What is a Vegetarian, and Why?

A vegetarian is a person who abstains from consumption as food of all animal flesh, including meat, poultry and fish.

• The term vegetarian is derived from the Latin vegetus meaning "full of life".
• Lacto-ovo vegetarians eat dairy products and eggs but exclude any part of an animal as food.
• Vegans abstain from using all animal-derived products including dairy produce and eggs.

Reasons why people become vegetarian

Health: Vegetarians live longer and have reduced risk of lifestyle diseases, obesity and hypertension. Animal fat and meat has been linked conclusively with an increase in heart disease, stroke, colon and breast cancer, liver and kidney disease, depletion of bone mass, arthritis, and a host of other afflictions. Vital foods build vital bodies.

Humane: To stop the exploitation of animals by intensive breeding and cruelty, and needless slaughter. It has become the conviction of many of the world’s deepest thinkers that cruelty shown to animals stands as a blot upon humanity, retarding our progress. Wise sages have prescribed Ahimsa (non injury or harmlessness), as the most effective method to counteract and eradicate the brutal, cruel tendencies in people.

Ethics: The knowledge that other creatures have feelings very similar to our own. The average meat-eater during their lifetime is personally responsible for the slaughter of 5 cows, 20 pigs, 30 sheep, 760 chickens, 46 turkeys, 15 ducks, 7 rabbits, 1 1/2 geese and 1/2 tonne of fish.

World Hunger: There are some 800 million people in the world with barely enough to eat, yet 80% of the world’s agricultural land is used for feeding animals and only 20% for feeding humans directly. It takes approximately 80lbs of vegetable protein to produce 1lb of animal protein.

Anatomical: Humans are closer to herbivores than carnivores. Compare...