of corn grown in the U.S. eaten by livestock:
80
Percentage of oats grown in the U.S. eaten by livestock:
95
Percentage of protein wasted by cycling grain through livestock:
99
How frequently a child starves to death:
every 2 seconds
Pounds of potatoes that can be grown on an acre:
20,000
Pounds of beef produced on an acre:
165
Percentage of U.S. farmland devoted to beef production:
56
Pounds of grain and soybeans needed to produce a pound of beef:
16
[SIZE=+2]Environment[/SIZE] Cause of global warming:
greenhouse effect
Primary cause of greenhouse effect:
carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels
Fossil fuels needed to produce a meat-centered diet vs. a meat free diet:
50 times more.
Percentage of U.S. topsoil lost to date:
75
Percentage of U.S. topsoil loss directly related to livestock raising:
85
Number of acres of U.S. forest cleared for cropland to produce meat-centered diet:
260 million
Amount of meat U.S. imports annually from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Panama:
200 million pounds.
Average per capita meat consumption in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Panama:
less than eaten by average U.S. house cat.
Area of tropical rainforest consumed in every quarter-pound hamburger:
55 sq ft.
Current rate of species extinction due to destruction of tropical rainforests for meat grazing and other uses:
1,000 per year.
Also cattle contribute to global warming by being one of the biggest sources of carbon dioxide and methane gases.
[SIZE=+2]Cancer[/SIZE] Increased risk of breast cancer for women who eat meat 4 times a week vs. less than once a week:
4 times.
For women who eat eggs daily vs. less than once a week:
3 times
Increased risk of fatal ovarian cancer for women who eat eggs 3 or more times a week vs. less than once a week:
3 times.
Increased risk of fatal prostate cancer for men who eat meat daily vs. sparingly or not at all:
3.6 times.
(This is because casein, found in all meat, is a carcinogen to humans)
[SIZE=+2]Natural Resources[/SIZE] Use of more than half of all water used for all purposes in the U.S.:
Livestock portion
Amount of water used in production of the average steer:
sufficient to float a destroyer.
Gallons to produce a pound of wheat:
25
Gallons to produce a pound of meat:
2,500
Cost of common hamburger if water used by meat industry not subsidized by the U.S. taxpayer:
$35 a pound.
Current cost of pound of protein from beefsteak if water was no longer subsidized:
$89
Years the world's known oil reserves would last if every human ate a meat-centered diet:
13
Years they would last if human beings no longer ate meat:
260.
Barrels of oil imported into the U.S. daily:
6.8 million.
Percentage of fossil fuel returned as food energy by most efficient factory farming of meat:
34.5
Percentage from least efficient plant food:
32.8
Percentage of raw materials consumed by U.S. to produce present meat-centered diet:
33
