Clear Vision Trust

The benefits of vegetarianism

benefits for the world

Giving up meat means that fewer animals will die, and fewer animals will be reared in the appalling conditions we have looked at. Just by changing your diet you will ensure that there is less suffering in the world. However, the benefits of becoming vegetarian go much further than that. In adopting a vegetarian diet you will have a real impact on the planet in many ways.

We live in a time of unparalleled crisis, with growing environmental problems which some believe may threaten the very existence of our planet. Raising animals for food causes many of those problems, which are therefore avoidable.

Farming animals is intensely wasteful of resources. It has been estimated that 500g of steak from intensively-reared animals consumes 2.5kg of grain, 10,000 litres of water, the energy equivalent of four litres of petrol, and about 16kg of topsoil (footnote 32). Intensive beef production is very wasteful of fossil fuels. In America, intensively-reared beef consumes 33 calories of fossil fuel energy for every calorie of food energy it produces (footnote 33). This short-sighted squandering of the planet's resources is simply not sustainable.

It takes 10kg of plant protein to produce 1kg of animal protein. If a field is capable of producing 10 tonnes of soya beans, we can do two things with it. We can feed humans with the soya beans or we can feed the soya beans to cattle. If we do the latter we effectively lose 90 per cent of the protein and energy value of the original crop, which means we use 10 times more land than is necessary.

Because rearing animals is intrinsically wasteful of land, the demand for ever more farmland has resulted in the loss of more and more of our wilderness areas. We have ripped out hedgerows, felled forests, and drained marshes in order to produce more grazing land for animals. More than 25 per cent of the forests of Central America and 40 million hectares of the Amazon jungle have been cleared for beef production (footnote 34). In the case of the rainforests these natural areas will never recover. Deserts all over the world are expanding as overgrazing leads to depletion of the soil in marginal areas. Our forests produce the very oxygen we breathe, yet we are destroying them in order to make beefburgers.

We are all aware now of the threat of global warming brought about by the build-up of 'greenhouse gases', which trap the sun's warmth in the atmosphere, leading to a rise in global temperatures. We may not be aware that cattle and sheep produce large quantities of methane, which is a greenhouse gas. Farm animals probably produce around 20 per cent of the 400 million tonnes of this gas that is produced every year worldwide (footnote 35). Since global warming may be one of the greatest dangers to the future of our species, a reduction in the numbers of farm animals will help reduce that threat.

Farming animals also produces large amounts of sewage which frequently contaminates aquatic environments (footnote 36). The raised level of nutrients in the water leads to the rapid growth of algae and the death of fish (footnote 37). The pollution of lakes and rivers can have devastating effects, harming human health and livelihoods and impoverishing our environment.

With fewer people eating meat these pressures will lessen and the effects may even be reversed. With more of the population becoming vegetarian we may be able to allow land presently under cultivation to return to wilderness - with more forests, swamps, and moorlands for future generations to thank us for. With more farmland being freed up there is enormous potential for cultivating biomass fuels - plants grown for fuel - which make a zero net contribution to global warming. By adopting a vegetarian diet we will help support a more sustainable world for future generations.

However, perhaps the most worrying side-effect of agricultural activity on humans is the emergence of new disease-causing organisms. According to one authority,

'by far the most potentially destructive effect...is the evolution of pathogens with mass destruction potential when they are transferred to their final host: man. This could produce epidemics paralleled only by the plagues associated with the increase in the population density in the Middle Ages and Victorian epochs.' (footnote 38)

It's worth contemplating that the medieval plagues wiped out between a third and a half of the population of Europe. The unidentified pathogen that causes bse in animals and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans is only one of the latest of these diseases - and we don't yet know how extensive that problem is. Some animal viruses and bacteria have the potential to cross into the human population and this is believed to happen on farms. Cholera, which has killed millions, spread to the human population from sheep and cattle as have many other diseases (footnote 39). The various waves of influenza that periodically sweep the world, causing millions of deaths, are believed to have their origins in agriculture. 20,000,000 people were killed by the influenza epidemic that followed the first World War - 10,000,000 more than died in the war itself (footnote 40).

In late 1997 and early 1998, the entire chicken population of Hong Kong, followed by much of the domestic animal population, had to be exterminated to prevent the spread of a deadly avian virus that had begun to infect humans. A plague may have been averted - but at a tremendous cost in suffering. In early 1999, an outbreak of a deadly strain of encephalitis began in Malaysia, spreading to humans from pigs. At the time of writing, 67 people had died and another 99 had been admitted to hospital. Malaysian farmers are slaughtering hundreds of thousands of pigs to try to prevent a deadly human epidemic (footnote 41). With pig population densities in some parts of Europe reaching 9,000 animals per square kilometre, the potential for a disastrous human epidemic is vast (footnote 42). By lessening our dependence on the growing of animals for food we will be helping to protect the human population, particularly the young and elderly, from such diseases.

Antibiotics are used on animals to treat disease (often arising from the intensive manner in which they are confined) and as a routine food additive to promote faster growth. A uk National Consumer Council report points out that 'some antibiotic residues in food may be toxic and cause some people to become hypersensitive to antibiotics. They could also make bacteria resistant to antibiotics' (footnote 43). The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is one of the greatest challenges to modern medicine - and much of the problem comes from farming.

The benefits of vegetarianism for our world are far-reaching. Every meal we eat has some say as to which direction our world moves in - towards the ever-accelerating degradation of the planet or towards increasing harmony with nature and a sustainable future for the planet and for our species. These choices are, truly, on our menu. Which will we have?

benefits for our health

It certainly isn't necessary to be a vegetarian to be healthy, although I am personally convinced that vegetarianism is, generally speaking, a healthier alternative than meat-eating. And it does seem to be the case that vegetarians are, overall, healthier than average. A paper by the British Nutrition Foundation says that 'many studies have shown that vegetarians as a group have lower rates of heart disease and of some cancers, and may also benefit from the reduced risk of some other conditions' (footnote 44). A massive study of over 120,000 men in Japan showed that simply adding meat to the diet increased the risk of dying from heart disease by 30 per cent.(footnote 45)A recent uk government report recommended that those eating an average 90g of meat (less than a quarter-pound hamburger) per day should consider cutting back (footnote 46).

There are, of course, good and bad vegetarian diets and whatever diet one follows it is important to eat healthily. If we eat a varied and interesting vegetarian diet there is little or no risk of deficiencies, and a good prospect of living a longer and more healthy life. The chart on page 56 gives an example of the food sources that can form the basis of a healthy vegetarian diet.

Ultimately, I am attempting to convert people to vegetarianism not on health grounds, but on ethical grounds. However, a point that we often need to highlight is that vegetarianism is a perfectly healthy option. Many people still have worries that a vegetarian diet might not be healthy, though in fact becoming vegetarian is one of the simplest steps they could take to improve their chance of a long and healthy life. Below I outline the main nutritional issues that can arise for someone switching to a vegetarian diet.

Some will say that it's natural for us to eat meat. I often wonder if they have thought through the idea of meat-eating being natural. For example, when a lion takes control of a pride his first action is to kill all the offspring of the previous dominant male so that his own offspring will have the best chance of surviving. This is natural, but we would hardly use it as a basis for human morality. That something is natural does not mean it is ethical. Humans are capable of living in ways that transcend 'animal' nature and, from an ethical point of view, it is only by so doing that we can become truly human.

In a very real sense meat-eating is not natural for us: we are poorly adapted to eating meat. The human gut is proportionately far longer than that of a carnivore, and this is probably why meat-eaters have a far higher incidence of bowel cancer than vegetarians. A likely explanation is that the bacterial breakdown of meat in the gut produces carcinogenic by-products. True carnivores, like cats and dogs, have a much shorter length of gut in proportion to their body than us, and can expel waste more quickly. We just don't seem to be cut out to eat flesh. You could say that it just isn't natural for us to eat meat.

Our bodies are also not good at dealing with the amount of fat found in meat. The editor of the American Journal of Cardiology wrote that 'no matter how much fat carnivores eat, they do not develop atherosclerosis'.(footnote 47) He went on to say that dogs, even when fed a massive 200 times the average level of cholesterol that Americans ingest, do not develop heart disease.(footnote 48)Heart disease in humans is, of course, a major killer.

People often have worries about iron, calcium, and protein, and fear that these are deficient in a vegetarian diet. None of these concerns has any real basis in fact. According to the American Dietetic Association, 'appropriately planned vegetarian diets are healthful, are nutritionally adequate, and provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases.'(footnote 49) Let's take a look at these specific nutrients.

Iron

Many women in particular worry about anaemia, which is, of course, more common in women due to blood loss during menstruation. They have understandable concerns that a vegetarian or vegan diet might make them more likely to suffer from this condition. However, as the British Nutrition Foundation points out, 'studies of haemoglobin levels indicate no significant differences between vegetarian and non-vegetarian groups, or between vegans and controls.'(footnote 50) Anaemia seems to be no more of a problem in vegetarians than in meat-eaters, for plants can provide all the iron most healthy people need. Leafy green vegetables, wholemeal bread, molasses, dried fruits, lentils, and pulses are all important sources of iron. For those who are clinically anaemic, whether meat-eaters or vegetarians, it is preferable to take an iron supplement rather than rely solely on dietary iron.

Calcium

Osteoporosis (weakening of the bones) is another disease that affects mainly women, usually in later life, and again many people worry about whether a vegetarian diet can supply enough calcium. This may be rather ironic, since a study in America showed that women on a vegetarian diet had half the chance of developing osteoporosis than women who were omnivorous.(footnote 51)Other studies, however, have shown no significant differences between bone density in vegetarian and omnivorous women. At the very least we can say with confidence that a lack of calcium is not a problem for most vegetarians. Perhaps surprisingly, osteoporosis is most common in countries where the population eat a lot of meat and dairy products. It is least common in countries like China and Japan where many people eat a mainly vegetarian or vegan diet.(footnote 52)

Important vegetarian sources of calcium are dairy products, leafy green vegetables, bread, nuts, and seeds (especially sesame seeds), dried fruits, calcium supplemented soya milk, and tofu.

Protein

While it's mostly women who have concerns about iron and calcium, it often seems to be men who worry about getting enough protein on a vegetarian diet. There is a great deal of mythology surrounding protein. Many people assume that meat equals protein, which in turn equals health, and that we need a lot of protein and therefore need to eat meat. A lot of advertising for meat plays on this belief. Actually we can easily get the protein we need (45g a day for women, 55g for men,(footnote 53)although more is needed if pregnant or exercising heavily) from a vegetarian diet which includes nuts, seeds, pulses, and soya products - eaten daily. Dairy products and eggs are of course sources of protein for many vegetarians, although elsewhere in this book I have pointed out the ethical implications of eating these.

Although vegetarian diets may contain less protein, on average, than omnivorous diets, the British Nutrition Foundation's briefing paper on vegetarianism tells us 'there is abundant protein with a high overall amino acid score in most vegetarian diets' (my emphasis). Surveying a number of studies of protein intake in various groups, it concluded: 'In all cases, intakes of protein in vegetarians and in vegans appear fully sufficient in relation to estimated average requirements for protein.'(footnote 54)Just because there is less protein in a vegetarian diet does not mean there is not enough. Many top athletes, like tennis player Martina Navratilova, olympic gold hurdler Ed Moses, and cycling champion Sally Hibberd, are vegetarians. The list of famous vegetarian and vegan athletes includes bodybuilders, ice-skaters, basketball stars, runners, weight-lifters, and triathletes, showing that it is possible for the body to perform at peak effectiveness without meat.(footnote 55)

In fact, eating too much protein is bad for health. Diets very high in protein (in excess of 150g daily) cause calcium to be lost through the urine. This may explain why those who eat a lot of dairy products and meat are more likely to suffer osteoporosis than those who are vegetarian or vegan.(footnote 56)In addition, protein cannot be stored in the body in significant quantities. When we consume excess protein we convert it into carbohydrate, producing toxic nitrogenous waste products.

Having said that, those who are pregnant, or who participate in intensive physical activities, do need to eat more protein than the average person. But even the amounts of protein that bodybuilders require (and bodybuilders are fanatical about protein) are easily supplied by a vegetarian diet. The nutrition director of an internationally famous chain of body-building gyms said: 'I supervise 160 employees around the world who've probably worked with over 300 vegetarian bodybuilders. These employees report to me that the vegetarian bodybuilders are building muscle just as nicely as if they ate meat.'(footnote 57)

There is a persistent myth that meat proteins are 'first class' while proteins from vegetarian sources are 'second class'. This outdated view is based on the fact that meat and eggs contain all the amino acids (the building blocks of proteins) whereas no individual vegetable or pulse does, except soya. Twenty amino acids go to make up proteins. We can make many of these in the body by converting other amino acids, but there are eight that must be present in the diet. These are the 'essential amino acids'.

However, it turns out that when we eat rice or cereals in combination with pulses or nuts all the essential amino acids are present in the correct proportions. This means that many classic food combinations (rice and dhal, macaroni cheese, beans on toast, felafel with pitta bread, peanut butter sandwiches) give protein that is at least as high in quality as meat. However, it's not strictly necessary to combine proteins in every meal. We have a 'pool' of amino acids and if one amino acid is deficient we can make this up from our body's stores if we eat them all regularly.(footnote 58)

If you are unfortunate enough to suffer from serious health problems such as kidney or liver disease, it would be prudent to take medical advice before changing your diet. For healthy individuals, as long as you eat a vegetarian diet drawing on a variety of sources as indicated in the chart on page 56, you will be eating enough protein and giving your body all the amino acids it needs.

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