The Utah Beef Council itself acknowledges that “several epidemiological studies demonstrate that vegetarians have decreased mortality as well as morbidity from chronic degenerative diseases.” Vegetarians only account for around 2% of the population now, but that number is growing as more and more individuals try tofu or stop eating meat altogether. What, other moral concerns, do you think motivates individuals to stop eating meat? The relationship between human health and environmental quality.
Vegetarians have a lower risk of illness.
Numerous studies have shown that heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, and certain types of cancer are less common among vegetarians who consume well-rounded diets. Healthcare expenditures related to meat consumption, including those for elevated blood pressure, coronary artery bypass graft cancer, diabetes, gallstones, which obesity, and food-borne infections, are estimated by registered dietitian Winston Craig to range from $30 billion to $60 billion annually. Craig claims that a reduction in cholesterol, blood pressure, and obesity may be achieved by a vegetarian diet.
A vegetarian diet was suggested by the International Cancer Research Fund in 1997 as a means of decreasing the likelihood of developing cancer. Vegans have an incredible 57% lower risk of heart disease compared to nonvegetarians (24% for vegetarians). The Supposedly Day Adventists, who are vegetarians, were shown in a 2001 research to have a significantly lower risk of developing hypertension, diabetes, colon cancer, and arthritis and a slightly lower risk of developing prostate cancer. Cornell University found that reducing meat consumption was more effective than calcium supplements in preventing osteoporosis.
Do one have to be a vegetarian to get the rewards?
In 1999, researchers pooled the results of many studies looking at vegetarian and vegan diets and death rates. These studies’ findings were pooled and reevaluated. The study’s authors found that cutting down on meat consumption had a significant impact on health. The risk of dying form heart disease was decreased by 20% and the risk of dying from any cause decreased by 10% in those who ate meat once per week.
Those who consumed solely fish had an 18% reduced risk of death overall and a 34% lower risk of death from cardiovascular disease.
Reduced intake of animal products also seems to have positive effects. Cancers of the lung, stomach, and colon accounted for just 7% of deaths among the vegans. Cancer causes 19% of all fatalities in the United States, which is quite high.
Vegan and vegetarian diets benefit the environment.
Meat consumers annually bolster the cow agricultural sector. This business sector diverts arable land away from human food production in order to grow cereal crops for livestock. Most people are aware that cows emit a lot of methane gas, which is harmful to the environment. Cattle farming is a major consumer of fresh water.
Veganism in the Amazonian Rain Forest
However, what you might not be aware of is that the deforestation of the tropical forests is directly linked to the consumption of meat. Companies are raising cattle in the Central American region, where manpower and other expenses are lower, in order to produce cheaper Big Macs and Whoppers. To make way for cattle ranches, impatient Central Americans are chopping and burning their country’s natural rain forests.
Plant-based diets and greenhouse gas production
It is estimated that eating vegetarian cuisine may reduce annual carbon emissions by 1.5 tons per person. According according to the American Journal of Clinical Food Science, ten times as much fossil fuel is needed to produce a calorie of animal protein as a calorie of plant protein. Wow! According to New Scientist, a vegan diet decreases carbon dioxide emissions even more than does driving a hybrid automobile.
Water conservation and vegetarianism
Worse still, about 55 square meters of rain forest had to be cleared for every hamburger made using beef from a cow raised in the rain forest. Research also shows that a whopping 2,500 liters of water are needed to produce just one pound of meat. One hamburger patty’s worth of water usage is equivalent to taking a shower every day for two weeks.