Everything You Didn't Know About Meat

[Mal Conejo]

So, why am I posting this? I feel like there are a lot of people who become vegetarian to try and be "cool" hippie alternative kids. That's pretty lame. On the same token, I think that there are a lot of people consuming meat that don't really give much thought to the impact of that burger clogging up their arteries. So hey, here are some statistics. There's a TL;DR at the bottom if you're too lazy to read this (fairly interesting) block of text.

HUNGER:
Number of people worldwide who will die as a result of malnutrition this year: 20 million.
Number of people who could be adequately fed using land freed if Americans reduced
their intake of meat by 10%: 100 million.
Percentage of corn grown in the U.S. eaten by livestock: 80.
Percentage of oats grown in the U.S. eaten by livestock: 95.
How frequently a child dies as a result of malnutrition: every 2.3 seconds.
Pounds of potatoes that can be grown on an acre: 40,000.
Pounds of beef produced on an acre: 250.
Percentage of U.S. farmland devoted to beef production: 56.
Pounds of grain and soybeans needed to produce a pound of beef: 16

ENVIRONMENT:
Primary cause of greenhouse effect: carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels Fossil fuels needed to produce meat-centered diet vs. a meat-free diet: 3 times more . Percentage of U.S. topsoil lost to date: 75. Percentage of U.S. topsoil loss directly related to livestock raising: 85.
Number of acres of U.S. forest cleared for cropland to produce meat-centered diet: 260 million. Area of tropical rainforest consumed in every quarter-pound of rainforest beef: 55 sq. feet. Current rate of species extinction due to destruction of tropical rainforests for meat grazing and other uses: 1,000 per year.

CHOLESTEROL:
Most common cause of death in the U.S.: heart attack.
How frequently a heart attack kills in the U.S.: every 45 seconds.
Average U.S. man's risk of death from heart attack: 50 percent.
Risk of average U.S. man who eats no meat, dairy or eggs: 4 percent.
Amount you reduce risk if you eliminate meat, dairy and eggs from your diet: 90 percent
Average cholesterol level of people eating meat-centered-diet: 210 mg/dl.
Chance of dying from heart disease if you are male and your blood cholesterol level is
210 mg/dl: greater than 50 percen

PESTICIDES:
Fewer than 1 out of every 250,000 slaughtered animals is tested for toxic chemical
residues.
Percentage of U.S. mother's milk containing significant levels of DDT: 99.
Percentage of U.S. vegetarian mother's milk containing significant levels of DDT: 8.
Contamination of breast milk, due to chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides in animal
products, found in meat-eating mothers vs. non-meat eating mothers: 35 times higher.

ETHICAL CONCERNS:
Number of animals killed for meat per hour in the U.S.: 660,000.
Occupation with the highest turnover rate in U.S.: slaughterhouse worker.
Occupation with the highest rate of on-the-job-injury in U.S.: slaughterhouse worker.

Oh snap. And there you have it. So eat vegetables kids!


TL;DR: don't eat meat and save the world!

[maeora]

i went vegetarian because of this knowledge.
not because my favorite bands were endorsing it.

[Malaresian Lotus]

What about people who can only afford what they can get by day? Sorry i'm not you.

[all was well]

maeora

i went vegetarian because of this knowledge.
not because my favorite bands were endorsing it.

stfu mae, you didn't go vegatarian.
and if you ever did, you know it'd be because olli sykes is for peta.

[Corwin Maranwe]

Mal Conejo

So, why am I posting this? I feel like there are a lot of people who become vegetarian to try and be "cool" hippie alternative kids. That's pretty lame. On the same token, I think that there are a lot of people consuming meat that don't really give much thought to the impact of that burger clogging up their arteries. So hey, here are some statistics. There's a TL;DR at the bottom if you're too lazy to read this (fairly interesting) block of text.

HUNGER:
Number of people worldwide who will die as a result of malnutrition this year: 20 million.
Number of people who could be adequately fed using land freed if Americans reduced
their intake of meat by 10%: 100 million.
Percentage of corn grown in the U.S. eaten by livestock: 80.
Percentage of oats grown in the U.S. eaten by livestock: 95.
How frequently a child dies as a result of malnutrition: every 2.3 seconds.
Pounds of potatoes that can be grown on an acre: 40,000.
Pounds of beef produced on an acre: 250.
Percentage of U.S. farmland devoted to beef production: 56.
Pounds of grain and soybeans needed to produce a pound of beef: 16

ENVIRONMENT:
Primary cause of greenhouse effect: carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels Fossil fuels needed to produce meat-centered diet vs. a meat-free diet: 3 times more . Percentage of U.S. topsoil lost to date: 75. Percentage of U.S. topsoil loss directly related to livestock raising: 85.
Number of acres of U.S. forest cleared for cropland to produce meat-centered diet: 260 million. Area of tropical rainforest consumed in every quarter-pound of rainforest beef: 55 sq. feet. Current rate of species extinction due to destruction of tropical rainforests for meat grazing and other uses: 1,000 per year.

CHOLESTEROL:
Most common cause of death in the U.S.: heart attack.
How frequently a heart attack kills in the U.S.: every 45 seconds.
Average U.S. man's risk of death from heart attack: 50 percent.
Risk of average U.S. man who eats no meat, dairy or eggs: 4 percent.
Amount you reduce risk if you eliminate meat, dairy and eggs from your diet: 90 percent
Average cholesterol level of people eating meat-centered-diet: 210 mg/dl.
Chance of dying from heart disease if you are male and your blood cholesterol level is
210 mg/dl: greater than 50 percen

PESTICIDES:
Fewer than 1 out of every 250,000 slaughtered animals is tested for toxic chemical
residues.
Percentage of U.S. mother's milk containing significant levels of DDT: 99.
Percentage of U.S. vegetarian mother's milk containing significant levels of DDT: 8.
Contamination of breast milk, due to chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides in animal
products, found in meat-eating mothers vs. non-meat eating mothers: 35 times higher.

ETHICAL CONCERNS:
Number of animals killed for meat per hour in the U.S.: 660,000.
Occupation with the highest turnover rate in U.S.: slaughterhouse worker.
Occupation with the highest rate of on-the-job-injury in U.S.: slaughterhouse worker.

Oh snap. And there you have it. So eat vegetables kids!


TL;DR: don't eat meat and save the world!

Okay, now provide proof of all of these claims, and sources for these numbers.

I'll wait.

[SoullessRetainer]

I wish I could change my diet and stop eating meat but some meat has vital nutrients in it. Aside from that, meat is the only food I can get myself to actually eat. I can't eat vegetables all of my life..

[maeora]

all was well

maeora

i went vegetarian because of this knowledge.
not because my favorite bands were endorsing it.

stfu mae, you didn't go vegatarian.
and if you ever did, you know it'd be because olli sykes is for peta.

no.
i went before oli started endorsing peta.
rolleyes

[Mal Conejo]

II Esoteric II

What about people who can only afford what they can get by day? Sorry i'm not you.

I'll give it to you that McDonalds' Dollar Menu offers the best possible calorie count per penny spent and IS the only available option for some people, but look at that first bit regarding hunger. If more people were vegetarian, it would be easier to supply larger numbers of people with more food. Considering how supply/demand economics works, increased supply with relatively consistent demand lowers prices. Therefore, if more people were vegetarian, even people like yourself would be able to afford lower-impact, healthier meals.

[Corwin Maranwe]

Also, know those front teeth we've got? The incisors and canines? Guess what those were made for?

OHSNAP, MEAT!

We were meant to consume and digest flesh AND vegetable. Not one or the other. Not all vegetarians are the healthiest people in the world.

[Rejected Barbie Dawl]

I enjoy my meat.
Nothing can change that.

[all was well]

maeora

all was well

maeora

i went vegetarian because of this knowledge.
not because my favorite bands were endorsing it.

stfu mae, you didn't go vegatarian.
and if you ever did, you know it'd be because olli sykes is for peta.

no.
i went before oli started endorsing peta.
rolleyes

right. that's why you ate steak last week. rolleyes

[iiPerfectly_Imperfect]

I can't not eat meat.

[For The Overmind]

I eat meat because it's tasty and gets me protein.

I don't have much of my own money, and I'm certainly not going to waste it on veggie substitutes.

And if I DID have money, I'd eat meat anyway just to spite you smug bastards.

[Colorfull Crayonz]

I wish I could go vegetarian, but my parents claim that I won't get enough protein.

[Mal Conejo]

Darklink262

I wish I could change my diet and stop eating meat but some meat has vital nutrients in it. Aside from that, meat is the only food I can get myself to actually eat. I can't eat vegetables all of my life..

Pretty much the only major vital nutrient that you'd have trouble getting elsewhere would be protein. That's really easy to get, however, if you eat nuts (obligatory lolololnuts), peanut butter, or brown rice, all of which are delicious. Furthermore, if you eat peanut butter with toast or celery (seemingly the two most common combinations), then you'll be getting even more essential nutrients. Nuts are also high in calories and fats, so they'll give an otherwise protein-lacking diet an extra energy boost as well.

Other than that, there are few essential nutrients you'd be missing. Most generic brand foods these days are fortified with a ton of nutrients, especially juices. Even many breads are fortified. Failing that, there are always fairly cheap nutrient tablets. However, paying even the slightest amount of attention to one's diet can make those unnecessary.