First, Let's Talk About That Question
Okay. Seeing that I'm the author of a book called THE SHAMELESS CARNIVORE, you might be inclined to think that I'm a rabid meat-devouring proselytizer of tasty, delicious animal death, and to hell with vegetarians and their whiny, self-righteous moral imperialism. And you'd only be mostly wrong.
Truth is, as much as I'm passionate about all things meaty and delicious in this world, I take the subject damned seriously, and I'm an ardent supporter of discerning, temperate, conscientious meat-eating. So when I get into a debate about being a flesh-eater, I like to do so in a measured, rational way, because, let's face it: our dietary choices are rife with philosophical and ethical nuances that have been debated for thousands of years (Pythagoras, for example, felt that eating beans was just horrible). It's complicated stuff, and for the intelligent, open-minded and logically rigorous, there are rarely any easy answers.
That said, let's take a closer look at the question at hand. It's pretty vague. Firstly, which vegetarians are we talking about here? And who, exactly, are they "healthier" than? Are vegans healthier than ovo vegetarians, or lacto vegetarians, or ovo-lacto vegetarians? Are vegetarians healthier than people who eat meat four times a year, or four times a day? Red meat-eaters, or fans of fish and foul? Hunters, or consumers of mechanically separated, processed supermarket meats made from cows that were pumped full of antibiotics and growth hormones? And what, exactly, does "healthier" mean? In any decent debate, you have to define your terms. So this is pretty tricky. Unless we know exactly who and what we're talking about, it's difficult to come to any conclusion. Hence, I'm compelled to say "No." It's just too ambiguous to affirm.
But I'm only getting started...
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Putting aside ethical concerns, the question "Are vegetarians healthier?" really is the problem with this whole debate. The problem is that there are too many confounding variables to know the answer without good scientific study. And, as of yet, I haven't seen any good scientific studies on the issue. I'm not saying they're not out there, I just haven't been able to find them. (I'm getting my Ph.D. in experimental psychology.) Maybe vegetarians are healthier than non-vegetarians, but is it because they are vegetarians or because of some other variable related to vegetarianism? For instance, do vegetarians eat more fruits/vegetables? Do they exercise more? Do they eat more whole grains? Do they generally care more about their health? To answer these questions, we need to compare vegetarians to non-vegetarians who are matched up on all of the above criteria. It's important that people understand that this is really not a simple question that can be answered with a yes or no.
Two of my 5 granddaughters are vegetarians . They were propagandized by a teacher to adopt vegetarianism. Actually the teacher is rumored to be a male math teacher- it is well that I don't know him.
I say that because the younger of the two, who adopted the idea emulating the older one nearly died as a result of her choice.
You might view this as the life threatening period was anexoria but I strongly feel that the limitation
of choices available and lack of flavor of the meatless diet made it easier to not desire to eat.
She was hospitalized and treated. She was educated on what harm she was doing to her body from depriving it from nourishment.
She did survive and yesterday graduated college as valedectorian.
I wouldn't have bet on her living. It has pained me to hug that frail body.
Like I said it is well that I do not know the teacher that is causing this in evangelizing his bizzare "religion" of vegetarianism.
It is pathetic to see what little she eats and how many choices that are available to omnivores she bypasses.
Hal 84
Excuse me, but I have been a strict vegetarian for over three years and a strict vegan for over three months. I am twelve years old and extremely healthy. Were her parents supportive of her new diet? There are so many good options of veg food out there - ever heard of Boca Burgers? - but if her parents refused to buy her vegetarian food, of course their is no way that she could be healthy. No one can live off of fruits and vegetables alone. That's not a vegetarian diet and it's not healthy for anyone.
I had trouble logging on but finally-
She had very good support from her mother of her diet choice. Her mother will bring a vegetarian dish to gatherings of extended family.
She has a very flimsy bone structure. If or when she gets pregnant that is not an ideal body for nurturing a new life!
It is pathetic to see what she puts on her plate- I have no idea how anyone can survive on that!
My own personal diet does not have a lot of meat in it. I don't find many restaurant meals to have near enough vegetables available to suit me. At home my evening meal starts with half of a family salad bowl of salad. Much of this comes from my home garden and greenhouse.
What is bad about most people's diets is the nutrition poor pastas, breads and fried foods.
Meats are actually concentrated. Meat animals eat carbohydrates and proteins and vitamins and concentrate these into their flesh, taking up to 8# of food intake per pound of gain.
Since our digestive systems work well for both meat and vegetable intake I intend to continue to eat a reasonable amount of meat.
How does a vegetarian celebrate Christmas or thanksgiving. Every thanksgiving I am thankful to not be a vegetarian!
Hal 84
It sounds like your granddaughter was sick because she ate very little and not a wide variety of foods. If she was educated on proper nutrition, she would've been much healthier. I eat even less animal products than your granddaughter did - no meat, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy, or honey - and I have no health problems at all. That's because I don't starve myself as it seems that your granddaughter was doing and I eat many different fruits, vegetables, and grains to make sure that I get all of my vitamins and minerals.
You're right. Our digestive systems work for both meat and vegetables. That means we can either be omnivores or vegetarians and we can use our morals to decide what we eat. Should we kill something that can feel pain when we don't need to?
No one is forcing you to be a vegetarian, but you should be a bit more open-minded about other people's choices.
>Should we kill something that can feel pain when we don't need to?
Apparently you give no consideration to the fact that animals raised for meat consumption would have no life otherwise. Meat animals are kept comfortable, protected from weather extremes and provided with the very best of diet.
When meat animal production was on a smaller scale the animals received individual petting and back scratching, and were often individually known by name. Of course there was no question as to the eventual slaughtering for meat. It was as certain as death will be for you or myself!
At the funeral of a neighboring farmer who had milked a few cows and raised hogs for income the priest remarked "And he loved his pigs" !
In the waters the largest fish eat smaller fish,which eat smaller fish.
Consider what happens to the soybean plant. It grows and matures seed. Along comes a giant machine. Steel reciprocating knives slice of the plant a few inches above the ground. The plant is crowded along with other plants into a steel drum with rough steel bars which literally forces the tiny seeds to be separated from the pods. The beans are elevated into a collecting hopper by steel bladed augers. They will get dumped augered, eventually processed with grinding and heat and maybe fermentation.
Did the carrot you ate yesterday really want to be removed from the ground without reaching its reproductive stage?
The most sustainable type of farming would be what existed near a century ago with every farm having an assortment of livestock, raising their food from the land, and using the animal manure for maintaining fertility. Mechanization and economic forces have made farming more specialized.
It is usually suggested that as third world countries improve their wealth their diets tend to include more meat- because they can afford it. The meat gets produce because it adds to the farmers income. Economic forces play a big role.
Hal 84
Please watch this movie about factory farms: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIjanhKqVC4
Farms aren't like that any more. They are absolute torture for animals. I think that I would prefer never being born to living in a farm and then killed for food.
Plants and animals are completely different. Carrots and soybeans do not have brains, nervous systems, or pain receptors, so they can't feel or think like animals can.
You're right, meat is easier to produce, but America isn't a third world country, is it?
>Farms aren't like that any more. They are absolute torture for animals.
I must seriously challenge that statement!
If meat animals were released they many would die- especially in winter and in cooler climstes.
Some are suggesting that cattle must be grass fed- yet grass is only available half the year. To ensure survival grains must be produced and "roughage" (essential dried and processed {baled or chopped} hay be provided. Part of the feed supply may come from "silage" which is hay , corn whole plant or other materials placed in a near airtight container in which it ferments a bit which enhances its keeping quality. In many cases the winter diet is feed the whole year through because it is consistent and predictable.
Back to the quote. Since I have not been commissioned an inspector of farms, I speak from what knowledge I have of livestock farming. I had a dairy far until the first 1/3 of my life.
The only cases where someone has been prosecuted for animal neglect have been "hobby farms" (usually many horses and some other assorted livestock.
It is completely unprofitable for anyone raising meat animals to mistreat, starve, or in any way mistreat the animals.
To a great extent a livestock farm is the equivalent of the six star all inclusive.
Hal 84
I've never actually been to a six-star all-inclusive that you are comparing a farm to, so I really can't say this for sure, but in a hotel you aren't...
...crammed into a tiny stall filled with manure that you can't turn around in.
...branded and castrated without any painkillers.
...injected with chemicals to make you get fatter.
...suffering from chronic respiratory problems from breathing the air and chronic digestive problems from eating the food.
...shipped across states to the slaughterhouse, exposed to the weather and probably dying on the way.
...slaughtered, if you are still alive by this point, by being skinned alive and having your throat slit while you are still conscious.
Just saying. Have I made my point yet? I have just described your average American farm that raises cows for their meat.
In general, currently, people who choose to go vegetarian or vegan (when they have the choice) are healthier than people who choose to eat meat.
Inspirational video:
http://www.nonviolenceunited.org/veganvideo.html