Meat eating vs. Vegan debate

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Replies

  • darkling_glory
    darkling_glory Posts: 239 Member
    Another thing I thought about was, what would happen if in the future everyone DID stop eating meat and animal products? Baring in mind something like 95-99% of the population eat animal produce, with an ever-expanding human population, where on earth would we find the room to cultivate and grow so much food?!
    Actually, it takes less resources and space to farm veggies than animals.

    But wouldn't we need a lot more foods if we only ate vegan stuff? Plus we wouldn't be breeding and slaughtering animals anymore so they might need more room to live.

    What? No.

    Plants > Cows > People

    Plants > People

    That is less food because the cows (or pigs or chicken) aren't eating any plants - you are cutting out the middle man essentially.

    And, if people aren't breeding animals then there would be LESS animals as the population is artificially inflated in order to provide food for people.
  • macpatti
    macpatti Posts: 4,280 Member
    I'm not sure why anyone cares who is eating what- unless it's babies, no one should eat babies.
    Uh, oh. Brett's in trouble, then.
  • swisspea
    swisspea Posts: 327 Member

    While I agree that the way we harvest meat is unethical, I personally wouldn't stop eating it simply because I like eating meat and fish.

    You say it all here. Some people can simply not overlook the production and terrible waste that allows for the way North Americans in particular consume meat. That's a choice you've made (not the one I made), and if you think "liking the way they taste" is enough to validate your opinion- than go for it and live your life, and don't care about what vegetarians have to say.
  • VeganInTraining
    VeganInTraining Posts: 1,319 Member
    :laugh:
    All the proof you need that we are designed to eat meat AS WELL AS plant matter, can be found in the mirror and in your gut. Look in the mirror. Notice your eyes are facing forward - an omnivorous/predatory trait. Open your mouth. Notice you have canines. Canines are designed for ripping flesh. You also have molars and premolars for grinding. In your digestive tract, you'll find specialised enzymes for both meat and plant matter.

    I don't see why either side gets so inflamed, but I do get frustrated by people trying to preach veganism to me. Same as I get frustrated by people preaching religion to me, or their political beliefs.

    I'd like to see you use your canines to rip open an animal with hide and all. Human's do not "rip flesh" we cook it, but it with a knife and chew it. ....sorry the canine thing just always makes me laugh.
  • khagador
    khagador Posts: 175 Member

    Other studies show that it might not be a good idea to rear infants on a vegan diet...

    This is something a lot of people have a problem with. My mom said right in front of me and my sister that she thinks raising a child vegan is child abuse. I do plan to raise my children vegan in my home (as long as they are getting the proper nutrition) and they can choose to eat how they wish outside of my home. It's all about education, not imposing your morals and beliefs on someone else.

    Also, my sister asked me how she feels about me having to give my kids pureed meat when they're infants. I asked her what she thinks hunter gatherers gave their infants when processed pureed meat didn't exist.
    Are you saying mothers milk is vegan? Some Countries ban the use of soy formulas for infants.

    I don't think anyone, vegan or otherwise, would say that mothers' milk is not the best thing for infants. Plus, too much soy is bad for infants in any case-- as is too much lactose. Many babies are born with lactose intolerances.
  • tsh0ck
    tsh0ck Posts: 1,970 Member
    Another thing I thought about was, what would happen if in the future everyone DID stop eating meat and animal products? Baring in mind something like 95-99% of the population eat animal produce, with an ever-expanding human population, where on earth would we find the room to cultivate and grow so much food?!
    Actually, it takes less resources and space to farm veggies than animals.

    True ... but very soon we would be overrun by an animal population explosion. Of course, many of those animals would wind up.dying from disease and starvation ... so I guess it would balance out for a few years at a time.
  • realme56
    realme56 Posts: 1,093 Member
    the main argument is this: ONLY animal based foods contain vitamin B12. B12 deficiency is one of the leading causes of dementia in elderly adults and is one of the key "brain foods" we consume. you can supplement it, sure, but i'm just sayin'.

    Lots of meat eaters have dementia.

    People should be able to eat what they want (except for babies as noted previously :noway: ). Animals raised for consumption should be raised naturally and humanely.
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    I was vegetarian for over 10 years, vegan for 2. My reason was that I didn't like eating animals. I still don't, but started eating meat when I got pregnant. While I was veg I had a hard time getting enough protein and didn't want to have any issues while pregnant/breastfeeding. I am now healthier than I have ever been because I eat a balanced diet. Humans have eaten meat for thousands of years. In the stone age (which wasn't that long ago, people were extremely advanced by that point), we weren't simply gatherers, we were hunters and gatherers. Meat wasn't a huge part of the diet, it supplemented the vegetation that was gathered, but it supplemented the diet for a reason.
  • VeganInTraining
    VeganInTraining Posts: 1,319 Member
    Another thing I thought about was, what would happen if in the future everyone DID stop eating meat and animal products? Baring in mind something like 95-99% of the population eat animal produce, with an ever-expanding human population, where on earth would we find the room to cultivate and grow so much food?!
    Actually, it takes less resources and space to farm veggies than animals.

    But wouldn't we need a lot more foods if we only ate vegan stuff? Plus we wouldn't be breeding and slaughtering animals anymore so they might need more room to live.

    key words, "we wouldn't be breeding and slaughtering animals." If we aren't breeding them we don't need to worry about a surplus. Of course, I don't know how that all would work with the animals that we already have bread....would they slowly lower in numbers? I'm really not sure. What I do know, is humans eat way less than cows so if we aren't breeding them we don't need to continue to grow crops for them and that frees up land for our own use. :)

  • Other studies show that it might not be a good idea to rear infants on a vegan diet...

    This is something a lot of people have a problem with. My mom said right in front of me and my sister that she thinks raising a child vegan is child abuse. I do plan to raise my children vegan in my home (as long as they are getting the proper nutrition) and they can choose to eat how they wish outside of my home. It's all about education, not imposing your morals and beliefs on someone else.

    Also, my sister asked me how she feels about me having to give my kids pureed meat when they're infants. I asked her what she thinks hunter gatherers gave their infants when processed pureed meat didn't exist.

    Calling it child abuse is a bit extreme. A friend of mine has never eaten meat in his life and he's doing ok. He doesn't see meat as food but other people eating meat doesn't bother him either.
    I think i'd rather give my children (when I have them) the opportunity to eat it if they want it but to make their own decision whether they like it or not.
  • The biggest thing about being a vegan is balancing your protein content. Most non-meat sources of protein are an incomplete protein, however this can be balanced by selecting a variety of vegetable sources that compliment each other. With this in mind, also take a dietary supplement as vitamins like B12 I believe can only be obtained from meat sources or a supplement. Oh - I am not a vegan :smile:

    One complete source of vegan protein that I read about is hemp protein, but this contains a far amount of carbohydrate. Sorry, buying this in the health food store will give you the same effects as what some people smoke.

    For what is worth, this subject can be objectively answered by science so there is really no reason for a debate. I hope this is helpful to you.:wink:

    Yeah, any scientific evidence is greatly appreciated here! I'd just like to hear what others have found! I heard about having to select a range of plant foods to get the full benefit of some macronutrients that we get from meat.
    The only problem with science, I find, is that you can come across research that says one thing and then get something else that disproves it! It's all very circular.


    My father was diagnosed with cancer 5 years ago and given 6 months to live and a 5% chance of coming off the operating table. My mother has studied herbs and natural healing for years and I have learned a lot but there is still so much to learn even for her. My father opted out of chemotherapy and surgery and went the natural healing route because he said he felt pretty good and would rather just live the rest of his months feeling okay or sick rather than being poisoned surviving or not surviving and being sick all the time battling cancer for the next however many years. When you are as old as my dad, if cancer doesn’t kill you chemotherapy can.

    My mom found a guy who studies Iridology, is a herbalist and Vegetarian. In short (or as short as I can make it) it is how our eyes can tell us what’s wrong with our system/body. Some of you probably notice that your eyes were bluer when you were born and now may look green or yellow or maybe brown. The idea is that there are two eye colors blue and brown. What we eat and our health and wellness factor the color. Have you ever looked close at your eye and saw small black dots or yellow bands and coloring? Well if you mix blue and yellow you get green. Yellow shows the sulfur in your body along with chemicals/pollution and if you have black dots, well those show which organs are having issues. Google Iridology chart and check your eyes out. Look it up if you want to know more about Iridology.

    So, this guys idea is that we are meant to eat plants and I believe he eats fish but not positive. He gave my father a well laid out plan along with his really expensive and highly effective tinctures. This guy would have been strung up for being a witch back in medieval times. My father is cancer free and he did it by eating organic. There is a science to this which includes alkalinity and water purity and so many other things but he healed himself using what came from the soil. After his initial first year of fruits, veggies and fish he started adding in small servings of organic chicken and lamb which he does eat to this day. My mother went to California for two months just to study with a Raw chef and learn how to feed my father correctly. Yes, my father is doing great and I have met a lot of people who are living very healthy lives and curing what ails them by eating organic, vegan, vegetarian or carnivore.

    I am not a vegetarian but I have learned that my body responds better to white meats. Chicken and fish are pretty much what I stick to with an occasional steak and the beloved burger, but I never eat the whole thing and it has to be cooked to Five Star perfection.

    There is a lot of detail to living this way and I don’t think that we are educated enough as people to decide exactly what is or isn’t the best way to eat but I will tell you we as people we need to practice the saying, in moderation, when it comes to our food habits. Also that maybe it isn’t just a difference between eating meat or not but maybe we need to eat more organic, so start your garden and tell the FDA to go stick it!!!!!!
  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
    I can definitely see it being a tiresome topic for a vegan, as there really aren't a lot of you around. So you're just subject to all sorts of short-sighted idiocy fomr people who just love to criticise anyone who doesn't do exactly the same as everyone else. What is sad is that you're probably right about them doing it on purpose, as they probably see your decision as being 'purposely awkward' or something.
    What the hell do you do when they've not cooked anything you can have?!
    And I didn't realise the leather industry didn't get their stuff as a by-product from the meat industry... wow.

    I have to make everything myself. Then get criticized for bringing too much food. I always make enough to share with everyone there, even though bf's mom tells everyone that I made it and no one should eat it. Seriously, it's ridiculous and childish. I make like 4-5 things, usually an appetizer, vegetable, protein (which I don't share), starch, and dessert. To me, it's impolite to invite someone over to their home and not have something for them to eat. If I know someone has a food allergy and I have them over, I always accomodate-- it's just the hospitable thing to do.

    See, I agree with you 100%.

    I would have absolutely no idea what to feed a vegan if I had one over. Lacto- or Ovo-vegetarian I can do. I'd probably end up saying 'Tell me what to cook'. But I'd damn well learn how to cook something that they could eat. Just like I do for my friend who's on a low-sodium diet, even though normally I put salt in everything.

    Also if I went to dinner at a vegan friend's house I'd eat what they served, smile, and say 'Thank you very much', unless it contained an ingredient I actively and strongly dislike, such as chocolate.
  • lizzybethclaire
    lizzybethclaire Posts: 849 Member
    I went vegan for a few months this year. Once I found out how animals were treated, I was horrified. That is why I gave up eating meat for awhile. Eventually I went back to eating meat (I love chicken) but seeing how they stuck them in those cages killed me. Now I try to buy meat where the label says the chickens were not raised in a factory. I have also been investigating co-ops and farms and would eventually like to buy meat straight from a farmer where I get to see the animals and know they led cruel free lives and not pumped up with antibiotics.
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
    Another thing I thought about was, what would happen if in the future everyone DID stop eating meat and animal products? Baring in mind something like 95-99% of the population eat animal produce, with an ever-expanding human population, where on earth would we find the room to cultivate and grow so much food?!
    Actually, it takes less resources and space to farm veggies than animals.

    But wouldn't we need a lot more foods if we only ate vegan stuff? Plus we wouldn't be breeding and slaughtering animals anymore so they might need more room to live.

    What? No.

    Plants > Cows > People

    Plants > People

    That is less food because the cows (or pigs or chicken) aren't eating any plants - you are cutting out the middle man essentially.

    And, if people aren't breeding animals then there would be LESS animals as the population is artificially inflated in order to provide food for people.

    The caloric content of vegetable matter is far lower, however, generally speaking. If we take salmon, 100g provides around 140 calories. 100g of carrots provides around 40 calories. Lean beef steak, around 120 calories for 100g. Broccoli, 34 calories per 100g. Sure there are higher calorie vegetables, like potatoes and parsnip, but they are so loaded with carbs it would throw everything else out of balance for me.

    So, yes, we would need more food by mass. It's also a very key reason why a vegan diet is something I would never undertake - the sheer amount of food I would need to eat, and mostly plant matter, would be enormous.
  • VeganInTraining
    VeganInTraining Posts: 1,319 Member
    Are you saying mothers milk is vegan? Some Countries ban the use of soy formulas for infants.
    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

    Mother's milk to made for babies, cows milk is intended for baby cows, goats milk is made for baby goats. That's histarical to say that ones child was not raised vegan because the child had breast milk. whew...thanks for the laugh!
  • :laugh:
    All the proof you need that we are designed to eat meat AS WELL AS plant matter, can be found in the mirror and in your gut. Look in the mirror. Notice your eyes are facing forward - an omnivorous/predatory trait. Open your mouth. Notice you have canines. Canines are designed for ripping flesh. You also have molars and premolars for grinding. In your digestive tract, you'll find specialised enzymes for both meat and plant matter.

    I don't see why either side gets so inflamed, but I do get frustrated by people trying to preach veganism to me. Same as I get frustrated by people preaching religion to me, or their political beliefs.

    I'd like to see you use your canines to rip open an animal with hide and all. Human's do not "rip flesh" we cook it, but it with a knife and chew it. ....sorry the canine thing just always makes me laugh.

    The people I spoke to were saying how our 'canines' resemble those of horses more than of actual carnivores.
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member

    Other studies show that it might not be a good idea to rear infants on a vegan diet...

    This is something a lot of people have a problem with. My mom said right in front of me and my sister that she thinks raising a child vegan is child abuse. I do plan to raise my children vegan in my home (as long as they are getting the proper nutrition) and they can choose to eat how they wish outside of my home. It's all about education, not imposing your morals and beliefs on someone else.

    Also, my sister asked me how she feels about me having to give my kids pureed meat when they're infants. I asked her what she thinks hunter gatherers gave their infants when processed pureed meat didn't exist.

    They probably fed their kids they Alicia Silverstone feeds hers.

    Seriously though, hunter gatherers were a lot more advanced than people realize. They could cook meat. They had tools. I'm sure there was a way to grind food. And if not, their babies probably breastfed longer than babies today do. They also get their first set of molars around 12 months old, so they can start eating a larger variety of foods.

    I've seen studies that looked at the brain size of adults who were raised on an omnivorous diet versus a vegetarian diet. The vegetarians had a smaller brain mass. Humans evolved so successfully because of the omnivorous diet.
  • Another thing I thought about was, what would happen if in the future everyone DID stop eating meat and animal products? Baring in mind something like 95-99% of the population eat animal produce, with an ever-expanding human population, where on earth would we find the room to cultivate and grow so much food?!
    Actually, it takes less resources and space to farm veggies than animals.

    But wouldn't we need a lot more foods if we only ate vegan stuff? Plus we wouldn't be breeding and slaughtering animals anymore so they might need more room to live.

    What? No.

    Plants > Cows > People

    Plants > People

    That is less food because the cows (or pigs or chicken) aren't eating any plants - you are cutting out the middle man essentially.

    And, if people aren't breeding animals then there would be LESS animals as the population is artificially inflated in order to provide food for people.

    The caloric content of vegetable matter is far lower, however, generally speaking. If we take salmon, 100g provides around 140 calories. 100g of carrots provides around 40 calories. Lean beef steak, around 120 calories for 100g. Broccoli, 34 calories per 100g. Sure there are higher calorie vegetables, like potatoes and parsnip, but they are so loaded with carbs it would throw everything else out of balance for me.

    So, yes, we would need more food by mass. It's also a very key reason why a vegan diet is something I would never undertake - the sheer amount of food I would need to eat, and mostly plant matter, would be enormous.

    This is exactly what I meant. Calorific content of veg is far lower (obviously except for the carbs, grains, nuts and seeds).
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
    :laugh:
    All the proof you need that we are designed to eat meat AS WELL AS plant matter, can be found in the mirror and in your gut. Look in the mirror. Notice your eyes are facing forward - an omnivorous/predatory trait. Open your mouth. Notice you have canines. Canines are designed for ripping flesh. You also have molars and premolars for grinding. In your digestive tract, you'll find specialised enzymes for both meat and plant matter.

    I don't see why either side gets so inflamed, but I do get frustrated by people trying to preach veganism to me. Same as I get frustrated by people preaching religion to me, or their political beliefs.

    I'd like to see you use your canines to rip open an animal with hide and all. Human's do not "rip flesh" we cook it, but it with a knife and chew it. ....sorry the canine thing just always makes me laugh.

    The people I spoke to were saying how our 'canines' resemble those of horses more than of actual carnivores.
    Well, I can't speak for anyone else but I have my steak still bleeding and my salmon smoked, not cooked. Our teeth becoming less effective is a direct result of developing the ability to cook, as is the deterioration of function of our appendix.
  • Vegans who push their ideals on me are like religious groups pushing their religion on me.

    Their unsolicited advice is telling me my body is going to Hell and my soul is apparently joining it in Hell as well.

    And yet my favorite restaurant is a Vegan restaurant.

    I normally get along with Vegans & Vegetarians, it is the hardcore granola types who are not successful in converting me entirely that are hard to get along with.

    Oh No!! You brought the Granola Line to this discussion!! LMAO!!
  • _VoV
    _VoV Posts: 1,494 Member
    I am not completely vegan, but nearly so. I see it as a kinder diet as compared to omnivorous diets which include animal products. Even more compassionate farming practices and slaughter wouldn't convince me to eat meat because you still have to kill animals to obtain their flesh. I'd rather eat plants and take a couple of drops of vitamin B12 once a week.

    The matter of whether the vegan diet is a human's natural and optimal diet? I just don't know, and really, I don't care. I'm practical about trying to influence people to do what I do. There needs to be a readiness component in place, just like approaching fitness and weight loss. I try to be helpful if people ask for advice, but that's it.

    All this said: I really wish people wouldn't challenge, mock or otherwise put veg*ns on the spot. When this happens, you can fully expect 'preachy' responses because...hey...you're asking for it.
  • I can definitely see it being a tiresome topic for a vegan, as there really aren't a lot of you around. So you're just subject to all sorts of short-sighted idiocy fomr people who just love to criticise anyone who doesn't do exactly the same as everyone else. What is sad is that you're probably right about them doing it on purpose, as they probably see your decision as being 'purposely awkward' or something.
    What the hell do you do when they've not cooked anything you can have?!
    And I didn't realise the leather industry didn't get their stuff as a by-product from the meat industry... wow.

    I have to make everything myself. Then get criticized for bringing too much food. I always make enough to share with everyone there, even though bf's mom tells everyone that I made it and no one should eat it. Seriously, it's ridiculous and childish. I make like 4-5 things, usually an appetizer, vegetable, protein (which I don't share), starch, and dessert. To me, it's impolite to invite someone over to their home and not have something for them to eat. If I know someone has a food allergy and I have them over, I always accomodate-- it's just the hospitable thing to do.

    See, I agree with you 100%.

    I would have absolutely no idea what to feed a vegan if I had one over. Lacto- or Ovo-vegetarian I can do. I'd probably end up saying 'Tell me what to cook'. But I'd damn well learn how to cook something that they could eat. Just like I do for my friend who's on a low-sodium diet, even though normally I put salt in everything.

    Also if I went to dinner at a vegan friend's house I'd eat what they served, smile, and say 'Thank you very much', unless it contained an ingredient I actively and strongly dislike, such as chocolate.

    I would embrace it and see it as something new and challenging to cook something vegan! Would definitely have to say 'tell me what to cook' though. Maybe get them over and see how it's done.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,222 Member
    Are you saying mothers milk is vegan? Some Countries ban the use of soy formulas for infants.
    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

    Mother's milk to made for babies, cows milk is intended for baby cows, goats milk is made for baby goats. That's histarical to say that ones child was not raised vegan because the child had breast milk. whew...thanks for the laugh!
    Just clarrifying, Some vegans are feeding babies soy formula. lol
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,810 Member
    Another thing I thought about was, what would happen if in the future everyone DID stop eating meat and animal products? Baring in mind something like 95-99% of the population eat animal produce, with an ever-expanding human population, where on earth would we find the room to cultivate and grow so much food?!
    Actually, it takes less resources and space to farm veggies than animals.

    But wouldn't we need a lot more foods if we only ate vegan stuff? Plus we wouldn't be breeding and slaughtering animals anymore so they might need more room to live.

    There wouldn't be nearly as many animals because they wouldn't be bred to slaughter. Also, with the rest of the animals... the ecosystem is built to sustain itself, so there wouldn't be a takeover of any particular animal-- the exception might be deer (if you live in PA, you know).

    Haha the deer here are ridiculous too (TX). In my mom's neighborhood they actually have to somehow wrangle some of the deer into a small area and transport them to a less populated area because they're SO overpopulated. People are constantly hitting them with their cars (on accident, usually at night) and they destroy people's yards/gardens. Plus they're so used to all the people around they will stand right in front of your door and block your way. Just giving you a look like "I'm a deer, I don't care." I love going to her house during springtime though to see all the babies :)
  • WhitneyAnnabelle
    WhitneyAnnabelle Posts: 724 Member
    the main argument is this: ONLY animal based foods contain vitamin B12. B12 deficiency is one of the leading causes of dementia in elderly adults and is one of the key "brain foods" we consume. you can supplement it, sure, but i'm just sayin'.

    Ever heard of things like nutritional yeast?

    There's no point in arguing over any of this. I'm vegan, and I can't stand the idea of judging people because of what they eat. To each their own. If I don't give a damn about your meat consumption, you shouldn't give a damn about my kale consumption.
  • realme56
    realme56 Posts: 1,093 Member
    I can definitely see it being a tiresome topic for a vegan, as there really aren't a lot of you around. So you're just subject to all sorts of short-sighted idiocy fomr people who just love to criticise anyone who doesn't do exactly the same as everyone else. What is sad is that you're probably right about them doing it on purpose, as they probably see your decision as being 'purposely awkward' or something.
    What the hell do you do when they've not cooked anything you can have?!
    And I didn't realise the leather industry didn't get their stuff as a by-product from the meat industry... wow.

    I have to make everything myself. Then get criticized for bringing too much food. I always make enough to share with everyone there, even though bf's mom tells everyone that I made it and no one should eat it. Seriously, it's ridiculous and childish. I make like 4-5 things, usually an appetizer, vegetable, protein (which I don't share), starch, and dessert. To me, it's impolite to invite someone over to their home and not have something for them to eat. If I know someone has a food allergy and I have them over, I always accomodate-- it's just the hospitable thing to do.

    She tells people not to eat it?! Ouch. That's just seriously ridiculous and childish behaviour. I mean, firstly I'd accommodate for a vegan if they were coming to dinner, and secondly i'd be so touched and delighted that they'd made their own stuff to share!

    She goes to the extent of not even putting the food out on the table or heating it up, while everything else is piping hot from the oven. Thanks for your support!

    You have your hands full with her, I take it bf is not like mom!
  • Rhea30
    Rhea30 Posts: 625 Member
    I had an argument with some people recently about the way vegans/vegetarians and meat eaters view each other. A girl had posted a long list of 'stupid stuff meat eaters say', which included a lot of arguments for why people can and do eat meat. While I, after a lot of thinking, can see their side of the argument, they refuse to accept that meat eating is a choice and that 'there is no excuse for it'. She would list lots of research which has shown why we don't need meat, why we're not designed for digesting it, the vegan foods that contain more iron etc than meat, how meat is only bad for our health, etc. etc. These people I spoke to would also go on to say that meat eaters are angry towards vegetarians and vegans because we 'can't accept the truth', whereas it's their forceful opinion and absolute certainty that they are right that annoys me. Surely there are benefits to eating meat? Otherwise 95% of the population wouldn't' be eating it.
    While I agree that the way we harvest meat is unethical, I personally wouldn't stop eating it simply because I like eating meat and fish.

    I'd like to hear what other meat eaters / vegans have to say about this argument. I'm also wondering if there really ARE any actual benefits of meat that we truly can't get from anything else.

    Whoever told you that we are not design to eat meat gave you some very wrong information. We're omnivorous and built where we can digest meat, you can't go sticking us out on grass like a herbivore and expect us to get our nutrition. We're not able to break down cellulose like herbivores can.

    Also when it comes to their ethical stance on farming, a lot of it is hyped up and propaganda for their agenda. They'll find a bad case (or sometimes even make up the case) and generalize it as this is what all farming does which isn't case. Farms do not want their animals mistreated because it'll bring the quality down of the product that the animal produces or they simply just don't understand the animal itself (they tend to generalize all animals together instead of knowing about the species).
    Its a lot easier to meet protein requirements and certain essential vitamins with meat or animal by products, it only becomes a problem when we over eat but you can overeat anything.
  • I am not completely vegan, but nearly so. I see it as a kinder diet as compared to omnivorous diets which include animal products. Even more compassionate farming practices and slaughter wouldn't convince me to eat meat because you still have to kill animals to obtain their flesh. I'd rather eat plants and take a couple of drops of vitamin B12 once a week.

    The matter of whether the vegan diet is a human's natural and optimal diet? I just don't know, and really, I don't care. I'm practical about trying to influence people to do what I do. There needs to be a readiness component in place, just like approaching fitness and weight loss. I try to be helpful if people ask for advice, but that's it.

    All this said: I really wish people wouldn't challenge, mock or otherwise put veg*ns on the spot. When this happens, you can fully expect 'preachy' responses because...hey...you're asking for it.

    Perfectly reasonable. Mocking just shouldn't happen anywhere.
  • hallie_b
    hallie_b Posts: 175 Member
    Another thing I thought about was, what would happen if in the future everyone DID stop eating meat and animal products? Baring in mind something like 95-99% of the population eat animal produce, with an ever-expanding human population, where on earth would we find the room to cultivate and grow so much food?!
    Actually, it takes less resources and space to farm veggies than animals.

    But wouldn't we need a lot more foods if we only ate vegan stuff? Plus we wouldn't be breeding and slaughtering animals anymore so they might need more room to live.
    I'm not sure what you mean by "a lot more foods" .

    If you want to know more about how types of farming impact resources, this is a good article I used for an environmental sciences course:
    http://www.ajcn.org/content/78/3/660S.full

    I have a lot of research about this particular topic but, I don't think you really want to read ALL the boring crap I had to in order to write my thesis statement. Heck, I didn't really want to read it either.
  • DannyMussels
    DannyMussels Posts: 1,842 Member
    My only opinion is google the stuff people use/encounter every day.

    If you're not eating food to help/save animals, realize about 100 things you interact with daily somehow derive themselves from animals or animal parts.

    Paints, glosses, candy, tires, instruments, glue , cleaning products clothing, plastics, etc.

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    You gotta go old-school, buy an island and sustain yourself if you wanna avoid killing animals. I read a yahoo article about some guy who did this for 40yrs.