By Katie Hobkirk Santa Monica
I, being a vegetarian, am saddened to see of all the people who look down upon us or ignore us all together. Most people believe we’re annoying to tell them to change their eating habits. I’m here to be another one of those people. You should be vegetarians because many studies show that it lowers your risk of certain diseases, it saves lives of animals, and it gives you more energy during the day.
Many people may say that being a vegetarian helps you live longer. This is a proven fact. According to the German Cancer Research Center, vegetarians have a less likely risk of diseases like cancer, any digestive disorders, and more. In the long run you don’t have to worry about diseases as much. You might think that vegetarians are fatigued because they don’t eat meat, but really they’re perfectly fine. Why wouldn’t someone become a vegetarian if they know it’ll lower their risk of dying from diseases?
Vegetarians don’t eat meat and therefore save animals. I personally have a soft spot for animals and what they must go through just because some people want food. On petakids.com, it says that each vegetarian saves 100 lives a year. I’m proud to be someone who saves 100 lives a year. Why take lives when you could be saving them? More people should be vegetarians for the sake of the animals that are slaughtered just for food.
Finally, I will say that being a vegetarian gives you more energy. In 6th grade, my science teacher taught us about distribution of energy. She told us that on a pyramid of energy the most energy-rich thing you could eat was plants. People who eat meat only get a small percent of the energy. There I can conclude that being a vegetarian gives more energy during the day and in general.
Being a vegetarian saves animals’ lives, lowers your risk of certain diseases, and gives you more energy. So why wait any longer? Go vegetarian today.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 5, 2008. Read the original PDF.