Meat

[Packgoater]

I'm a vegetarian and always have been. Most anyone can be a healthy vegetarian. Most of the people who aren't healthy while being vegetarian is because they're not eating the right things. I'm active, I play sports, and I don't take vitamin supplements. There are ways to get those vitamins we need other than from animals.

 

The problem I have with eating meat is morals. I can better understand meat that is from a grass fed farm, but meat from feed lot is just plain wrong. The details of the animals treatment are horrible, disgusting and cruel, and I think treating an animal that way should be illegal. What's even worse is that pigs are intelligent and we treat them terribly. Most of meat comes from places like these. I get it if you like meat, and feel meat is your life, I'm not going to say that's wrong. The process of obtaining the meat is.

[Esdren]

Meat is yummy.

but i'de rather eat vegetables, Q^Q all those animals...

[RheaZen]

[odddude1]

I can't remember if I answered this or not...

 

I feel guilty eating meat (I feel sick when I think about where it comes from) and I really don't like the taste of red meat at all. So I try to avoid meat when possible.

[Disturbedchic]

My cousin was a vegetarian for 20+ years and did eat and do everything she was supposed to in order to maintain a healthy diet but it still wasn't enough for her total health and under doctors orders she had to start including some portion of fish in her diet on a weekly basis at least.

 

So some people can't be completely healthy as a vegetarian, even if they "do it right" and don't think that 4-6 years is enough to know if your going to be healthy for the long term because like I said my cousin was 20+ years as a veg before she had to give that up some.

 

However, most people that eat meat, eat way too much of it and in the amounts that its consumed its also extremely unhealthy. I'm well aware that I shouldn't be eating meat on a daily basis and I want to make at least one day a week meat free from now on.

 

 

For those who are concerned about eating ethically raised and environmentally friendly products have you ever considered bison? Bison legally cannot be given additional hormones or antibiotics and are mostly grass fed and left to roam. It also contains less fat and calories than lean chicken breast you can also get omega 3's from bison meat. Its like one of the healthiest meats you can eat. Bison also used to roam North America in the millions so the land there is perfectly suited for them, especially in the numbers that they exist in today and doesn't need to be cleared like it would for pastured cows.

 

The largest bison ranching operation belongs to Ted Turner and he's a huge environmental nut so the bison are ranched on like 2 million acres on 15 ranches.

 

Mr. Turner's commitment to the environment is consistent with the management philosophy of his ranches and properties. The mission statement of Turner Enterprises, Inc. is "to manage Turner lands in an economically sustainable and ecologically sensitive manner while promoting the conservation of native species." This philosophy allows natural processes to take precedence, but still recognizes the "hand of man." Turner Enterprises, Inc. strives for management that is both ecologically sensitive and commercially sustainable.

 

He also has a restaurant chain where you can get bison burgers and even the straws they use are made from recyclable and environmentally friendly materials. Whole foods is one place where I know they carry a consistent supply of bison.

[Nectaris]

For those who are concerned about eating ethically raised and environmentally friendly products have you ever considered bison? Bison legally cannot be given additional hormones or antibiotics and are mostly grass fed and left to roam. It also contains less fat and calories than lean chicken breast you can also get omega 3's from bison meat. Its like one of the healthiest meats you can eat. Bison also used to roam North America in the millions so the land there is perfectly suited for them, especially in the numbers that they exist in today and doesn't need to be cleared like it would for pastured cows.

 

That or hunt for your meat if at all possible. You know that that deer you killed lived a life without fences(not true if you are hunting on a game ranch, but most people don't hunt those places). Also, if you hunt certain things like feral pigs, you are helping people and native animals as feral pigs are an invasive, highly destructive breed.

[Landspeed]

My sister was a vegan for years until she had her daughter - she had an uncontrollable craving for cheese on toast! She and my niece are still vegetarian, and very healthy.

 

But I don't think it needs to be an all-or-nothing thing. Some people are social drinkers. Some people are social carnivores. And anyway, all the plant waste that people can't eat can be fed to cows. So there's nothing wrong with a steak once a week.

[dr.bieber229]

I could not live without meat. My mom cooks meat for dinner everyday. (Unless it's Christmas. Or my mom cooks other things too.) OH, AND THE BACON! Without bacon I would not be awesomesauce... I would be like "how are you today.."(computor voice)

I luv BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh and pie..

[Packgoater]

don't think that 4-6 years is enough to know if your going to be healthy for the long term because like I said my cousin was 20+ years as a veg before she had to give that up some.

 

I've been a vegetarian my whole life, my mother have been since she was 17, my dad since he was 20. In some parts of the world (even in the U.S) the good vegetarian stuff is hard to come by. And vegetarianism is hard. It's not for everybody, maybe your sister was a rare case. But in general, the people whom have to stop because it's not 'healthy' stop because they're not doing something right.

 

And anyway, all the plant waste that people can't eat can be fed to cows. So there's nothing wrong with a steak once a week.

 

Yup and that plant waste isn't what they should be eating! If you buy grass-fed cows, good for you! If you don't, you're eating cows who eat what they're not supposed to, probably stand in feedlots all day, which entail them standing in their own poop and getting shots just so they won't get sick.

 

@Rhea, I don't think the argument is so much about the neurons, (but a pig's intelligence plays a big part into why I think it's wrong) but more about the treatment of the creature. And while gathering foods kills small animals, there is far more of that for the killing of cows. After all, most of the corn that's grown (at least in the US) is corn for cows. SO in the end, eating cows kills the most animals.

 

 

[RheaZen]

Eh, it was for the humor

[Princess Artemis]

After all, most of the corn that's grown (at least in the US) is corn for cows. SO in the end, eating cows kills the most animals.

A not-insignificant amount goes to feed cars. Cars don't even do that well on a corn diet; much like cows, they do better on what they were made to eat.

[Lila]

My major problem with food in general is just how it's grown/processed...there's nothing wrong with eating meat. But there's a difference now than how it used to be -- once upon a time, we used to have to hunt and work hard for our meat, or it was just too expensive for most families, so we couldn't over indulge in it. Now, processed meat (that's been washed in ammonia, artificially flavored & colored, like frozen chicken nuggets), is cheap as dirt. Problem is, all the unhealthy food is cheap, so if poverty's a problem, the health of the lower class will also be affected.

 

I eat a vegan diet most of the week now, but when I feel like consuming meat it's organic.

 

But I don't think it needs to be an all-or-nothing thing. Some people are social drinkers. Some people are social carnivores. And anyway, all the plant waste that people can't eat can be fed to cows. So there's nothing wrong with a steak once a week.

 

Actually, that plant waste, along with corn product, is believed to lead to an increase in E coli. Cows fed on a grass diet for one week are shown to have a huge drop in E coli, and along with that, they're not ankle-deep in their own manure for their entire lives. It's all about the process.

Edited October 10, 2011 by Lila

[Waddlespink9]

Personally, I would die without meat, and could never go vegetarian, but I do agree with some vegetarian concepts; although I don't find killing animals for food immoral and wrong, I do not like the way some farmers treat animals in custody, and, face it; the way we process food is filthy.

 

Which is why I cook the living crap out of meat before I eat it.

[Opti]

I was an ovo-lacto vegetarian for three years. I'm not anymore, but I still rarely eat meat, and I only eat it if it's been hunted or fished for (I support hunting if it's for food, not sport, and wanted to actually physically support it instead of going 'oh yeah hunting for your own stuff and then using it, that's super'). It was never really a matter of ethics or health for me, though. I just didn't like eating meat. I think the only meats I still enjoyed when I switched were chicken and kielbasa.

 

That being said, I'm not bothered by anyone else's food choices at all so long as they don't shove it in everyone's face. ...Literally. Back in middle school when I started being a veggie, everyone would shove their hamburger in my face and shout 'meat'. 8P But then there were the kids that thought I would flip out at them for eating bologna next to me. No, seriously, enjoy your meat. Or else. I will enjoy my carrots. It'll be great.

[oceandragonz]

I'm a vegetarian, but I seriously don't care if others eat meat. After all, would those animals be alive if we hadn't raised them to be killed? If there's nothing to eat except meat, I'll eat it, but I just hate the taste.

[Aingeal]

I could never be vegetarian. If I eat too many vegetables or drink too much water, it triggers a CVS and I'm incapacitated for days.

[canobiecrazy]

I don't eat pork, but I eat all other meats. I find pigs too intelligent to be humanely factory farmed. If I had raised the pig from a baby and slaughtered it myself in safe, humane conditions, then I would gladly eat it.

 

But with the state of the pork and ham supply chain right now, I will not touch the stuff. Pigs are MUCH too smart to be treated like that.

[Kestra15]

http://myawesomespace.tumblr.com/post/1389...-the-vegan-diet

[ary_lynn]

I eat meat, but I'm very conscious about what I eat. Bison is actually very good, and we have a farm that breeds (no inbreeding) them here, that I've seen personally. They're very well raised, very clean. I personally don't like pork, but I do eat bacon occasionally.

[Miraku]

I prefer eating chicken more than any other kinds of meat. I hardly eat lamb, pork, beef or red meat. But that's not because that I'm on my way to be a vegetarian but due to health issues.

Though I hugely respect vegetarianism and their ideals but I also don't think killing animals for food is totally wrong, infact it somehow helps to maintain a balance; that's what is nature meant it to be. Also having a combination of both meat and vegetables makes your diet more balanced and that's what is recommended.

[sir_horsey_XIX]

If I could, I would avoid eating products from factory-farmed animals altogether, and eat less meat than I do now. Unfortunately, my parents don't care at all about overeating meat or even meat from factory-farmed animals, so I'll just have to keep eating not-so-healthy meat all the time since that's what's always in dinner. I am cutting back on it in my lunches, though, and when I can, will seek out products from properly fed, raised, slaughtered, and processed animals.

On what I like? I can't live without poultry, I like beef, and can easily do without pork. I've seen so many things saying pork is low in fat...biggest lies I've seen in my experience. ugh.

[Kai]

Vegetarianism is completely unnatural and all historic diets contained at least a small amount of meat.

[WhyllasTorch]

I could never give up meat. It is just so tasty. *drool*

[Asteris]

I love meat, and the only way I'd give it up is if it simply weren't available or I couldn't afford it. Biologically speaking we're omnivores and failing that, there's simply too many vegetables, legumes, etc. that I'm allergic to. I do wish they'd stop putting soybean products in everything...

[Maiden]

I like meat too much to be a vegetarian, but I try to avoid it as much as possible. Health issues make it impossible for me to eat processed meats like hot dogs, baloney, chicken nuggets and so on.

 

Luckily for me I live in an area where there are tons of local farms and lots of hunters. I get my eggs and most of my vegetables from a family-run farm about 10 miles from my house. Granted, I wash and cook this food more thoroughly than I would if it was store-bought, but I feel good eating organic foods while I support local farmers. For meat, I wind up eating a lot of venison (deer). Deer hunting is a popular pastime around here, and hunters always wind up with extra to sell. It freezes well and venison sausage is excellent. Bison is too pricey for me, so I've been known to succumb to the allure of a steak every now and again, but there's a butcher shop here in town that sells chicken and beef that are locally farmed.

 

In other words, I buy local food products when I can, organic products where I can afford them (although I know organic doesn't always mean excellent conditions for animals), and I avoid fast food like the plague. You don't have to be a vegetarian to be kind to animals, just do your best to find companies and retailers who are sensitive to animal treatment issues. Then again, I'm one of those people who'd have no problem killing a pig because there's bacon inside!