When Eating Meat is Simpler, Why Become a Vegetarian?
Author: PaulaBenson Total views: 12 Word Count: 595
If there's one thing that new vegetarians are asked time and time again, it's "why be a vegetarian?" The motivation for taking meat out of your diet may be confusing for some people, especially if they aren't familiar with the wealth of delicious food available to vegetarians.
A lot of vegetarians feel that they have to defend their position when asked "why be a vegetarian?" This question can sometimes feel almost like an attack on vegetarianism, but most people who ask are genuinely curious as to the motivations behind being a vegetarian.
Meat is Very Inexpensive and Tasty, So Why be a Vegetarian When it is So Expensive?
One of the arguments made against vegetarianism is that it takes a lot of work and thought. At first glance, it may seem that vegetarians put a lot more work into their diet than meat eaters, but the truth is that they are usually just more careful with their diet and do everything they can to ensure that they are getting balanced nutrition.
A common misconception about vegetarianism is that it's more expensive to eat foods to take the place of meats. While it's true that pre-made packaged meat substitutes can be quite expensive, vegetarian food can be found in bulk for very little money. Vegetarian staples like rice, oats, beans, and pasta are very inexpensive.
The cost is a little higher when you factor in fresh fruits and vegetables, however it is commonly accepted that we could all benefit from more fruits and vegetables in our diets. Vegetarians typically do not consume much more in the way of fruits and vegetables than the recommended amounts for the general, meat eating, public.
If the amount of resources needed to produce crops and meat are taken into account, it will be seen that it is less expensive to produce plant foods. The artificially low priced meat available in the supermarket and in restaurants are the products of the subsidies provided by the government to the farmers in the form of payments to encourage meat production.
Why Be a Vegetarian When Humans Were Meant to Eat Meat?
While many meat eaters make the argument that humans weren't made to live without meat in their diets, there is actually plenty of biological evidence to the contrary. Our bodies more closely resemble the physiology of herbivores than carnivores: our digestive system shows that our optimal food is plant matter, not meat.
Eating meat in the long-term may cause many health related problems, even though the human body has the capability to digest meat. Some of the side effects of eating meat are high cholesterol, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and osteoporosis. Although occasionally consuming meat not seem to significantly increase our risk for these serious illnesses; the typical American diet, however, contains so much meat that are bodies are basically poisoned by it. Were we designed to be meat eaters? The evidence seems to support that humans were not evolved to eat meat.
Why Become a Vegetarian? Why Can't You Become One?
There are even more reasons to be vegetarian, but the most compelling reason is the one that resonates with you personally. Being a vegetarian means that you are removing your support from an industry that produces more waste than all other American industries combined. You are standing up in favor of a healthy life and healthy planet, and you are doing a good turn for animal rights. Being a vegetarian comes with many, many benefits for your physical, emotional, and financial well-being - and no detrimental effects to any of these.
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For information about vegetarian diet go to Paula Benson's website on vegetarian lifestyle
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