One Steak Fewer Is Not A Mistake
By Yanira Larios
Vocabulary
Vegetarians are basically people who don ' t eat any kind of red meat , fish , or poultry . Becoming one of them isn ' t easy . I can tell you that from personal experience . The first time I heard about this type of diet was about two years ago when I left my country ; however , I ' ve always been compassionate towards animals , which is the main reason I changed my diet . In El Salvador , where I come from , most people love meat . I can ' t remember anybody talking about vegetarianism or anything like that . Well , at least not that I remember . Most of my relatives are meat lovers . My family has always owned a chicken farm , and whenever they wanted to have some chicken for lunch or dinner , my mom killed the chicken . For me , it was sad . Sometimes , she asked me to do it so I could learn , but I refused . I would have rather done anything else , and in fact I ' m so glad I never did that .
I admired vegetarians a lot since I first learned about them because I was sure that it would be very hard to give up meat and find vegetarian food to replace it . But , for some to adopt vegetarian diets , it is natural because they don ' t really like meat . This happens just in few cases . If you ever wonder whether it makes sense , or whether it is worthwhile becoming vegetarian , let me explain some of the great reasons to be vegetarian .
First of all , your health : Many people want to improve their health , but they don ' t know what to do . Vegetarians automatically reduce the risk of heart disease , the number one killer . Vegetarians ' diets are naturally lower in saturated fat and cholesterol and higher in plant nutrients than most meat-based diets . You also can lose weight and keep it off in a healthy way . Being overweight or suffering from obesity is a big problem in the United States . That is mainly because most meat is too processed . It ' s loaded with dangerous poisons and contaminants such as hormones , herbicides , pesticides , and antibiotics .
Second , our home , our planet : Believe it or not , a vegetarian diet reduces global warming . The United Nations said in its 2006 report that livestock generate more greenhouse gases than all the cars and trucks in the world , combined . Therefore , the single most important step an individual can take to reduce global warming is to opt for a vegetarian diet . As I said , it isn ' t easy , but it ' s not impossible . In my personal case , I did it little by little , and now it ' s so easy .
Finally , one of the most common reasons is compassion for people and animals . Being vegetarian helps end world hunger . Did you know that every day , forty thousand children around the world needlessly starve to death ? Crops that could be used to feed the hungry are instead being used to fatten animals raised for food . Then , all of these animals in different farms are treated with so much cruelty , and what ' s worse is that they don ' t have legal protection from cruelty , which would be illegal if it were inflicted on dogs or cats .
In conclusion , being vegetarian is much more significant than you think . It benefits everyone . It improves our planet , our own lives , and the lives of others . It ' s about being inspired and persistent , being less selfish , and understanding more of what ' s around us . It ' s about helping and being empathetic .
In Our Own Words 2016 33