Vegetables - Its Whats for Dinner Essay -- Vegetarianism Vegetarian

Vegetables - It's What's for Dinner James Garner, a washed-up hollywood celebrity, was paid by the meat board to tout beef as, "Real food for real people." In April of 1988, James Garner underwent a quintuple coronary artery bypass surgery (Realities 1989). This is just one of the shocking side effects of consumption of meat. "The practice of vegetarianism involves eating vegetable products and not consuming meat, fish, and in many instances, egg and dairy products." ("Vegetarianism"). Thus, a vegetarian diet can benefit individuals as well as the world. Vegetarianism is a very healthy, environmentally aware, animal friendly lifestyle. There are three major types of vegetarians. Lacto-ovo-vegetarians do not eat meat, but will consume dairy and egg products. Lacto-vegetarians do not eat meat or eggs, but will consume dairy products. Vegans consume no animal products of any kind (Farley, 12). In most cases, Vegans avoid leather, fur, wool, silk and other products made from animals. Advocacy of a non-meat diet, dates back to the middle of the first millennium. In fact, the first recorded teachings of non-meat diets, are the teachings of Pythagoras of Samos around five hundred and thirty b.c. From Plato onward, many Roman and Greek philosophers and writers advocated vegetarianism as an ethical way of life. Also, during the humanitarianism of the 17th and 18th centuries, sensitiveness to animal suffering began ("Vegetarianism"). Vegetarianism has firm roots in religion. It was practiced originally in connection with religious purification rituals. Many religious groups follow vegetarian diets. They consider eating flesh gluttonous, cruel and wasteful. In the Roman Catholic Church, Trappist monks have practiced vegetarianism... ...ion. Most horrifying is the fact that bulls raised for food production are often castrated without any type of anesthesia or pain-killers. Veal calves are force-fed and iron deficient, anemia-producing diet, never solid foods. (The Vegetarian Youth Network). Its quite obvious that a vegetarian diet for the whole world can benefit mankind and animals. Works Cited The Crazy Vegetarian. [Online] http://www.crazyveg.com. Farley, D. "More People Trying Vegetarian Diets." FDA Consumer Oct.1995:10- 13. Quick, S. "Eating Vegetarian? How to do it the Healthy Way." Glamour Sept. 1995:64. Realities 1989. [Online] http://www.cs.unc.edu/~barman/realities1989.html. Vegan Action. [Online] http://www.vegan.org/info.html#anchor707384. Vegetarian Youth Network. [Online] http://www.geocities.com/RodeoDrive/1154. "Vegetarianism." Compton's Encyclopedia 1995ed.