Week One. In the bag.

One week in, I'm feeling great.

There's a certain momentum that start happening when you decide you don't want to eat meat for more than health reasons. I initially did this for my health. I wanted to avoid heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and worsening mental health issues. The evidence that a meat diet contributes to these ailments is established. There really isn't arguing it. In the US, health insurance is less expensive for vegetarians and vegans as the health benefits are abundant.

Then I started learning about hormones and anti-biotics being fed to the animals. This was still a health concern, but suddenly, I had concern for the lives of these animals. These animals that live solely to feed us. That isn't right. A chicken lives 18 months. If it's a broiler chicken (used for meat), it's plumped up so badly, it's legs often break from excessive growth. If it's a layer chicken (used for eggs), it's killed after it's first year of laying because it won't lay as many eggs as the first year. The industry has decided it's more cost efficient to kill an already existing chicken and replace it with a new chicken. Doesn't that strike you as off? As ridiculous? As inhumane?

Pork is another horrendous story after another. The first thing you need to know is that pigs are highly intelligent and social. Without a traditional farm structure where they can roll around in mud and play and socialize, pigs are stressed. In factory farming, at least 15% of pigs die simply from being born. They don't handle the hormones and medication. They get no exercise and the only socializing they do, is to tell each other from crates that they hurt and are miserable. So they just drop dead. And when a pig is stressed, it releases hormones that destroys the flesh. In these pigs, the reaction is so bad, the meat putrefies. It's what's used in dog and cat food as it's not fit for human consumption. So what about pigs that live through the factory farming process? Well, have you ever had plain ham? Ham that wasn't honey roasted, or smoked, or salted? Probably not. Why? Because no matter how hard we try, pigs know they are about to be slaughtered. They get stressed and release some of those hormones I mentioned. Not enough to destroy the meat, but bad enough to make it bitter. That's why ham is prepared as it is. Not for it to taste wonderful, but for it not to repel you.


And if you think family farming is any better, consider this. Pigs, cows, and chickens are now artificially inseminated. They are NOT genetically equal to the same animals 80-100 years ago. Unless you're buying 'Heritage' meats, you're still buying genetically altered animals that shouldn't be fit for human consumption, no matter how humanely they are treated and killed.

Just a little food for thought.