Veganism and a Sustainable Lifestyle

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Recommended: Ethical arguments for eating meat

Albert Schweitzer, French philosopher, physician, and musician, said “until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace.” This is a tacit statement, humanity will not be able to “find peace” until it adopts a more sustainable lifestyle, and it has been proven time and time again, that veganism is that lifestyle. Becoming vegan is a powerful experience, and one feels rejuvenated, both morally and physically, after acclimating to the diet, and, although the opposition claims that veganism is either detrimental or useless, the diet is, in fact, beneficial to the environment, to animals, and the individuals who follow the lifestyle.

Meat production is wasteful, expensive, and harmful to the environment; the vegan lifestyle on the other hand, is less taxing on the world, and would feed more people at a lesser cost. While, conservatively, around five million people die of starvation a year, the meat-industry continues to waste food to produce meat. The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals estimate that “it takes up to 16 pounds of grain to produce just 1 pound of meat,” (para. 6). This wasted food could be used more effectively to feed the hungry and impoverished, instead it festers away in the stomachs of cows who will be ritualistically and mercilessly slaughtered so America can feed its meat addiction. By those numbers, the amount of grain it takes to indirectly feed one meat-eater a pound of food, could feed sixteen others at a lesser cost, and more quickly, as, while it only takes months to produce grain, it takes years to produce livestock. If one were to look at the issue of meat production from a purely environmental viewpoint, the benefits still become apparent as, acc...

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Kluger, Jeffrey. "Inside The Minds Of Animals." TIME. Aug. 16 20120: 26. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 4 May 2012.

"Meat Production Wastes Natural Resources." PETA. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Web. 10 May 2012.

Spencer, E. A., et al. "Diet And Body Mass Index In 38?000 EPIC-Oxford Meat-Eaters, Fish- Eaters, Vegetarians And Vegans." International Journal Of Obesity & Related Metabolic Disorders 27.6 (2003): 728. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 May 2012.

Smith, Annabelle M. "Veganism And Osteoporosis: A Review Of The Current Literature." International Journal Of Nursing Practice 12.5 (2006): 302-306. Academic Search Premier. Web. 10 May 2012.

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