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With the risk of heart disease and obesity rising in the United States, some Americans have started eating healthier to prevent themselves from becoming part of the problem. Most people think “eating healthier” means eating more vegetables. While it is true that vegetables are low in calories and have many vitamins required for a balanced diet, does that mean that meat doesn't have these things? Is meat healthy, or even required, for the human body?

In Laura Fraser's article titled “Why I Stopped Being a Vegetarian,” she claims that one of her reasons for becoming a vegetarian in the first place was for health issues, as she claims in this sentence:

“There's a lot of evidence that vegetarians live longer, have lower cholesterol levels and are thinner than meat-eaters.” (Fraser, pg 526, 2000)

However, simply because vegetarians live longer, does not mean that meat is unhealthy. Meat actually has minerals needed in order to keep one's skin and blood healthy.

According to Maxine Frith, a journalist for The Independent, a newspaper from the United Kingdom, states that meat is not only healthy, but a required part of the human diet, in her article:

“This is a controversial argument, but some experts have said that humans are in fact natural meat-eaters - and that to totally eliminate such a big food-group from our diets could be unhealthy. There is a theory that our guts contain bacteria that help us to digest meat, and that not to eat meat could mean that the bacteria are lying idle, so making it easier for diseases to flourish.” (Frith, 2006)

While it is true that eating meat has its risks, such as disease and high cholesterol levels, meat also contains natural sources of minerals, such as iron, zinc, and protein. Although it is debatable that one could easily get the health benefits from meat with a simple daily vitamin pill, it could be argued that consuming an unnatural source for nutrition is not as healthy as getting it from a natural source such as consuming the food itself.

Zinc, which is important for healthy skin and immune system, is found in meats. Research has shown that over half of the teenaged population have zinc deficiencies. According to the Office of Dietary Supplements, eating red meat less than twice a week is the leading cause of zinc deficiencies. While there are other ways of getting zinc, such as oysters and milk, red meat is the most efficient way of getting it into one's body.
The issue of whether or not we should eat meat is quite controversial, as not only health reasons are the main concern to eating meat, but also ethic and environmental issues play a major role as to why some people would rather chow down on an apple rather than sink their teeth into a steak. However, it is possible that meat can be acquired without the use of inhumane actions or the destruction of the environment.

Many vegetarians stopped eating meat because of the horrible way mass corporate farming treats its animals. With the 2006 discovery by undercover PETA members working at Butterball Turkey farms, many people have given their business elsewhere. While it's true that this is not uncommon, a simple solution to this problem is to do some research on the company before buying their products. Instead of buying meat from a big multinational corporation, try buying meat from a free-grazing or local farm. The animals are much happier, less crowded, and are killed much more humanely on a small scale rather than dealing with thousands of animals at a time.

Another factor that plays in is environment. Due to much deforestation of the land in order to raise cattle, many wild species are becoming endangered. One solution to this problem is to conserve more land for wildlife; this way the animals will not be threatened. Another way is to raise less cattle and use tofu as a substitute for burgers; after all, that's what public schools do when they offer meat in the cafeteria. The actual meat content is one percent, and no one can tell the difference.

In conclusion, Should we eat meat? Yes. Should we eat it as often as we do? Probably not. Although it is considered required for a healthy diet, too much of anything can become unhealthy, including vegetables, dairy products, meat, and even water. That's right, ******** water. If you drink too much water, you're kidneys will rupture and you can get poisoned and die a slow horrible death that way. So pretty much saying you don't eat meat because it's unhealthy is bullshit, because almost everything can kill you and make you unhealthy.

Okay, you know what? I just shat this paper out in a day. And it's kind of your fault because you gave us such short notice. I mean, what the hell? You don't give a class a major assignment and make them finish it in a week just because you want to go on vacation for the weekend. I've had to write, like five other essays that were all due the same day this one was and this was kind of the last one I wrote and I'm a little pissed because I'm up at like, 3 am still writing about whether you should eat meat or not. I don't give a s**t if you eat meat or a vegetarian, that's your ******** problem. And another thing, you keep saying your a vegetarian, but just two weeks ago, I saw you at the ******** sushi bar eating salmon. Earth to Ms. Singleton, fish is meat.

You know what? I don't even care anymore, my mom made me take summer classes because she was going to kick me out of the house if i didn't do anything productive this summer. I haven't had a ******** summer vacation since tenth grade, and I can't get a job because I don't have a license. I ******** walk here to the university and back every damn day. I'd ask for a ride from my folks but my mom is too damn negligent and my dad is addicted to coke. And it doesn't really help that I have to take care of my little brother, three cats, a turtle, a bunch of fish, and a ******** dragon, along with my dad who just lies in bed all damn day and snort coke.

In fact, I never even wanted to go to college, that was all mom's idea too. I wanted to be a cop or a pet shop owner, but no one gives a ******** about what I want. Listen, I'm tired, strung up on coffee, and I just want to cry and go to bed. Can you just give me a break and grade this as a C or something? I promise I'll do every other assignment if you just hand wave this piece of crap.