Vegetarianism

What is a vegetarian? Sometimes referred to as a “plant based diet” Someone who does not eat meat (beef, pork, lamb, goat, etc.), poultry (chicken, duck, etc.), fish, or seafood 3 different types of vegetarians Lacto vegetarian Ovo-vegetarian Lacto-ovo vegetarian

What is a vegan? Someone who does not eat anything from an animal – meat, milk products, and eggs Many vegans go beyond diet, and don’t use other animal products either

# of vegetarians in Canada: Between 3 - 7% of Canadians are vegetarians - 1.1 million – 2.4 million people About 1.5% of the population is vegan 340, 000 - 510,000 people

Why do people become veg*n? Religious Reasons Many religions lean towards, recommend or encourage vegetarianism – either some of the time (on special holy-days) or all of the time

Some religions that lean towards veg*nism in some way: Hinduism Buddhism Seventh-Day Adventists Rastafarianism

2. Health Reasons Many positive health reasons why someone might become a vegetarian or vegan What are they?

a. Diseases that a plant-based diet protection against........ 1. Colon cancer 3rd most common type of cancer in Canada Risk of C.C. decreases the less meat you eat

2. Breast Cancer - Canadian Cancer Society says that breast cancer risk decreases the more fruit and vegetables you eat

REMEMBER: our bodies produce all the cholesterol we need 2. High Cholesterol/ Clogged Arteries REMEMBER: our bodies produce all the cholesterol we need Only animal products have cholesterol

3. Less chance of being overweight – which may lower risk of other diseases - plant-based foods tend to be much lower in fat in general and bad fat in particular

Also, a vegetarian diet results in: Significantly lower rates heart disease Significantly lower rates of diabetes

b. Why are there health benefits? Because vegetarian diets are: lower in fat, especially saturated fat lower/no cholesterol, higher in fibre, higher in vegetables and fruits (and all the super beneficial anti-oxidants).

3. Ethical Reasons Some are concerned about animal exploitation and suffering Some don’t think animals should be killed so that humans can eat them

Some wonder… …..whether humans - who have a choice of foods - have the “right” to impose their dietary preferences on animals

Concerns over how animals are raised on farms Animals are no longer raised outdoors on peaceful farms by family farmers

Today, over 90% of animals killed and eaten in Canada are raised on “factory farms” Do animals suffer on factory farms?

What is a “Factory Farm”? A facility that raises large numbers of livestock indoors under conditions of extremely restricted mobility

- Most animals never set a foot outdoors, or display any of their natural behaviours

* Even the animals that are raised outdoors are very tightly packed into one area

What is a Battery Cage? A confinement system used for egg laying chickens 98 per cent of Canada’s 26 million egg-laying hens are kept in these for their entire life (2yrs) They are unable to perform natural behaviours Each bird has less space than a sheet of notebook paper.

What is a gestation crate? A metal enclosure used in pig farming Female pig (sow) is confined for her life (3-5 years) Crate is 7’ x 2’

What is de-beaking? Also called ‘beak trimming’ A process whereby part tip of the chickens beak is burned off Why is this done? B/c chickens are stressed under the confinement, and debeaking reduces fighting and cannibalism in chickens

Concerns with slaughter: Violations of animal welfare laws at slaughterhouses make people turn away from eating meat

http://veggietestimonial. peta. org/psa. aspx http://veggietestimonial.peta.org/psa.aspx?CID=82ba254f-faba-4650-90ff-e4db1db4905b http://veggietestimonial.peta.org/psa.aspx?CID=0cdaaef7-12c0-4f9d-b3c1-d72c3bab0d43 http://veggietestimonial.peta.org/psa.aspx?CID=1f870cb8-aaab-4069-9821-95c1e8822337

Environmental /Ecological According to the United Nations, eating meat, dairy and eggs has a HUGE impact on the environment Has the largest impact on climate change of any human activity More of an impact on the environment than all transportation combined

Resource Use In Canada, farm animals also outweigh people by a factor of four to one. On a given day there are approximately 14.6 million beef and dairy cattle, 13 million pigs, 8 million turkeys, 96 million chickens, and 30 million people alive in Canada

A meat-based diet requires 7 times more land than a plant-based diet We could have a lot more forests if people ate less meat

Not to mention… Water pollution Air pollution

What do vegetarians eat? Vegetarian Food Guide Some experts propose slightly different food groups for vegetarians and vegans How are they different from Canada’s Food Guide?

What do vegetarians eat?

A few menu items include: Breakfast Lunch Dinner

Tofu/soy is also used to make ‘faux meats’

Local Vegetarian Restaurants there are over 50 vegetarian restaurants in the GTA! There are over 50 vegetarian restaurants in Toronto!

A few famous vegetarians

Does it have to be all or nothing? ? Meatless Mondays, Weekday Veg – there are many ways to make a difference – for your own health, the future of the planet, and the lives of animals?

Weekday Veg (Graham Hill) http://www. ted What’s Wrong With the Way We Eat? (Mark Bittman) http://www.ted.com/talks/mark_bittman_on_what_s_wrong_with_what_we_eat.html

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