People choose to become vegetarian for a number of reasons, including; health benefits, humane treatment of animal issues, and even religious beliefs. Sometimes people choose to become vegetarian after seeing an animal being butchered (either in person or in a video) and watching the animal die makes them unwilling to be even remotely responsible for any animals’ deaths (Kim, 2010).
Those who are against livestock (meat) production claim that it causes a number of extremely serious problems. According to supporters of the vegetarian diet, “the mass consumption of animals is a primary reason why humans are hungry, fat, or sick and is a leading cause of the depletion and pollution of waterways, the degradation and deforestation of the land, the extinction of species, and the warming of the planet,” (Henning, 2011). On the other hand, vegetarianism does have some drawbacks. It can cause health problems, and the effects of one person becoming vegetarian are not that significant.
Environmental Consequences of Meat Production
Eating a vegetarian diet could be considered good for the environment. For one, meat animals eat a considerable amount of plants that have to be grown. Velayanikal (2013) states, “You have to feed an animal 12 kg of food grains for half-a-kilo meat. Precious rainforest are being cut down to grow grains to feed the meat industry. The actual cost of one hamburger is $200, and we get it for less than $2,” (p 1).
Livestock, such as sheep and cows, also contribute to rising levels of greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide (Tuffrey, 2013). Additionally, “70 per cent of all agricultural land, just under a third of the earth's entire land surface, is used for rearing farm animals,” (Tuffrey, 2013). Farm animals also drink a lot of fresh water that could be used by humans for drinking, cooking, and bathing.
Animals as Livestock
Many people feel that animals have rights, just like humans have rights. Animals are killed to make meat for people to eat and some vegetarians think that killing those animals is a violation of their rights (Velayanikal, 2013). How the animals are kept and treated before they’re killed could also be considered a violation of the animals’ rights. Before they’re slaughtered for food, animals may be kept in cramped, uncomfortable cages and frightening conditions. The animals may be kept in poor ventilation and unclean spaces (Henning, 2011).
Health Benefits
Some people believe that a diet based on plants, instead of on meat, is healthier. According to Velayanikal (2013), diseases and conditions such as obesity, cancer, and diabetes are caused from unhealthy, meat-based diets (p 1).
Because they’re kept in cramped and dirty spaces, livestock are often put on antibiotics. These antibiotics are transferred to the people who eat the meat. It can make the people resistant to antibiotics, which can be a problem. If the get sick and their doctor prescribe antibiotics, it might not work for them (Henning, 2011). Refraining from eating meat ensures that the vegetarian does not develop a meat-based antibiotic resistance.
Potential Drawbacks of Vegetarianism
One person choosing to become a vegetarian may not have a big effect on the environment or on animal rights issues. A person can become vegetarian and it will not have huge consequences, meaning that animals will still be killed and animal farms will still harm the environment. Millions of additional people will have to choose to become vegetarians in order for there to be an effect.
A vegetarian diet isn’t always the best for everyone’s health. Sometimes, vegetarians experience health problems due to nutritional deficiencies. Because of this, some doctors recommend that vegetarians eat small amounts of meat in order to maintain health (Kim, 2010).
Having a doctor recommend that they eat meat can be a confusing moment for vegetarians; they might questions their beliefs that the vegetarian diet is good for their health. They may feel bad for the animals that they were protecting by refusing to eat meat (Kim, 2010).
Conclusion
There are many different kinds of vegetarians and they choose to become vegetarians for a number of reasons. For example, vegans don’t eat animal products and lacto-ovo-vegetarians drink milk and eat eggs (Vegetarianism, 2014). Whatever flavor of vegetarian, there are definitely some drawbacks to the lifestyle choice, including potential health issues.
Perhaps some of these problems can be solved by people becoming part time vegetarians (Harper, 2006). Part time vegetarians eat some meatless meals (or meatless days) and then they eat meat on other days. This helps them keep the nutritional value of eating meat while incorporating the benefits of a meatless diet. This also reduces the amount of animals killed for meat and lowers the environmental impact.
References
Harper, R. (2006). Part-Time Vegetarians Are Opportunity for Produce Marketers. SN: Supermarket News, 54(43), 44-46.
Henning, B. G. (2011). Standing in Livestock's 'Long Shadow': the ethics of eating meat on a small planet. Ethics & the Environment, 16(2), 63+.
Kim, B. (2010). A Strict Vegetarian Diet Is Unhealthy for Most People. In D. A. Miller, Current Controversies. Vegetarianism. Detroit: Greenhaven Press. (Reprinted from Don't Let Philosophy Become More Important Than What Works, Chet Day's Health & Beyond, n.d.)
Tuffrey, L. (2013). People Must Eat Less Meat. In D. A. Miller (Ed.), Current Controversies. Factory Farming. Detroit: Greenhaven Press. (Reprinted from Can Becoming a Vegetarian Help Save the Planet?, www.theecologist.org, 2012)
Vegetarianism. (2014). In Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit: Gale.
Velayanikal, M. (2013). A Plant-Based Diet Is Healthier than the Standard Western Diet. In S. C. Hunnicutt (Ed.), At Issue. Is the Western Diet Making the World Sick?. Detroit: Greenhaven Press.
