“It is my view that the vegetarian manner of living, by its purely physical effect on the human temperament,
would most beneficially influence the lot of mankind.”
― Albert Einstein, letter to Vegetarian Watch-Tower, December 27, 1930

 

When you hear the word “vegetarian”, you might think of a tree-hugging, self-righteous person who thinks eating animals is inhumane. Sure, there are those types of vegetarians, and we appreciate them for their moral convictions. There are people, however, who choose a plant-based diet for various other reasons- it’s healthier, it’s better for the environment, it’s cheaper, and yes, you avoid eating dead animals too. This is all great and grand, but it gets even better. A simple choice of a better diet can also help us fight social issues, like obesity and chronic disease. Because in addition to being high in nutrients and harmless to the body, plant-based diets are also calorically dilute, meaning, they’re a great weapon with which to fight obesity.

 

Vegetarians are nothing new in the culinary landscape of America, but choosing a plant-based diet for health, social, and environmental reasons is a developing trend of recent years. In fact, in 2010, Dietary Guidelines issued by the USDA and the Department of Health and Human Services included vegetarian and vegan meal patterns for the first time (Jacobs et al). With more institutional support, and less corporate lobbying, vegetarianism can become the preferred mainstream choice in the Western world.

 

With October 1st being World Vegetarian Day and October being Vegetarian Awareness Month, it seems appropriate to recognize and review the benefits that plant-based food has to offer. In this article I chose to focus on two aspects:

 

• How being a vegetarian can benefit your health

• How being a vegetarian can benefit the planet

 

 

You Are What You Eat

Food is the easiest way for a person to improve their health. Think about the last time you ate something bad and had a stomach ache- your body is very responsive to what you put in it. It’s that simple: eat better and you will feel better. It’s a known fact that beef is injected with antibiotics and hormones on a regular basis and these awful chemicals do make it to your plate, and your stomach. A plant-based diet, however, has distinct advantages in comparison to animal-based diet. Claus Leitzmann, Director of the Institute of Nutritional Sciences in Germany explains that this is because a vegetarian diet contains:

 

• Lower intake of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein (which are bad for you)

• Higher intake of complex carbohydrates, dietary fiber, magnesium, folic acid, vitamin C and E, carotenoids and other phytochemicals (which are good for you)

 

Popular belief holds that vegetarian diets are deficient in nutrients such as iron, calcium, and vitamin B12, but Leitzmann explains that this is usually due to poor meal planning. He adds, “Well-balanced vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including children, adolescents, pregnant women, the elderly and competitive athletes” (Leitzmann). At this point, I can confidently state that a plant-based diet is not only healthy, but it can contain all the nutrients your body needs. No meat added.

 

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published the conclusions of an expert panel on plant food and vegetarian diets, stating:

 

Survey and cohort studies consistently report lower body weights and body mass index among vegetarians compared with nonvegetarians … In large and diverse prospective studies, plant-based and vegetarians diets are associated with longevity and a lower chronic disease burden, especially diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers.

 

A social challenge of the 20th century, chronic disease includes conditions such as cancer, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and obesity. Since our bodies are so responsive to food, it’s no wonder that nutrition is explored as a therapeutic and preventative weapon with which to battle chronic disease. In Annual Review of Plant Biology, a nonprofit scientific publisher, researchers published the 2013 study, “Plants, Diet, and Health” which examined the possibility of modern diets as a cause of chronic disease, and the evidence that plant foods can reduce the risk of chronic disease. What they found was that eating more fruits and vegetables “could contribute both to medical nutrition therapies, as part of a package of treatments for conditions like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and obesity, and to the prevention of these diseases” (Martin et al). In fact, plant-based diets can assist in the prevention and treatment of several diseases, including cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, osteoporosis, renal disease and dementia, as well as diverticular disease, gallstones and rheumatoid arthritis (Leitzmann).

 

 

One Small Step for Man, One Giant Leap for Planet Earth

Perhaps not as visible as health benefits, the effects of animal-based diet on the environment are substantial. Two things that are potentially harmful to the environment are energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. In the current food system, the production of meat generates both through animal farming, transportation, processing, storage, retailing, and preparation.

 

According to the Encyclopedia of Energy’s “Diet, Energy, and Greenhouse Gas Emissions” section, as far back the 1960’s, there has been an open dialogue suggesting that dietary changes can conserve natural resources used in the food chain. For example, when global concern about overpopulation and starvation rose, Georg Borgstrom, scientist and ecologist who was an authority on hunger, proposed a diet “lower on the food chain”, in which less cereals were used for animal feed. Similarly, in the 1970’s, when global concern focused on energy resources, David and Marcia Pimentel, authors of “Food, Energy, and Society”, compared the energy inputs over the life cycle of bread and beef. The result? Beef was 29 times more energy demanding than bread (Diet, Energy, and Greenhouse Gas Emissions).

 

Fast forward to the 2000’s and we’re talking climate change. Climate change has been trending as a global concern for more than a decade. Once again, the possibility of dietary change as a mitigation strategy is legitimate. The Encyclopedia of Energy notes the following facts:

 

• Energy use in the food system typically amounts to 12 to 20% of the total energy consumed in developed countries.

• Current anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) are primarily the result of the consumption of energy from fossil fuels, the main energy source in the developed parts of the world.

• Another 10 to 30% of the current total anthropogenic emissions of CO2 are estimated to be caused by land-use conversion, partly related to production of cash crops.

• In addition, the agricultural sector is a large source of emissions of methane and nitrous oxides. It accounts for half of the global anthropogenic emissions of methane through rice farming and rearing of ruminants, whereas 70% of the global anthropogenic emissions of nitrous oxide come from agricultural soils, cattle, and feedlots.

 

Because environmental damage stems from certain aspects of the system, it is very much possible to influence the environment through dietary choices. The encyclopedia concludes:

 

From a number of studies, it is possible to detect patterns of dietary recommendations that would lower energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in the food system. They include reducing consumption of meat, exotic food, food with little nutritional value, and overprocessed food (Diet, Energy, and Greenhouse Gas Emissions).

 

The bottom line is this: vegucate yourself. Take the responsibility to truly understand how the habit of eating meat is affecting you and your environment. Consumerism culture teaches us to be smart about our purchases, do research and get the best product for the best price. Why not apply these principles to food? It is after all, our most basic and regular type of purchase, and one that directly affect not only our health, but also our planet.

 

 

Works Cited

"Diet, Energy, and Greenhouse Gas Emissions." Encyclopedia of Energy. Oxford: Elsevier Science & Technology, 2004. Credo Reference. Web. 15 September 2013. <http://www.credoreference.com.libproxy.usc.edu/entry.do?ta=estenergy&uh=diet_energy_and_greenhouse_gas_emissions>

 

"History of Vegetarianism - Albert Einstein (1879-1955)." Www.ivu.org. International Vegetarian Union, 11 Mar. 2011. Web. 18 Sept. 2013. <http://www.ivu.org/history/northam20a/einstein.html>

 

Jacobs, David R., Jr., Ella H. Haddad, Amy J. Lanou, and Mark J. Messina. "Food, Plant Food, and Vegetarian Diets in the US Dietary Guidelines: Conclusions of an Expert Panel." Www.ajcn.org. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, May 2009. Web. 14 Sept. 2013. <http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/89/5/1549S.full.pdf+html>

 

Leitzmann, Claus. "Vegetarian Diets: What Are the Advantages?" Karger Medical and Scientific Publishers. European Academy of Nutritional Sciences (EANS), May 2004. Web. 15 Sept. 2013. <http://www.karger.com/Article/Abstract/83787>

 

Martin, Cathie, Yang Zhang, Chiara Tonelli, and Katia Petroni. "Plants, Diet, and Health."Www.annualreviews.org. Annual Review of Plant Biology, 28 Feb. 2013. Web. 16 Sept. 2013. <http://www.annualreviews.org.libproxy.usc.edu/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev-arplant-050312-120142>