Red Meat is Deadly

by Josh Wed Mar 14, 2012 21:24

Yes indeed - the solution is to go vegan and stop relying on a dangerous diet. I get the impression that veganism is growing in Ireland. Does anyone know?

by Gavin Wed Mar 14, 2012 21:24

I saw this in the paper. Thanks for sharing .
I was looking at the Vegan Ireland website too. Good info there too
http://veganireland.vegaplanet.org/

by red meat lover Wed Mar 14, 2012 21:31

i wish i was a super healthy vegan i heard processed red meats can give you cancer..

by Gavin Wed Mar 14, 2012 21:31

I definitely get that impression. I know alot more vegans today than I did 10 years ago in Ireland

by Embden Wed Mar 14, 2012 21:39

Apparently all animal products have deleterious effects on the physical health of humans - Dr Colin Campbell's book The China Study shows that animal protein is implicated in cancer. The Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine mentions that the cholesterol content of some fish is even higher than that of red meat (http://www.pcrm.org/). A plant based diet appears to protect against most Western World illnesses. Of greater importance, however, is the disasterous effect that eating animal products has on the animals who are eaten.

by Yvonne M Wed Mar 14, 2012 21:45

I also have the impression that Veganism is a growing movement.
It might be thanks to the internet and the more accessible information and graphic images.
I think people have a disconnection between animals (life animals) and meat. As in they do not want to think of it as flesh that comes from an animal that a couple of days earlier was running around a field

by Laure Wed Mar 14, 2012 21:56

Yes, I agree... it's definitely getting easier and easier being vegan. All shops would have options and restaurants can very easily adapt menus

by tina vegananarchist Wed Mar 14, 2012 21:59

Obviously sciense will support how harmful consuming the flesh ,breat milk ,an menstrual waste of other creatures is to human health - which is hardly surprising when u consider how bizarre an unnatural these practises are in the first place . however this is not the issue ,as any ethical vegan will agree . the harm caused to humans by the consumption of animal products is a drop in the ocean compared with the imense suffering an rights violations which non humans endure at human hands . the core principle of ethical veganism is rejection of the property status of other animals and a challenge to mainstream societys view of them as objects without intrinsic worth ,whose value can only be measured by the money there lives an deaths earn .
even if meat was the most healthy food u could eat ,there would stil be absolutly no justification for eating it .our trivial comfort an convenianse -indeed no human interest - can justify the enslavement an murder of others . so why talk about the danger to our health ,while countless millions of innocents die to feed us evry day ? even considering this is speciesist .

by tina vegananarchist Wed Mar 14, 2012 22:03

i dont make an ethical distinction between meat an any other animal product - i only singled it out above as a typical example sinse it is the subject of the article under discusion .
refusing to consume the flesh of nonhumans while continuing to eat dairy ,eggs ,honey etc is a moraly absurd an inconsistant position .

by Embden Wed Mar 14, 2012 22:03

Beautiful video Yvonne M (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4naK4mudzM)!

I was surprised when I first got up close to some lambs and watched the obvious pleasure they get when they leap into the air with all four legs simultaneously. I began to think of the words 'leg of lamb' in a completely new way.

When I got up close to them I also saw how similar our physiology is (we all have two ears and eyes, a nose and mouth, four limbs, - we even have eyelashes and eyebrows in common). I once saw one of the lambs trembling with shock and pain when he stood on a piece of glass and hurt his hoof. It suddenly struck me that nothing could justify inflicting the pain of slaughter on them and nothing could justify taking their lives from them. Especially not when there is no nutritional need whatsoever for us to consume animal products in order to live long and healthy lives.

by CaribbeanQueen Wed Mar 14, 2012 22:08

There is no need for people to eat red (or any) meat in this day and age. Meat has been described as 'the new tobacco'.
I've been vegan for the past few years and I feel fantastic. Meat, fish and dairy are not at all essential in the human diet, as the required nutrients can be got from plant sources.
I eat a lot more fruit and vegetables now than I did before, as I rely on these far more for my nutrition needs. I feel healthy, and happy that I don't need animals are not being killed for my plate.
There is a huge variety of vegan foods now available in health and wholefood shops, for example, soya milk, cream, cheese, yoghurt and ice-cream, plus fake meats such as burgers, sausages, mince and much more!
Go vegan - you will LOVE it, I promise.

by Muriel Wed Mar 14, 2012 22:29

I went vegan 3 years ago because of ethical reasons. I always struggled with a bit of extra weight and I was very pleasantly surprise, after 5 or 6 months of being a vegan I had lost a good few pounds without any effort.
I am never looking back

by Gavin Wed Mar 14, 2012 23:14

The Vegan Society in the UK website is great too
http://www.vegansociety.com/

by Rational Ecologist. Thu Mar 15, 2012 09:59

At a recent conference on Climate Justice in UCC, Mary Robinson was asked what can people do to combat climate change. Her answer was that we should eat less meat. I think that this is another way of furthering a more humane relationship with animals.
Most indigenous cultures did eat meat, however, they did respect animals much more than we do.
I eat meat/fish only occasionally and in fact was veggie for 2 decades. The vegan diet does not suit everyone. Please check out Lierre Keith on this one. Having said this, I have nothing but respect for those who advocate for the ethical treatment of animals.
Truth is that if we are to survive on this planet, we all must eat a lot less meat/fish. That is not an ethical position it is an empirical one.
The life/health of the planet/Gaia must guide us in what we do and how we live.

by lefty Thu Mar 15, 2012 10:44

similar thread on P.ie.
http://www.politics.ie/forum/health-social-affairs/1840....html

by Ex-Corkman Thu Mar 15, 2012 11:04

I've found it difficult to keep to a vegetarian life-style and never managed to stick to it for long. But I've known for a long time that too much red meat is a bad thing. Like RE I've got the height of admiration for those that adhere to a vegetarian/vegan diet.

by Ex-Corkman Thu Mar 15, 2012 11:14

A couple of relevant articles. Cut it down if yiou can't cut it out.

Red Meat Increases Risk Of Cancer, Heart Disease And Death

People who eat more red meat seem to have a higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease and cancer and all-cause mortality, says a study published Online First in the Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archive journals. Those who substitute red meat with other foods, such as fish and poultry are linked to a lower risk of mortality.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/242779.php

Even having your steak well done can make it more dangerous.

Well-Done Red Meat May Increase Risk For Aggressive Prostate Cancer

New research led by the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), offers further evidence of a link between aggressive prostate cancer and meat consumption, and suggests it is driven largely by consumption of grilled or barbecued red meat, especially when it is well-done. The researchers hope their findings will help determine which potential cancer-causing compounds should be the target of prostate cancer prevention strategies..
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/238297.php