To Eat Meat or Not to Eat Meat

Enilse Valduga Leite

Feb 10, 2011

San Diego University For Integrative Studies - Writing Skills & Research

To Eat Meat or not To Eat Meat

There are many controversies regarding eating animals, such as health reasons, animal rights and environmental ethics. When you look at the differences between herbivores and humans, humans resemble herbivores much more than we resemble meat-eating animals. Both drink water, but do not not lap it up with their tongues. Both need vitamin C in their diets (carnivores create it internally), and extensively chew their food, whereas swallowing food whole is the preferred method of both carnivores and omnivores. Humans are clearly not designed to ingest and digest meat, due to the absence of claws and sharp front teeth in humans, as compared to meat-eating animals. Most people eat animals because they want to, not as a survival instinct. These animals are subjected to torture, the environment is being damaged unnecessarily, and we are subjected to a greater risk of disease due to the consumption of animal products. All to satisfy a desire, not a need. Eating meat is not part of a healthy lifestyle because it can be harmful to your body and to your health. There are some benefits to eating meat. Meat provides many micronutrients that our bodies need, including B Vitamins, Protein, Calcium, Vitamin A and Iron which are beneficial for healthy eyes, skin and hair. Anemia, memory loss and a weaker immune system are possible if there is a deficiency of B Vitamins which enhance the functioning of the nervous system and liver. Meat and some dairy products are considered the main source of Vitamin B12. Minerals such as Iron and Zinc are also present in meat. Iron strengthens your immune system, while Zinc controls the process of regeneration It is essential for immune system function and can combat the effects of premature aging due to its anti-inflammatory properties and particularly in healing from afflictions like acne and eczema. When these Vitamins are taken in supplement form, our bodies do not absorb all that it needs and rely instead on food consumed as a source of these micronutrients. Several studies have, in fact, shown that only six percent of our caloric intake must consist of protein. Red meat is an easy source of complete protein. Protein is essential to the human diet not only because it provides energy, but also because it is critical to the growth and repair of all of the cells in the human body. Vegetarians are less likely to get cancer by 25 to 50 percent. (The Physicians Commitee for Responsible Medicine - PCRM, Washington DC). A vegetarian diet can prevent 97% of coronary occlusions.( The Journal of the American Medical Association, l96l). Dr. Judyth Reichenber-Ullman ND, MSW, a licensed naturopathic physician board certified in homeopathic medicine, tells us that studies have shown that too much protein in our diet causes a loss of bone calcium. Meat eaters generally get far more protein than their bodies can process. Studies on osteoporosis in post-menopausal women indicate that a low protein intake, as is common in Asia, is better insurance against bone decalcification than calcium supplementation, lowering the risk of osteoporosis. People with a high meat, high fat diet have been shown to be at a much greater risk for colon cancer than vegetarians or those who limit the amount of meat they consume. Bovine growth hormones (BGH) reduce a cow's body fat, thereby releasing toxins previously stored in fat cells. These toxins include heavy metals, dioxin, and other pesticides. These growth factors may cause premature growth and other abnormalities in infants. In addition to hormones, antibiotics are regularly given to animals to prevent contagious diseases. These antibiotics end up in meat and dairy products which can affect microorganisms in the intestinal tract. Meat contains pesticides and other chemicals up to 14 times more concentrated than those in plant foods. Half of all antibiotics used in the United States are used in farm animals and 90% of those are not used to treat infections but are instead used as growth promoters. ( Dr. Judith Reichenber-Ullman, ND, MSW) According to Wikipedia, "Animal rights", is the idea that the most basic interests of non-human animals should be afforded the same consideration as the similar interests of human beings." The first animal protection group in the United States was the American Society for the prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), founded by Henry Bergh in April 1866. He created a "Declaration of the Rights of Animals"." Most of these animals live on over-crowded factory farms and spend their short lives in ammonia-filled conditions. They are tortured and treated like machines, pumped up with drugs, fed their own waste and forced to grow or produce as fast as possible. Factory farming refers to raising livestock in confinement where a farm operates as a factory. Confinement at high stocking density requires antibiotics and pesticides to mitigate the spread of disease and pestilence caused by these crowded living conditions. The aim of the operation is to produce as much meat or milk at the lowest possible cost.