The outbreak of the ‘mad-cow’ and the brain disease which British cows were exposed to in the mid 90s had far-reaching effects. It is driving people all over the world to say ‘no’ to mouth-watering steaks, hamburgers and hot dogs and opting for vegetarian diets. Fearing a major epidemic, the number of people turning vegetarian had snowballed within the space of a few weeks. On the local front, the presence of the cancer-causing antibiotic, nitrofuran, in chicken has helped to swell the number of vegetarians in the country.
Is ‘going vegetarian’ just a fad that will fade away in time or will it take root and bear fruit? Only time will tell and only the future holds the answers to such questions.
Why are more and more people giving up meat and opting for vegetarian diets? While there is a growing number of young people who seem to think that going vegetarian is the in thing or is trendy, the virtues of vegetarianism itself are compelling enough reasons. With increasing work pressure and family commitments, health and fitness have taken the back seat. People are finding it extremely difficult to juggle time between work and leisure. Exercise and diets have been relegated to an unimportant place although most of us are aware that changes in lifestyle and changes in our eating habits are the best defences against a host disease. There is overwhelming medical evidence to support this claim. We have heard over and over again that a person’s intake of salt, alcohol consumption, body weight and exercise can affect a person’s blood pressure. Reduced intake of salt and alcohol together with increased exercise and a weight control programme can significantly lower blood pressure and ward off a host of other ailments ranging from heart ailments to cancer.
However, scientists insist that there exist a fourth factor-the type of food we consume. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables is highly recommended for those wishing a disease-free life. It is also effective and relatively inexpensive compared to pharmaceutical drugs which are not only expensive but have many side-effects. Growing health awareness has driven people in drove to switch from meat to vegetables. Scientists and health specialists highly recommend a diet that includes large quantities of fruits and vegetables as the best prescription for good health. It is a safe and sure way of warding off cancer and heart disease and certain health conditions such as osteoporosis. Medical evidence points to the fact that certain photochemicals that provide protection against diseases like cancer are found in vegetables.
It is also an efficient way of losing weight. Dieticians may prescribe a vegetarian diet for overweight and obese people as a part of weight-loss programme. There is ample evidence to show that the vegetarians are less likely to suffer from obesity when compared to meat-eaters.
Religions like Buddhism teach people to treat all living things with respect, kindness and compassion. The ability to refrain from eating fish and meat is held in high esteem by certain Buddhists and Hindus. Hindus and Buddhists have to fast and be vegetarians before partaking in major religious functions or in temple festivals. Switching from a non-vegetarian diet to a vegetarian one requires will-power and discipline; qualities that are deemed necessary when human beings give up their worldly pleasures in the pursuit of divine causes. In fact, a vegetarian diet is a perquisite for those wishing a lead to spiritual life because a vegetarian diet is believed to help the human mind remain calm and composed.
Recently though, more and more people are going on a meatless diet because of ethical and environmental reasons. Environmentalists, animal rights activists and their supporters, while shunning animal slaughter and cruelty deplore are pallid and filthy conditions under which livestock like cattle, sheep and poultry are raised and where the risks of caching diseases are high.
Humanitarians argue that in countries such as the US, more than three-quarters of grain such as corn and oats are grown to feed farm animals which will be later slaughtered for meat consumption. If this grain could be channelled to feed the millions of people in poor and famine-stricken nations, not only will there be a proper distribution of the world’s resources, there will also be less famine and starvation.
Monetary reasons are also partly responsible for the increase in the number of vegetarians. In these days of inflationary and escalating prices in foodstuff, it is cheaper to include more vegetables in one’s diet. A kilogram of potatoes or carrots only costs a fraction of the price of a kilogram of beef but is high in nutritional value. It is also easier to grow a few chilli or brinjal plants in our own backyards than to raise poultry or livestock.
With health consciousness gaining momentum and with growing environmental awareness, there is every possibility that more and more people will switch to vegetarian diets.
