Top Five Reasons Never to Brag About Eating Meat

Lately, I have been seriously considering becoming a vegetarian. Don't get me wrong, I've had my share of cheeseburgers, steak, and other red meats.

In our society, most of the people that can actually afford to buy meat really don't need it. It you notice when you're shopping, most of people in the red meat isle are either slightly overweight, out of shape, or obese. You rarely see a person coming from the gym to grab a big healthy T-bone to clog their arteries and give them some really attractive love handles.

The premise of all of this is that, when you choose to be a vegetarian or a carnivore your choices do affect others as well as yourself.

Here are my top five reasons to never brag when eating a piece of meat:

1. Eating Meat Supports Animal Abuse

   I had the great pleasure of visiting a slaughtering plant when I went to culinary school. While I was there, I witnessed tails being cut off of pigs, while they were alive; neck were slashed on cows while they were hanging upside down and after they came from the shocking room; baby chicks had their beak chopped off while they were still alive. Pretty picture isn't it? Makes you want to run out and buy a big juicy plate of what were you thinking!

2. Eating Meat Will Make You Fat

   Do you know the amount of cholesterol in meats, chicken, ribs, and other fatty cuts. They are filled with saturated fats. Just in case you didn't know, you shouldn't even be eating saturated fats if you are trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Consume unsaturated fats that are found in foods such as nuts, olives, and avocados. They're medically proven to be heart-healthy fats and have the ability to lower LDL cholesterol and raise HDL cholesterol.
   
   Some say that when your children are obese, they will be obese for life due to an increasing amount of fat cells. This is a complete falsehood. You cannot develop more fat cells over your life span. Fat cell amounts stay exactly the same; the only thing that changes is the size of those fat cells. Fat cells will expand or deflate like a balloon.

3. Eating Too Much Meat Can Lead to Heart Disease and Diabetes

   A study was just published that there was a “25% risk in Metabolic Syndrome which is a precursor to Diabetes and Health Disease.” This study was done on groups consuming meat twice a day.

4. For Every Piece of Meat that You Consume, it Contributes to the Starvation of at Least 4 Children

   Essentially it takes over 16 pounds of grain to produce just one pound of meat. If more people stopped eating meat and actually became vegetarians, we'd free up enough resources to feed every person on this earth.

5. Eating Red Meat will Cause Breast Cancer

   Recent studies at Harvard Medical Center published in 2006 have found that (estrogen and progesterone receptor positive women) were more likely to have eaten, on average, at least 11 servings of red meat every week. In contrast, the study showed that women who ate 5 servings or fewer of red meat every week were only about half as likely to develop breast cancer.

As always, leave your comments. As a new writer, it's nice to have support from your peers.