The Benefits of being a vegetarian:
1.Helps cleanse the Body's System- a vegetarian diet is more rich in fibre, vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidant
2.Creative Eating!- the colorful variety of fruits and vegetables helps promote healthy eating.
3.Boosts cardio Vascular Health- helps lower homocysteine levels (associated with heart disease).
4. Longevity- A longer life span! 
the link below has more information and fun ways to become a vegetarian or ways to begin a healthy diet.
http://www.happycow.net/humor.html

Too much meat is bad for your health

Consequences of Eating Too Much Meat

Recently, people been eating too much meat. 20 percent of them are more likely to develop cancer, especially if they eat a lot of red meat.  in particular, has been linked to heavy meat consumption. Meat also contains lots of saturated fat and cholesterol, which can lead to heart disease.

Processed meats, such as hot dogs, often contain nitrate, a preservative that may become carcinogenic when heated to high temperatures during the cooking process. Marinading meat in vinegar, or microwaving it before cooking, can help reduce the number of carcinogenic HCAs in meat. However, meat may also contain high levels of hormones, which can trigger reproductive problems and early-onset puberty in children.

Your kidneys work to remove excess protein from your body, so eating too much protein can stress them out, leading to kidney damage and even contributing to renal failure in some cases. High dietary protein levels cause your body to excrete more calcium.

Eating meat has long been a measure of both wealth and health. But it turns out that a diet excessively rich in red and processed meats may be deadly, according to a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine on Monday.

Americans spend $142 billion annually on beef, chicken, pork, turkey and lamb at retail and food-service outlets, according to the market research firm Packaged Facts. Though from the 10-year observational study of more than 545,000 people, they should probably spend significantly less. The study, whose participants were aged 50 to 71, found that 11% and 16% of deaths in men and women, respectively, would have been less likely with diminished red meat intake. More than 70,000 participants died between 1995 and 2005.

Eating Meat Safely

Participants were aged 50 to 71, found that 11% and 16% of deaths in men and women, respectively, would have been less likely with diminished red meat intake. More than 70,000 participants died between 1995 and 2005.

While eating too much meat can be dangerous, meat is a good source of complete proteins. Your body needs these proteins to maintain cellular tissue, so it's a good idea to eat some meat every day. The United States Department of Agriculture recommends that adults eat five to six ounces of meat per day.

Reducing Your Meat Consumption

If you're eating more than the recommended daily allowance of meat, you should probably consider lowering your meat consumption. Red meat carries the highest risks of heartdisease and cancer, so eating more poultry and pork can help lower your risk. Serve smaller portions of meat at meals. Eating higher quality cuts of meat, in smaller portions, can help curb your meat cravings without putting your health at risk.

If you're eating too much meat, replace some of the meat in your diet with non-meat sources of protein. Beans, legumes, whole grains and dairy products all contain protein. Nuts, seeds, eggs and soy foods are good choices. While fish and seafood might technically be meats, they don't carry the same risks as do red meat, pork and poultry, because they are so low in saturated fats and cholesterol; fish and seafood can safely take the place of other meats in your diet.

Your body needs about eight grams of protein per 20 pounds of body weight per day. You can get much of this protein from non-meat sources. Non-meat protein sources often don't contain as much saturated fat or cholesterol as meat, especially red meat. They also often contain healthy fats, vitamins and minerals that your body needs.

Meat in Culture

We live in a western influenced world. One of the many influences that come with that is a large animal based diet. From dairy products to the flesh of an animal, the human population has gone through a rapid increase of consumed meat. Here in the United States of America we are one of the largest consumers of meat, if not the largest. In 2002 America had the second highest level of meat consumption right behind Denmark. Though this information is over a decade old it shows us the steady increase of meat in our diet. At some points it was dramatic, like how China doubled its consumption from the years 1990 to 2000. If you would like to see the consumption of meat per capita, you can find it here.

Meat in Different Religions
Eating meat can be looked at different from various religions. Like in Christianity, eating meat is pretty much just a normal occurrence. In Buddhism meat eating is not looked at negatively but Buddha advised his people not to eat meat. Religion highly influences what a person may or may not believe which leads to groups of people with very different sets of ideas. Just how mentioned earlier Christianity takes meat consumption lightly but in Judaism many scholars believe that God wanted man to be vegetarian. Also, in Islamic culture many people eat meat but of course they have regulations. In Islam it is forbidden to eat any pork, as well as blood, and animals that were not killed properly. To see more religions and their practices on meat eating you can find it here.

Opposition of Meat Consumption in the Media
There are many people that identify as either vegetarian of vegan. I'm sure most of you know family or friends who are vegan or vegetarian. Maybe for some of you organizations such as PETA may come to mind. PETA stands for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, and I guess that is pretty self explanatory. On top of this there are many influential people and celebrities that are either vegan or vegetarian. One of these people include Albert Einstein who said that being vegetarian benefit people.

Being vegetarian is great for some one's health since the intake of fat would be greatly decreased. Other than Einstein there are a number of famous people that can be named. Not just people but bands as well like Rise Against, ACXDC, The Smiths, Gorilla Biscuits, and many more. Even in sports some people take part in this practice. Like in skateboarding there are notable vegans like Geoff Rowley, Ed Templeton, and Steve Berra. Celebrities that are vegan or vegetarian include Woody Harrelson, Ellen Degeneres, Anne Hathaway, Olivia Wilde, and the list goes on and on. List of famous people who happen to be vegan.

About Us

Hello! We are a group of first year students attending California State University of Northridge.
 My name is Monica Andrade and currently I am undecided, but I am interested in majoring in exercise science.What I would like readers to gain from our blog is that they are knowledgeable about what the meat they are eating. Also, this opens people eyes to what really goes into making that steak, bacon, or fried chicken. The most interesting thing I found out about our meat consumption is how much it effects our environment. I had some kind of idea that meat consumption effected our world, but never knew it was a major factor. It was also shocking to read that it would be more beneficial for our atmosphere if we all switch to a vegetarian diet than if everyone switch to hybrids. Doing this research made me realize that I made the right choice of becoming vegetarian. When I first made this decision everyone told me that it was a dumb and I will not last, but here I am a year later meat free. I plan to continue to this life style and hopefully I can I switch others to a vegetarian diet. If you agree with our position try make changes to your diet. Your health won't be the only thing that well benefit, but also our animals and earth.
My name is Miguel Munoz and I am working on this blog as well. I'm a student who is majoring in business management. I'd like for those who read this blog to just enjoy and maybe learn something they did not already know. I had no idea that the consumption of meat had increased over the years, and it's weird to me how so many people just oppose eating meat all together. During the process of making this blog I've learned quite a bit and as for me, I've always wanted to cut down on the amount of meat I eat but I'm not so sure if I can do it. If anyone reading this feels like cutting down on meat I would suggest that you do. My name is Wei Hung Lai and I am a freshman of college. My major is CTVA. I like to play basketball and play sports in my free time. My name is Silvia Valencia, I'm interested in helping others and I like to go on long walks during my free time.I hope that the readers learn about the alternative life style, becoming a vegetarian can be very beneficial for your health.I think the most interest thing I learned in this project is the mistreatmeant of the animals. The animals are slaughtered to death and helpless. I have cut down on meat a lot lately, since I watched the animal videos. Maybe one day I will become vegeatarian, but for now i'm just cutting down on it.
My name is Ioannis Karseras and I am from Cyprus. I am studying jazz music, I play double bass and in my free time I like to go swimming. From my post I want the readers realize how animals suffer in factory farms because of the big meat consumption and also to pay attention how people in factory farms behave to those animals. From this project I learned a lot of information that I couldn't even think about. First of all, that people doesn't care about animals and left them suffering without care for them, they just want those animals get fat as they can with every way and later sell them.   I also learn how better is for our health to eat more vegetables rather to eat meat that lead people to serious diseases and the most interesting is that effect in negative way the environment. I recommend to people that eat daily meat to try to eat less for the good of their health, environment and the animals.

Meat Consumption Background

     Meat can be part of a balanced diet contributing valuable nutrients that are beneficial to health. Meat and meat products contain important levels of protein, vitamins, minerals and micronutrients which are essential for growth and development. Further processing of meat offers the opportunity to add value, reduce prices, improve food safety and extend the shelf life. This can result in increased household income and improved nutrition.  

     Eating meat is part of the daily life of billions of people all over the world. Every day thousands of animals are killed for the production of meat food for people. However, studies have shown that meat is not essential for our existence and gives us nothing more than the other foods on the market. Meat consumption may not harm you or the surrounding environment immediately but there are consequences and sooner or later they will appear. 

     A meatless diet is healthier than a diet containing meat. According to surveys and examinations of the contents of the food products, meat contains more fat than non-meat foods. Since it is very difficult for our bodies to process high quantities of fat and it is being accumulated in our bodies, fat consuming causes many health problems. According to the American Heart Association, the fat in the food we eat should be no more than 30 percent of the total calories we consume daily. However, this is very difficult to achieve when meat is part of our daily meal plan.

This links speaks about how United Nations came out with a case study informing us that we need to cut down on meat.If we do not our planet we not be able to function properly with our diets high in meats and dairy. One can agree with the article when it mentions it's simplier to find alternive foods than alterive fossil fuels.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jun/02/un-report-meat-free-diet

Questions That May Come Up About The Increase Meat Consumption.

How much has the consumption of meat increased?
Throughout the world the meat production has tripled over the last four decades and increased by 20% in the last 10 years. People believe by 2050 twice as much meat will be produce, and in total there will be more than 465 million tons. Here we have a chart that shows meat consumption has increased from 1909 to 2012.

http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5443

Why has the demand of meat increased? 

Has our population has a whole continues to grow so does our demand for meat. Rising food prices are pushing consumers to choose cheaper cuts of meat. Also people have found out by feeding hungry countries with meat reduces the hunger and malnutrition in poorer nations. 

According to Danielle Nierenberg, director of the institute’s Nourishing the Planet project and co-author of the report on farm animal populations believes, “Urbanization and rising incomes particularly in developing and emerging countries. China, Brazil, India – they’ve all seen their middle class or consumer class rise over the last 30 years. And what tends to happen when people have a little bit more money to spend is they spend it on higher quality food. They tend to buy more milk or cheese or meat."

How is our high demand for meat being supplied?

Our little farms can no longer keep up with our high demand. They have been replaced with these factory farms or CAFOs, concentrated animal feed operations. Worldwide, some 56 billion animals are raised and slaughtered for food each year.These facilities rely on commercial breeds of livestock, usually pigs and chickens, that have been bred to gain weight quickly on high-protein feeds. Below is an photo of what some of our farms look like today.

http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5443 

Who are the major consumers?

There aren't any specific consumers because seems like nearly everyone meats some kind of meat. Here is a chart that shows the top countries of meat eaters.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2012/06/27/155527365/visualizing-a-nation-of-meat-eaters

Factory Farming

The large consumption of meat in recent years has caused terrible living condition for animals in factory farms. First of all, animals suffer their whole lives, being controlled by humans that do not care for their living condition. Because of their large numbers, the animals don’t have the space that they need to live naturally. They are fed with substitute feeds that are not natural and they don’t have any contact with nature. These animals are suffering in small, dirty sheds, cooped into a cage that increases the possibility for diseases. This can also affect the consumers. Why must these animals suffer their whole lives? People have to be aware these conditions and stop treating animals so barbarically. Animals are not just food, they have lives.

One kind of animal in factory farms is the pig. Every year in United States, 110 million pigs are killed for food. As picture above shows, those pigs are living and dying into factories' crates with no sun and fresh air. When piglets are born, people assort them from their mothers when they are just 10 days old and later on they separate them for meat or breeding. The Professor of Cambridge University, Dr Donald Broom supports that pigs are intelligent animals, “Pigs can play video games, and when given the choice, they have indicated temperature preferences in their surroundings.” This means that pigs are more sensitive than we think they are and they are aware of their surroundings and feel pain.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_vqIGTKuQE&feature=player_detailpage&vhs=1#!

This video is about how a food company called Smithfield Foods is inhumane. It treats the animals horribly just because they're going to end up dying anyways.  People who made the video are trying to get this topic wide spread so they can stop this abuse of the animals.

Meat is Hurting Our Environment !

Some people may not understand how their bacon, ribs, hamburger, or orange chicken could possibly be hurting our environment. What some may not see is that through this process to keep up with our high demands for meat our water resources get contaminated, allows global warming to occur, and land degradation.

In the photo is shows how much food, water, land, and fossil fuels go into making just a quarter pound of beef. All these resources could be saved or used for a more efficient purpose than just for a quarter pound of meat. Has the photo above shows we are putting so much energy and time to only get a what our society would consider now a small amount of meat.

Water Pollution

Just like us, animals need a whole lot of water. To simply make a pound of beef one needs to provide 1,799 gallons of water, 576 gallons for a pound of pork, 468 gallons for a pound chicken and 216 gallons for a pound soy beans. Now picture having to supply water to more than 465 million tons of meat in 2050 if we continue to consume large amounts of meats. This is not only thing cutting our water supply, but also polluting our water source because the factory farms.
Animals produces ten times more waste than human population and there is not really place for it to go, but to be used as fertilizer. Their feces can be very contaminated with nitrogen and phosphorus because the food animals eat are contaminated with 37% pesticide. This later contaminates water with bacterias, hormones, antibiotics, and toxic chemicals. This industrial farms store the animals' feces it in places called lagoons until they need it as fertilizer. To the right is a photo of a lagoon and a factory farm. You can tell it is a lagoon by the ugly color of the water. Instead of having a pit of poop we could have farm land to grow vegetables or for better usages.
These lagoons average about 20 acres and 15 ft deep filled with millions of gallons feces. When it is finally used for fertilizer it sinks into the ground and then can contaminate our groundwater, and runs off into freshwater. There also are times when these brown lagoon spill. In 2005 in Lowville, New York a spill consumed the Black River and killed nearly 250,000 fishes and polluted 35,000 miles of river in 22 surrounding states. Not only did it contaminate the river it also contaminated ground water of 17 states. With excess of nutrients in the manure, these spills cause large grow of algae which reduces the amount of oxygen in the water and causes fish to die. The pollution of these lagoons also contaminating and destroying our ocean ecosystem. This may lead to certain marine life numbers to drop or even lead to extinction.

In the link below it speaks about how our livestock is the largest sector to water pollution and "coastal dead zones". Also what well happen in the long run if we continue pollute our environment.
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2006/1000448/

Land Degradation

Another issue effecting our environment is land degradation. These industrial farms need to more land to raise these large amount of livestock. Already farm animals use 2/3 of available of agriculture land. The U.S has nearly 55% soil erosion because of our high demand of meat. This high need of meat is killing our soil that we may need one day, but it well no longer be good anymore. According to scientists at the Smithsonian Institution, 

 "More than 260 million acres of U.S. forest have been cleared to create cropland to grow grain to feed farmed animals."

This is not only happening but in other countries has while. In the Amazon has created about 70% of the land for cattle ranching and pastures. This idea is known has deforestation. This has push animals out of their homes and may also going back to the idea of extinction. This also apples to our ocean life.

In the political cartoon below is portraying that we are only hurting ourselves by clearing out forests for our human wants. By not being to see this it is like death is blinding us from reality. The cutting down of the trees is polluting the world around us.

Global Warming
Methane is found to store more heat than carbon dioxide. Animals release methane when they burp, fart, and breath. In November 2006 FAO identified that livestock is a bigger factor to global warming than our transportation sector with the statistics 18% vs 13%. Although some may argue that the production of plants also needs energy and water; however, according to PETA's article," Meat Production Wastes Natural Resources" it states that, 

"It takes more than 11 times as much fossil fuel to make one calorie from animal protein as it does to make one calorie from plant protein."

Animal protein production releases more carbon dioxide than plant production. Livestock is found to be tied to GHG emission. If we switch our diet to a meatless or just by eating less meat we would save 1.49 tons of carbon dioxide than switching all our cars to hybrids, 1.05 ton carbon dioxide.
 A supporter of reducing our meat consumption is Dr Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which he recently won a Nobel Peace Prize.

This link below speaks more about Rajendra Pachauri and his reasoning for why we cut down on  the amount of meat we consume. He talks about how this large demand for eat and production of meat is causing climate change. 
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/sep/07/food.foodanddrink

In the quotes below it speaks about how livestock was created by our human population. Livestock is creating more carbon dioxide that the plants can not keep with it. We are destroying a majority of plant masses because we are making space to expand our industrial farms.

"Livestock (like automobiles) are a human invention and convenience, not part of pre-human times, and a molecule of CO₂ exhaled by livestock is no more natural than one from an auto tailpipe. Moreover, while over time an equilibrium of CO₂ may exist between the amount respired by animals and the amount photosynthesized by plants, that equilibrium has never been static. Today, tens of billions more livestock are exhaling CO₂, while Earth’s photosynthetic capacity (its capacity to keep carbon out of the atmosphere by absorbing it in plant mass) has declined sharply as forest has been cleared. (Meanwhile, of course, we add more carbon to the air by burning fossil fuels, further overwhelming the carbon-absorption system.)"

If we continue to increase livestock and decrease plants life than we are for sure going to burn our planet up because there well not be anymore plants to stuck up the carbon dioxide because we've destroyed them to help support our high demand for meats. Our carbon footprint is predicted to grow bigger and bigger has our appetite for meats grows. We can easily avoid all this unnecessary pollution simple by cutting back on our consumption of meat.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/michellemaisto/2012/04/28/eating-less-meat-is-worlds-best-chance-for-timely-climate-change-say-experts/