Why eating vegetarian may not be the most ethical diet.
While there are many reasons for choosing a vegetarian diet, the most important are health reasons, environmental and economic reasons, and, above all, ethical reasons. Health reasons alone are sufficient grounds for becoming a vegetarian. Research has shown that we do not require meat in our diets and that it is actually healthier to avoid meat.Whatever the reason, the ethical dilemmas surrounding vegetarianism continue to foster debate among people who wholeheartedly embrace a meat-eating diet and those who condemn the consumption of meat as being morally and ecologically detrimental. It is important to note that there are several levels of vegetarianism by which one can decide to live.Ethical Objections to Veganism: Jay Bost in The New York Times The New York Times held an essay contest inviting readers “to make an argument” that eating meat is ethical. Winner Jay Bost began with the premise that “ethical” should be “defined as living in the most ecologically benign way.”.
Since ethical veganism ideally pervades every facet of a person’s life, it also colors one’s personal relationships, political beliefs and social attitudes, according to Jo Stepaniak. People who eat no dairy or honey are simply vegetarians and not vegans and true veganism goes beyond just this.Vegetarianism, in essence, is the voluntary abstinence of a person from eating meat products. Vegetarianism has been shown to have tremendous health benefits as a practice, and is often employed as a more ethical and sustainable diet than carnivorous diets.
Vegetarians consume lower levels of cholesterol in their diet. The vegetarian diet contains high amounts of soy, nuts, oats, and vegetables, all of which have been found to reduce cholesterol. Another reason why the vegetarian diet reduces heart disease lies in the fact that it contains high levels of antioxidants.
