Initially, I experienced shock, grief, and anger after being enlightened to these astounding statistical approximations. Even if the scientists estimating these statistics were slightly inaccurate, humanity would be doomed without a significant reduction of animal product consumption, and the information rattled my soul. I spent weeks attempting to accept this new knowledge and sought to debunk the estimates provided in the documentary. All I discovered was more evidence to support the claims and realized that it is imperative I convert to a plant based diet. Next, I experienced grief, considering I had been consuming animal products for almost thirty-three years, and contributed to the problem. Additionally, diet is part of one’s identity
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She asked numerous questions, which often involved repetition. However, when my mother came to visit, we watched the documentary, Cowspiracy (Anderson & Kuhn, 2014), and just as I did, my mother immediately became a vegan. What a relief to vent about everyday struggles vegans face with both my mother and husband. For example, when dining at restaurants, and asking for no cheese and no chicken, the server usually inquires, “well, what would you like for your protein then?” Ok, let us revisit biology. Protein is created by amino acid chains, and humans require essential amino acids, which our bodies cannot produce on their own. Although animal flesh does have all the essential amino acids, so does numerous plant foods. In fact, as proteins are the building blocks of life, protein is everywhere. By consuming a diverse diet of whole plant foods, a person gets more than enough protein and the essential amino …show more content…
Calcium and iron are more prevalent in plant products than they are in animal products. Of course, this is contrary to what the meat and dairy industry has told us for the past few decades. Recent science has found that osteoporosis (a disease caused by the lack of calcium absorption) is more prevalent in countries that consume the highest amounts dairy products and far less frequent in countries that consume little-to-no dairy. In fact, animal products have been directly linked to numerous deadly diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, cancer, and heart problems (Campbell & Campbell, 2005). Another frustrating occurrence is when I inform people that I am vegan and they become angry or feel the need to justify their personal consumption of animal products. Although puzzling at first, I then realized how food is a significant part of our culture and identity. In a way, by just informing people of my veganism, they may interpret this as a personal attack. Usually, this is a result of insecurities or previous negative exposure to other individuals or groups that avoid animal products. I have learned just to let people know it is my personal choice, and that I am in no way judging them or their
She asked numerous questions, which often involved repetition. However, when my mother came to visit, we watched the documentary, Cowspiracy (Anderson & Kuhn, 2014), and just as I did, my mother immediately became a vegan. What a relief to vent about everyday struggles vegans face with both my mother and husband. For example, when dining at restaurants, and asking for no cheese and no chicken, the server usually inquires, “well, what would you like for your protein then?” Ok, let us revisit biology. Protein is created by amino acid chains, and humans require essential amino acids, which our bodies cannot produce on their own. Although animal flesh does have all the essential amino acids, so does numerous plant foods. In fact, as proteins are the building blocks of life, protein is everywhere. By consuming a diverse diet of whole plant foods, a person gets more than enough protein and the essential amino …show more content…
Calcium and iron are more prevalent in plant products than they are in animal products. Of course, this is contrary to what the meat and dairy industry has told us for the past few decades. Recent science has found that osteoporosis (a disease caused by the lack of calcium absorption) is more prevalent in countries that consume the highest amounts dairy products and far less frequent in countries that consume little-to-no dairy. In fact, animal products have been directly linked to numerous deadly diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, cancer, and heart problems (Campbell & Campbell, 2005). Another frustrating occurrence is when I inform people that I am vegan and they become angry or feel the need to justify their personal consumption of animal products. Although puzzling at first, I then realized how food is a significant part of our culture and identity. In a way, by just informing people of my veganism, they may interpret this as a personal attack. Usually, this is a result of insecurities or previous negative exposure to other individuals or groups that avoid animal products. I have learned just to let people know it is my personal choice, and that I am in no way judging them or their