Neither vegans nor vegetarians eat meat. However, while vegetarians tend to consume dairy products and eggs, a vegan avoids all animal products, including eggs and dairy, and often inedible animal-based products, such as leather, wool, and silk. Vegetarianism is usually a diet, while veganism is a lifestyle. Vegetarians often choose their diet based on its reported health benefits or for religious or political reasons. In general, vegans have much stronger political beliefs regarding their diet, with some believing animals should be protected under many of the same laws that humans are.
The American Vegan Society defines veganism as living solely on plant products, which excludes any type of flesh, fish, fowl, animal milk, dairy products, eggs, honey, and all other foods of animal origin (Stepaniak 19). There has been much debate about whether or not a vegan diet is a healthy way to live. Many argue that meat is necessary to get nutrients that are hard to find in other food sources. However, the negative effects, such as obesity and high cholesterol, found in animal product diets highly outweigh the few amounts of possible negative effects of a vegan diet. The vegan diet is beneficial for animals, human health, the environment, and ultimately the best diet for the world.
There are many “ranchers in the Dakota Beef program [that] are pioneers in the organic food movement and have been advocates of the need to treat cattle humanely, to reduce stress and to improve the quality of the beef they produce” (The Nibble). This illustrates how the Dakota Beef Company employees treat their cows nicely and when they kill them, they kill the cows as humanely as possible. According to the workers, this improves the quality of the beef because it reduces the stress the cows have in living in horrible conditions. The company advertises that they never use hormones, antibiotics, or any harmful chemicals “and [they] believe in the importance of sustainable farming, respecting the land and animals, to provide healthy food for [people’s families]” (Dakota Beef Company). Dakota Beef Company’s cows are all organic because they did not add any hormones, antibiotics, or any harmful chemicals to them.
Pollan is referring to the fact that many beef consumers willingly choose to ignore and not think about how their meat has been made and what is actually in it. Consumers choose not to think about how the cattle were injected with slow time releasing hormones and fed antibiotics because they cannot handle their new diet of corn. The fact that seventy eight percent of the beef produced has been in contact with feces is just pushed aside. When Taco Bell customers eat a beef burrito they are not concerned with the truth, they do not care that thirty five percent of the meat is actually beef, and that the other sixty five percent is fillers and artificial flavoring. Beef consumers have an uninformed idea that all the beef they are eating is pure and healthy for you.
What is considered edible or even a delicacy in some parts of the world might be considered inedible in other parts. The values or beliefs a society gives to potential food items defines what families within a cultural group will eat. For example, both plant and animal sources may contribute to meeting nutritional requirements for protein; soybeans, beef, horsemeat, and dog meat are all adequate protein sources. Yet, due to the symbolism attached to these protein sources, they are not eaten in all societies. Moreover, even when the foods believed to be undesirable are available, they are not likely to be eaten by people who have a strong emotional reaction against the food item.
Lane avoided this argument altogether and only presented the vegetarian argument without addressing any counter arguments. Though vegetarianism offers various benefits, it is a lifestyle choice that one should be free of discrimination to accept or to
The individual may have specific dietary needs, (e.g. they are a diabetic therefore sugary foods needs to be limited) or foods that should be avoided (e.g. they have allergies to food so therefore should not consume these). Their choices could also be influenced by their cultural or religious beliefs (e.g. they may be a vegetarian so meat will not be eaten or they are a Muslim therefore they will not eat any Pork).
Vegetarian diets for babies. A vegetarian diet is a combination of meals that excludes either part or all animal products. Animal products are a major source of proteins. Questions arise as to whether a vegetarian will be able to get an equivalent of proteins from other food apart from meat (or other animal products). When preparing a vegetarian diet for babies, care should be taken because the end result may be a deficiency in proteins and vitamins.
1. Debriefing Sarah’s experience in her host family would require Sarah to acknowledge her failure to adapt her new context. A) While mentioning she was vegetarian, she should have tried not to impose her difference, but to see how her specificities could have fit the context. Mexican culture avoids uncertainty, and therefore has highly rigid norms and belief. This implies that the family might not have understood the importance of vegetarianism, since it wasn’t part of the family practices.
Benefits of being veg*etarian*. The most common reason that Americans choose not to eat meat is to improve their health, the second most popular reason is the desire to avoid the hormones and other additives in animal products, a more specific health consideration. Vegetarianism certainly has health benefits, although there are disadvantages to going vegetarian like lack of B-12, vitamin D, Iron, Zinc and Calcium. *Conclusion*. Our culture and our obsession for the American meal to include meat and dairy products hasus killing ourselves.