Does It Really Matter If I Become A Vegetarian?

As a prospective vegetarian, you probably question
whether or not it really matters if you stop eating meat.
You might wonder how much of a difference one additional
vegetarian can make.

And while it might be true that one vegetarian wont make
huge statistical difference in a world of meat-eaters--
and while it is also true that one more vegetarian
probably isn't going to turn the tide in the movement--
you can do a lot as an individual that will be good for
you and good for hundreds of animals animals.

Take, for instance, the number one cause of death in the
United States and other countries with meat-centered
diets: heart disease.

If it weren’t specifically for meat, eggs, and dairy
products--which are the three largest sources of
cholesterol--heart attacks and other heart and circulatory
problems would be far less prevalent. According to
EarthSave, the average vegetarian has about 1/4 the chance
of having a heart attack as the average nonvegetarian. As
for people who are pure vegans, it gets even lower: they
have less than 1/10 the chance of having a heart attack
as nonvegetarians.

In addition to heart health, you will get a number of other
health benefits as a vegetarian. For instance, you wont be
exposed to nearly as many preservatives, which are common
in meat and are linked to cancer. You wont be exposed to
various hormones (that are packed into animal feed), which
often disrupt normal hormonal processes in the body. And
you wont consume as much lactose, which most people cannot
digest properly--and which some dietitians have suggested
is a cause of digestive problems.

In addition to health benefits you will receive as an
individual, you will also reduce your share of the
suffering human beings inflict on animals.

According to veganoutreach.org, the average American
consumes 2,714 land animals in their lifetime. If you quit
eating meat now, you could literally prevent the suffering
and death of hundreds of animals of the course of a couple
decades.

In addition to this, if you stop eating eggs and drinking
milk, you will also reduce your share in the suffering and
death of battery hens and their offspring, as well as dairy
cows and their offspring, too.

So the answer is yes: it does matter whether or not you
become a vegetarian. It matters to the thousands of
animals you could potentially save and it matters to
you as an individual because you can greatly reduce
your chances of getting cancer and heart disease.