Page 45 - Spring2008
P. 45

In practice, very few people are satisfi ed  that methane from animals contributes to global warming is just that—a

                 with the flavors and tastes of a diet based exclu-  theory, one that doesn’t even pass the test of common sense.
                 sively on plant foods, even when these foods are     Without urine and manure to nourish the soil, plant farmers need more

                 loaded up with artifi cial flavors, which is why  pesticides, more chemicals. And there’s only one way to eliminate exhaust

                 it is so difficult for most people to remain on a  from farm equipment used to raise plant foods for vegan diets—pull those
                 vegan diet. Vegetables are a lot more interesting  plows with horses and mules.
                 and bring us a lot more joy when dressed with
                 egg yolks and cream or cooked in butter or lard.  11. YOUR BONES WILL LAST LONGER:
                 But if you are a vegan, you’ll be using either      The average bone loss for a vegetarian woman at age 65 is 18
                 liquid or partially hydrogenated vegetable oils,  percent; for non-vegetarian women, it’s double that. Researchers attribute
                 both extremely toxic.                      this to the consumption of excess protein. Excess protein interferes with
                                                            the absorption and retention of calcium and actually prompts the body to
                 10. YOU’LL HELP REDUCE WASTE               excrete calcium, laying the ground for the brittle bone disease osteoporosis.
                 AND AIR POLLUTION:                         Animal proteins, including milk, make the blood acidic, and to balance
                      Livestock farms create phenomenal  that condition, the body pulls calcium from bones. So rather than rely on
                 amounts of waste, tons of manure, a substance  milk for calcium, vegetarians turn to dark green leafy vegetables, such as
                 that’s rated by the Environmental Protection  broccoli and legumes, which, calorie for calorie, are superior sources.
                 Agency (EPA) as a top pollutant. And that’s     References, please?
                 not even counting the methane gas released by     The theory that excess protein causes bone loss was fi rst presented
                 goats, pigs and poultry (which contributes to  in 1968  and followed up in 1972 with a study comparing bone density
                                                                  17
                 the greenhouse effect); the ammonia gases from  of vegetarians and meat eaters.  Twenty-fi ve British lacto-ovo vegetarians
                                                                                     18
                 urine; poison gases that emanate from manure  were matched for age and sex with an equal number of omnivores. Bone
                 lagoons; toxic chemicals from pesticides; and  density, determined by reading X-rays of the third fi nger metacarpal, was
                 exhaust from farm equipment used to raise feed  found to be signifi cantly higher in the vegetarians—these are lacto-ovo
                 for animals.                               vegetarians, not vegans, so they will have good calcium intake.
                      The problem is not animals, which roamed     Dr. Herta Spencer, of the Veterans Administration Hospital in Hines,
                 the earth in huge numbers emitting methane, urine  Illinois, explains that the animal and human studies that correlated calcium
                 and manure long before humans came on the  loss with high protein diets used isolated, fractionated amino acids from
                 scene, but their concentration into confi nement  milk or eggs.  Her studies show that when protein is given as meat, subjects
                                                                      19
                 facilities. Only strong, committed, persistent and  do not show any increase in calcium excreted, or any signifi cant change in
                 focused human effort will accomplish the goal  serum calcium, even over a long period.  Other investigators found that
                                                                                              20
                 of eliminating these abominations—the kind of  a high-protein intake increased calcium absorption when dietary calcium
                 strength, commitment, persistence and focus that  was adequate or high, but not when calcium intake was a low 500 mg per
                 only animal foods rich in cholesterol, zinc, good  day. 21
                 fats and vitamin B  can sustain. In nature and on     So meat alone will not help build strong bones. But meat plus dairy
                                12
                 old-fashioned farms, the urine and manure from  is an excellent combination. The chart below illustrates the diffi culty of
                 animals is not a pollutant but a critical input that  obtaining adequate calcium from green leafy vegetables or legumes and
                 nourishes plant life. As for methane, the theory  contradicts the claim made above that leafy green vegetables and legumes



                                                  NO SUCH THING AS A GUILT-FREE LUNCH
                                                Letter published in the New Yorker, January 7, 2008

                       Bill Buford writes that nobody has a persuasive rejoinder to the vegan belief that sentient, warm-blooded creatures
                   shouldn’t be sacrificed for our sustenance [An article on meat-eating called “Red, White, and Bleu,” December 3, 2007].
                   But if that’s your ethic, you should seriously consider fasting. Countless millions of wee furry beasties, mice, moles and
                   voles, as well as ground-nesting birds, are killed outright or die off from habitat destruction annually, when vast acreages
                   are tilled by huge, mindless machines to grow “ethical” grains and vegetables. More are killed during the growing season
                   by rodenticide grain baits, including zinc phosphide. Small mammals and birds are killed by machinery again at harvest
                   time, and even more are killed by pest-control practices in granaries and processing plants before vegetables get to market.
                   There’s no such thing as a guilt-free lunch.                     Rich Latimer, Falmouth, Massachusetts

                 SPRING 2008                                Wise Traditions                                            45
   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50