Becoming a vegan provides us with a great opportunity to improve our eating habits and, consequently, to improve our health. Becoming vegan eliminates unhealthy saturated fats from our diet. Red and processed meat, poultry, eggs and dairy are all foods that have been medically linked to ischemic heart disease, high blood pressure, type II diabetes, hypertension, obesity and some types of cancer (Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. December 2016)
Red Meat - all mammalian muscle meat including, beef, veal, pork, lamb, mutton, horse, and goat
Processed Meat - meat that has been transformed through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavour or improve preservation. Most processed meats contain pork or beef, but processed meats may also contain other red meats, poultry, offal, or meat by-products such as blood.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), consumption of red meat may be associated with small increases in the risk of several cancers. In a 2014 study, a limited connection was indicated between eating red meat and certain forms of colon cancer. In the case of processed meat, the same study offered convincing evidence that eating processed meat, without a doubt, causes colon cancer (WHO: IARC Monographs Programme Committee, 2014)
Poultry - Includes chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, guinea fowl, and Cornish game hens
Poultry meat can be contaminated by infectious agents that are harmful to humans. Poultry products can also be contaminated with the antimicrobial and anti-parasitic drugs or pesticides used on farms. The ingestion of antimicrobials can cause antimicrobial-resistant bacteria to develop in humans. Campylobacter and Salmonella infections are among the most serious food safety hazards. These bacteria account for more than 90 percent of all reported cases of bacteria-related food poisonings worldwide. Most of these cases are related to the consumption of poultry and poultry products (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations).
Read Lurking Beneath the Shell: Health Concerns with Eggs (Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine - pcrm.org).
Most cows raised for
the dairy industry are treated like milk-producing machines and are genetically
manipulated and pumped full of antibiotics and hormones to
produce the maximum amount of milk. While cows suffer on factory farms, humans who drink their
milk increase their chances of developing heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and
many other ailments (www.PETA.org).
Film: Forks Over Knives
Forks Over Knives is a 2011 American documentary film that advocates a low-fat, whole-food, plant-based diet as a way to avoid or reverse several chronic diseases.
www.netflix.com/forksoverknives