Your instinct was right - eating meat is wrong.
- Aug 24, 2016
- 2 min read
Remember when you were a child, and you first asked someone about why we eat meat? Remember how they told you that drinking milk gives you strong bones, and that you need protein from chicken and beef? Remember when they assured you that there was a humane way to kill animals, that many roam free happily until it is "their time"?
And remember the feeling in your gut that told you it was all quite sad?
What if I told you that you were right all along?
Image Credits at Bottom
Humans are, biologically, herbivores. Our teeth, as you can see from the chart below, do not resemble carnivores in the slightest. Our jaws move side to side in a grinding motion, whereas carnivorous jaws only move up and down (1).
https://veganbiologistdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/05_humans_are_frugivores_750.jpg?w=1000
So if this is true, why have we been taught otherwise for our entire lives? The short answer: money.
When you consider that meat and dairy is actually contributing to disease, you can add up why the government might want us to continue consuming animal products. How do they ensure this?
In school, you likely saw various "Got Milk?" posters around, with favorite celebrities advocating for the consumption of cow milk for "strong bones". In fact, drinking cow's milk correlates with osteoporosis (2).
This is just one example of the many. Government and schools are constantly pushing children to believe that meat, dairy and eggs are healthy when the opposite is true.
This post only scratches the surface of reasons to ditch meat, dairy and eggs, so if you want to learn more, here is a playlist I have created myself with tons of information for you.
Even more information
To learn about the ethical reasons to go vegetarian/vegan, watch Earthlings: (graphic content warning)
To learn about the environmental reasons to go vegetarian/vegan, watch Cowspiracy (little graphic content with warnings):
To learn about the health reasons to go vegetarian/vegan, watch Forks Over Knives (on Netflix).
Thank you for being here, and please contact me or leave a comment with any questions, concerns, or thoughts.
Works Cited
Goldschmidt, Vivian, M.A. "Debunking The Milk Myth: Why Milk Is Bad For You And Your Bones." Debunking The Milk Myth: Why Milk Is Bad For You And Your Bones. Save Institute, n.d. Web. 24 Aug. 2016. <http://saveourbones.com/osteoporosis-milk-myth/>. Cited as (2).
Mills, Milton R., M.D. "Comparative Anatomy." Adaptt 2.4016 (n.d.): 1-9. Adaptt. Gary Yourofsky. Web. 24 Aug. 2016. <http://www.adaptt.org/Mills%20The%20Comparative%20Anatomy%20of%20Eating1.pdf>. Cited as (1).
Minuteearth. "How Much Does Meat Actually Cost?" YouTube. YouTube, 03 Mar. 2016. Web. 24 Aug. 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZDsSnpYZrw>.
Image Credits (in graphic)
https://lamasrur.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/moo.jpg
https://img.rt.com/files/2015.12/original/565d79f3c36188e8518b45d9.jpg
http://earthtalk.org/wp-content/uploads/chicken-400x267.jpg
http://www.ciwf.org.uk/media/1230061/Sheep-chewing-grass.jpg?center=0.56113229999105441,0.37116661071777346&mode=crop&width=337&height=275&rnd=130851689600000000
https://www.southernstates.com/images/fauna/chick-hand.jpg
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