The Environment

Your Health

The Animals

Your Health

The consumption of animal products can cause havoc on your cardio-vascular system and create a number of significant health issues, including obesity and diabetes.

High Cholesterol

	Used with permission from Dan Piraro at Bizarro

Did you know that cholesterol is only found in animal derived foods? If you have high cholesterol, your intake of animal derived foods is a key component.  Family history plays a part, but heavy animal consumption only makes it worse.

Resistance to antibiotics and ingestion of growth hormones

All types of factory farmed animals, from cows to pigs to turkeys and chickens are often treated with serious doses of antibiotics to prevent the diseases that would naturally occur under such cramped and unhealthy living conditions. They are also given growth hormones to fatten them up to unnatural sizes. 

Consumption of these animal products creates a resistance to antibiotics and is often regarded as a cause for an earlier onset of puberty in young girls.

Obesity, Heart Disease and Diabetes

The high amount of saturated fat from animal derived foods can create serious health problems including obesity, heart disease and diabetes. Obesity is an epidemic in the U.S. and a precursor to heart disease and diabetes. Heart disease is the #1 killer in this country and diabetes is being diagnosed in more children and a higher percentage of the overall population every year.

Milk: It’s bad for you

• The dairy industry has convinced consumers through their extensive years of marketing that milk is good for the bones. Did you know that the sugar in lactose has actually been found to leach calcium from your bones? This is one reason why they fortify milk with Vitamin D.
• The human body is only physically equipped to digest lactose during the first few years of life, when we are meant to be breast-feeding, after which the lactase digestion enzyme disappears. This is why we have an overpopulation of adults who are considered "lactose-intolerant." In fact, everyone is lactose intolerant by varying degrees. We simply are not physically intended to be ingesting it. (Read the Physician Committee for Responsible Medicine's report on this issue.)

Nutritional Comparisons

To illustrate the contrast in health benefits between animal derived products and other plant-based options, check out almost any vegetarian brand's web site and it will likely offer a nutritional comparison chart between its products and the usual animal-derived counterparts. You'll notice that they are equally high (or higher) in protein; lower in fat and calories; and contain ZERO cholesterol. (Check out a hot dog and veggie dog comparison chart posted on our blog, for example.)

For more information:

• For media articles and information regarding the rise in childhood obesity and the benefits of a vegetarian diet, see our page on Healthy School Lunches
• The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM)
• American Dietetic Association
• Dr. McDougall's Health & Medical Center