"myths of vegetarianism" article

[openeyes]

This article isn't something I plan on putting a lot of energy into defending, I simply see it as interesting food for thought:

http://www.mercola.com/2000/apr/2/vegetarian_myths.htm

"MYTH #1: Meat consumption contributes to famine and depletes the Earth's natural resources.

Some have argued that cows and sheep require pasturage that could be better used to raise grains to feed starving millions in Third World countries. Additionally, claims are made that raising livestock requires more water than raising plant foods. Both arguments are illogical and simplistic.
The pasturage argument ignores the fact that a large portion of our Earth's dry land is unsuited to cultivation. The open range and desert and mountainous areas yield their fruits to grazing animals (1).

Unfortunately, the bulk of commercial livestock are not range fed, but stall fed. They do not ingest grasses and shrubs (like they should), but are fed an unnatural array of grains and soybeans. It is true that these foods could be fed to humans. The argument here, then, is not that eating meat depletes the Earth's resources, but that commercial farming methods do. Such methods also subject livestock to deplorable living conditions where infections, antibiotics, steroids and synthetic hormones are common. These all lead to an unhealthy animal and, by extension, an unhealthy food product. Organically raised livestock, then, is a healthier and more humane choice (see myth #15 for more on this topic)."

[escapee]

If I'm a director of livestock industrty and i'm given a goal to meet the huge market demand. Range feed is definitely out of plan because it's a slow and inefficient way of feeding the animals in a business point of view.

I 'd like to point out that the root cause analysis of Mercola only stops at the first few levels. it should go a few more levels deeper .

Why do we need commercial farming ?

Because there is huge (or endless) market demand .

Why there is a huge demand ?

Because everybody loves the unhealthy GREASY and GRILLED HAMBURGER ...

However i do agree that organically grown livestock is definitely 100% healthier than the commercial grown 1.

[impaul99]

I read his article including the Myths he lists. Although the data he provides to make his arguement within each one is not false from what I can see, it is incomplete and a lot of his arguements are just opinions of his, not facts.

For example, to say that it is better to stick to a diet that's been around forever, like eating meats, is better then trying something new is absurd. The whole point is that our diet today IS NEW, not because of vegeterianism but because of commercialized farming.

I am studying to become a nutritionist and just today I was learning about the difference between pork from farmed animals compared to wild animals. Commercially bred pigs/hogs have an average body fat % of 25 to 42% body fat which is what we consume when we eat pork from the store. Compare that to wild pigs/hogs and they have only 1.3% body fat which is what our ancestors used to eat and some tribes still eat today. Beef in North America has 20-30% fat while beef in Africa has 1.9% fat.

So it's not just about whether our ancestors ate meat or not, but rather what kind of meat they ate. If we're eating FAT COWS then we are obviously consuming much more fat than our ancestors.

Also, he makes it sound like you can't get vitamin B12 except if you eat meat, but that isn't true. It is true that people who just stop eating meat without replacing the missing nutrients from other sources will probably be deficient in vitamin B12 but that doesn't meant you can't get proper nutrition unless you eat meat.

I especially don't like how he tells the story of the woman who had a miscarriage and conveniently implies that it's all because she was a vegetarian. He doesn't even mention whether or not she actually conceived and had a kid AFTER his dietary recommendations either. He just says he sent her home telling her to eat meat and that it would help her avoid miscarriage. Science has shown that drinking as little as one cup of coffee per day increases the chances of miscarriage by 30%, but he doesn't mention that either. There could be MANY factors as to why she miscarried, including smoking etc. but he just ignores that because it makes a good story to spread fear. I know someone who is a strict vegan and she just had a kid and both her and the kid are extremely healthy. But this guys way of thinking tries to imply that all vegans will have miscarriages and unhealthy kids.

I am not saying that a vegetarian diet is good or bad, I'm not saying that eating meat is good or bad, all I'm saying is that this guy hasn't proven anything with his article. It's full of holes and assumptions. It also doesn't explain the overwhelming evidence which shows that high meat consumption produces toxicity in the body and leads to degenerative disease such as cancers etc. You can't just say "Myth: Meat causes cancer." and then say there is no proof and that our acenstors used to eat meat etc. etc.

I'll give you an example of how you can write articles like that and make people believe stuff. Here, let me look around and see what I can find within my field of view...uhmmm...a banana...here, I'll write a bit about this banana.

"Myth #87: Banana's are good for you. In spite of overwhelming evidence that banana's are not a very good source of animal protein, people continue to believe that they are good for you. Complex amino acid chains simply can't be formed with the protein molecules found in banana's, a point made even worse by unripe or semi-ripe bananas often sold on store shelves. The typical arguement that monkey's eat bananas so they must be good for us as well, simply isn't true. Conclusion? Think twice next time you buy bananas."

What I just wrote above about banana's is all made up. It's just a bunch of mombo jumbo that doesn't make sense except that when you go to the store next time you'll think about buying banana's.

Look at this quote from his article:
"Dr Weston Price, DDS, travelled around the world in the 1920s and 1930s, investigating native diets. Without exception, he found a strong correlation among diets rich in animal fats, with robust health and athletic ability. Special foods for Swiss athletes, for example, included bowls of fresh, raw cream! In Africa, Dr Price discovered that groups whose diets were rich in fatty fish and organ meats, like liver, consistently carried off the prizes in athletic contests, and that meat-eating tribes always dominated peoples whose diets were largely vegetarian (42). "

LOL. Does anyone else find this funny? He's saying that vegeterianism isn't good because some tribes in Afrika who ate animal meats won athletic prizes more than vegetarians? Come on, give me a break! What does that have do with health?! Maybe the parent's of the kids who were vegetarians didn't value sports competition as much as the meat-eaters parents. Did they study look at the intelligence of the meat eaters compared to the vegetarians? Maybe the vegetarians were better at math or something, or perhaps they were more successful with money aspects or perhaps the fact that the same beliefs instilled about eating meat also lead to a less-competitive way of thinking.

My point is that you can't listen to this guy because he just takes little snippets from books he reads AFTER he's already formed his opinion and ignores the rest.

I still eat meat right now as I haven't converted to a healthy diet yet. I also drink Coke and eat chocolate bars from time to time, but I know that they are all crap foods. One of the reasons I decided to study to become a nutritionist is because of this kind of crap that's out there which contradicts itself wherever you look. The proper scientific evidence of what is healthy is out there, you just need to educate yourself otherwise you'll just be swayed back and forth between these two extremes.

In the end, the problem is that a lot of us are meat-eaters (about 98.5% in USA and 96% in Canada) and there is a lot of ego-based attachment to eating meat. We don't like being told we CAN'T eat this or that. Because of this, there is going to be strict opposition from people's ego's when it comes to ANYTHING that isn't good for you for a long time. Look at cigarettes. A lot of youngsters smoke BECAUSE they are told not to.

In my opinion, to form a proper view of the subject you have to do your own research and find out for yourself. For example, if after reading this dude's articles you basically boil his theory down to vegetarians being low in vitamin B12, the potential for miscarriages and lack of athletic competition, then research those. Look to see if you can find articles by vegetarians who have been able to get vitamin b12 from non-meat sources (I assure you it's possible), and once you find that then that part of his arguement is useless. Miscarriages, you can look for your own data on that. Look at caffeine as a potential problem, smoking, alcohol, lack of exercise, etc. Perhaps you'll find that miscarriage due to vegetarianism is caused by lack of folic acid which can be supplemented. As for lack of athletic competition, that's probably the bigges pile of crap I've ever heard. There are lots of vegetarian athletes in the world, and I hardly think that my athletic ability will dicrease if I switch to a vegetarian diet just as I hardly think it will INCREASE because I eat meat. In fact, my fat gut due to overeating saturated fats in all the meat I eat probably diminishes my athletic ability if nothing else.

Sorry for the long winded opinion, but I don't like this article. It's kind of annoying.

[escapee]

Well , for me i guess it's not just the B12 ..

There is another powerful anti oxidant that vegetarian, Vegan & possibly
senior citizen need to take into consideration . it's the Apha Lipoic acid , regarded as the "universal anti oxidant" by famed physician .

Again , daily supplementshould provide the answer .

Dr. Packer, a professor of molecular and cell biology at the University of California, Berkeley, is one of the world's leading authorities on antioxidants. Therefore, when Dr. Packer says that "Alpha Lipoic Acid is the most versatile and powerful antioxidant in the entire antioxidant defense network," we should take serious note and listen. Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA), a vitamin-like substance found in foods and produced by the body in limited amounts. It may be the most valuable of all antioxidant nutrients. In addition to neutralizing both oxygen and nitrogen free radicals, Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) has been studied for its ability to actually repair oxidative damage, to regenerate other antioxidants and to detoxify the body of excess metals.

Alpha Lipoic Acid has been shown to have a protective effect on the liver, cardiovascular, and immune systems. Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) is one of the many substances produced by the body in large quantities in young people, but production declines with aging. Health conscious individuals may inadvertently limit their intake of this important nutrient by [B]reducing their intake of red meat, one of the richest dietary sources of Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA).
Alpha Lipoic Acid deficiency has been linked to muscle atrophy, reduced neuro-cognitive (brain) function and increased lactic acid accumulation (muscle soreness). Lower serum levels of Alpha Lipoic Acid are frequently found in patients with cirrhosis of the liver, diabetes and heart disease.

Alpha Lipoic Acid 400 mg

Vegetarians, dieters, and athletes often lack sufficient amounts of this important nutrient (ALA) in their diet and just about everyone can use the protection it may provide to fight environmental stresses. It works in both the fatty cell plasma membrane and the aqueous interior of the cell to protect the body against free radicals. It is, in fact, 100 times stronger than Vitamin E and Vitamin C combined, both of which are known for their excellent antioxidant qualities. ALA protects DNA, the mitochondria (the energy producing portion of the cell) and reduces cellular inflammation.

Dr. Perricone, noted dermatologist, highly recommends ALA in his Wrinkle-Free program. He states, �The importance of alpha lipoic acid�the metabolic antioxidant�is hard to overstate. As you know the higher the energy level of the cell, the more youthful you remain.�

ALA has been found to act as a powerful anti-inflammatory agent, accelerate the removal of glucose from the bloodstream, improve insulin function and decrease insulin resistance and has been shown to inhibit replication of HIV in a test tube.