What would be good reasons for adopting a vegetarian diet?

The major categories are:

1) Health

2) Environment

3) Treatment of animals



Health:

- "Epidemiologists consistently find an inverse correlation between the percentage of animal foods in the diet and better health." - Eating Well for Optimal Health



- From the China Study they found "a highly significant association between the consumption of even small amounts of animal based foods and the increasing prevalence of heart disease, cancer and similar diseases." - Dr. Campbell, Senior Science Advisor to the American Institute for Cancer Research



- Overall lower levels of cholesterol, blood pressure, obesity in vegetarians vs omnis.



- "Studies indicate that vegetarians often have lower morbidity and mortality rates... Not only is mortality from coronary artery disease lower in vegetarians than in nonvegetarians, but vegetarian diets have also been successful in arresting coronary artery disease. Scientific data suggests positive relationships between a vegetarian diet and reduced risk for... obesity, coronary artery disease, hypertension, diabetes, mellitus, and some types of cancer." - ADA position paper on Vegetarian Diets



- Food safety due to the mass quantities of antibiotics, chemicals, and hormones used in meat production that ends up in your stomach. More viruses are becoming scary as they develop into antibiotic resistant strains. We give our livestock 8x as much antibiotics annually for purposes other than treating disease than what we administer to people in the US to treat disease. - The Food Revolution



Environment:

- It takes about 16lbs of grain to get 1lb of beef. This is extremely wasteful and unsustainable. Far more people could be fed if we just gave the grain directly to people to eat. There's also the thousands of liters of water and the oil used to move that cow all over the place.



Water required to produce 1 lb of CA foods, according to the Soil and Water specialists, University of California Agricultural Extension:

- 1 lb lettuce: 23 gallons

- 1 lb apples: 49 gallons

- 1 lb chicken: 815 gallons

- 1 lb beef: 5,214 gallons



- Waste run off and air pollution are serious problems due to the industrialization of animal production. "Amount of waste produced by NC's 7 million factory-raised hogs (stored in open cesspools) compared to the amount produced by the state's 6.5 million people: 4 to 1.



Relative concentration of pathogens in hog waste compared to human sewage: 10-100 times greater" - The Food Revolution



- Decimation of the rainforests to clearcut for beef pasture. "Imports of beef by the US from southern Mexican and Central America during the past 25 years has been the major factor in the loss of about half the tropical forests there - all for the sake of keeping the price of hamburger in the US at about a nickel less than it would have been otherwise." - MacArthur Foundation Report



Animal Treatment:

- "Agribusiness companies tell us that animals in factory farms are 'as well cared for as their own pet dog or cat'. Nothing could be further from the truth. The life of an animal in a factory farm is characterized by acute deprivation, stress, and disease. Hundreds of millions of animals are forced to live in cages or crates just barely larger than their own bodies. While one species may be caged alone without any social contact, another species may be crowded so tightly together that they fall prey to stress-induced cannibalism. Cannibalism is particularly prevalent in the cramped confinement of hogs and laying hens. Unable to groom, stretch their legs, or even turn around, the victims of factory farms exist in a relentless state of distress." - Humane Farming Association



- "More than 99% of the hens who lay the eggs eaten in the US are debeaked and kept in cages where the excrement from the birds in the upper tiers collects above them, often falling through onto their heads." - The Food Revolution



- "Broilers now grow so rapidly that the heart and lungs are not developed well enough to support the remainder of the body, resulting in congestive heart failure and tremendous death losses." - Feedstuffs magazine



- "US pigs raised in total confinement factories where they never see the light of day until being trucked to slaughter: 65 million" - the Food Revolution



- In many US states it's perfectly legal to do things to livestock that would be illegal if done to a cat or dog. The recent Ohio Conklin Dairy scandal had workers twisting cow tails until they snapped, stabbing cows with pitchforks, and other equally atrocious things, but the worst they can be charged with is second-degree misdemeanors (not felonies). The same torture to pets would be a felony charge.



That's a lot, I know. I'd recommend you read "The Food Revolution" which covers all three of these main categories in detail.



Hope that helps!What would be good reasons for adopting a vegetarian diet?
Personally, I'm vegetarian because I don't think it's right to take another life just to keep mine going.

I don't think I have the right, and an animal's life is still a life.

Other vegetarians I know have some of these reasons:

- they do not want to contribute to animal cruelty as many animals farmed for meat undergo extreme cruelty.

-they do not eat meat as they do not need in order to survive - the day plants stop existing, they'll happily eat meat.

-vegetarians have been proven to be smarter

-vegetarianism goes hand in hand with their religion

- vegetarians are generally more tolerant

- it might seem a healthier dietary choice

- they just want to challenge themselves by trying it
A vegetarian diet uses about 10% of the natural resources that an American omnivore diet. Each calorie of red meat (farmed, not hunted) took about 22 calories of energy to produce, while each calorie of vegetation took about 1.8 calories of energy.



According to the American Dietetic Assiciation:



The results of an evidence-based review showed that a vegetarian diet is associated with a lower risk of death from ischemic heart disease. Vegetarians also appear to have lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, and lower rates of hypertension and type 2 diabetes than nonvegetarians. Furthermore, vegetarians tend to have a lower body mass index and lower overall cancer rates.



There are also people who go vegetarian for religious or moral reasons.



Personally I went vegetarian because I feel healthier, lowered my cholesterol, and am trying to lower my risk of developing diabetes type 2 (a vegetarian diet and no fast food drastically reduces the risk of it developing.)What would be good reasons for adopting a vegetarian diet?
I will edit your question slightly:

What would be good reasons for going vegan (as in way more than just diet)?



1. because animals are not property.

2. animals do not exist on this earth for humyns or anyone but themselves

3. this planet cannot sustain humyns destroying it. The various animal industries we have created are the biggest reason for that.

4. one cannot say they are against oppression and then go out and exploit other animals.

5. Humyns are animals

6. it doesn't take any more time too not exploit animals then it would to exploit them. In fact you can save a lot of time and put the money and resources towards positive change that helps the planet instead of destroying it.
the animals- most meat in grocery stores comes from meat farms and slaughter houses that abuse their animals and put that in living conditions so horrible that many of them die before even making it to slaughter.

the environment- its great for the environment. the animals used for meat consume lots of resources and water just to feed us, when we could be eating a fraction of what they eat and staying full and healthy

you- it can be healthy if done right- many people say they just felt better after making the switch and they can feel better about themselves knowing they are not contrbuting to the suffering of animals.What would be good reasons for adopting a vegetarian diet?
Attention. When they tell people they're vegetarian (whether they are or not), they get a lot of attention. And when they set down in a restaurant, the wait staff has to spend a lot of time taking their order and answer questions about whether something contains animal byproducts or not.
Health

Environmental

Moral

Spiritual - personally I am convinced that all living entities are eternal souls. Just the body is different, the exterior.

Just because the body is different and that they (might be) are less intelligent doesn't give us the right to kill them and eat them, does it?!
Because, like, OMG, those animals are SO adorable! Like, OMG, how could you eat meat after seeing a baby piglet or a furry rabbit? I just want to scream and pee every time I see a cute little cow.