Meat eater, vegetarian or vegan?? Which are you?

Interestingly, in some of the traditional cuisines of China and India, women do not eat meat (among those cuisines that include meat--and a surprising number of them do). Men do not seem to fare as well on a diet that excludes meat, fish, or eggs. There are those men who seem to thrive on vegan diets, but vegan male athletes seem to eat enormous amounts of food in order to meet their protein requirements which begets the question of: This benefits the environment, how?

When people don't pay attention to their nutrient intake, it's easy for them to come consistently under in protein, vitamins and minerals - whether they eat animal products or not. Protein is not difficult to get from a plant-based diet, you just need to do your research.

In regard to the environment - a vegan athlete consuming a large amount of food will ultimately consume less resources than an athlete who consumes large amounts of meat, eggs and dairy, as we factor in not only the plant matter that the athlete himself eats, but also the resources that it takes to get the meat, eggs and dairy to his plate.

"...When people don't pay attention to their nutrient intake, it's easy for them to come consistently under in protein, vitamins and minerals - whether they eat animal products or not. Protein is not difficult to get from a plant-based diet, you just need to do your research..."

And that's just the problem, isn't it? How many people have the knowledge to combine vegetable proteins to get the proper mix of proteins to make complete proteins? Nature has conveniently provided complete proteins in animal sourced protein. There is the additional problem of exclusively plant-based diets containing large amounts of phytic acid and that phytic acid interferes with mineral absorption. The minerals in animal products are very bioavailable.

"...In regard to the environment - a vegan athlete consuming a large amount of food will ultimately consume less resources than an athlete who consumes large amounts of meat, eggs and dairy, as we factor in not only the plant matter that the athlete himself eats, but also the resources that it takes to get the meat, eggs and dairy to his plate..."

I wouldn't be so quick to assert that. Grazing animals are often raised on marginal farm land or land that is otherwise simply not suitable for crop growing. Animals are grazed on land in areas with growing seasons that are too short for most crops or even on semi-desert land. When you account for the fact that crop-growing requires prime farm land, the draining of aquifers and LOTS of chemicals to make raising them efficient, it is not at all clear that what you have said is anything other than vegan propaganda. There is also the problem of monoculture of crops that could lead to dire circumstances one day--especially when combined with the cultivation of genetically modified plants.