THE QUESTION OF BEING A VEGETARIAN VEG-MEAT.TXT ********************************************************************** It is interesting to note that most westerners believe that man's body is designed to eat meat. Even when confronted with the real scientific facts that this in not so, they continue to persist in this belief. This belief is built into western culture. Some say we have canine teeth so we must be meat eaters. In reality we do not have real canine teeth, examine the ratio of the canine tooth length of a dog to the rest of its teeth and do the same for human teeth. Our bodies are designed to have high survival capability in the difficult survival conditions, so we can eat meat to survive if we have no other choices. 1. Is it natural to eat meat ? Human digestive system, tooth and jaw structure, natural instincts, and body functions are absolutely distinct from that of carnivorous animals. carnivorous animals share many unique characteristics which set them apart from all other members of the animal kingdom: very short bowels - 3 times the length of the body - for rapid expulsion of purtefactive bacteria from decomposing flesh; stomachs with ten times as much hydrochloric acid as non-carnivorous animals, to digest fibrous tissues and bones; exclusive up-and-down motion of jaws; sharply pointed, elongated canines; lack of molar teeth. These facts are now clearly accepted as truths in the scientific and medical communities, but for some reason, the myth that humans bodies are designed to eat meat continues to persist in our culture. A human is clearly not a carnivore by nature-his or her anatomy and digestive system show that s/he must have evolved for millions of years living on fruits, nuts, grains and vegetables. As is the case of the anthropoid ape, man's bowels are 12 times the length of of his or her body, being designed for the slow digestion of vegetables and fruits, which are noted for their slow decay. (A cow's digestive track is 13 times its body length.) 2. Are there dangers in eating meat ? Poisoning-Just before and during the agony of being slaughtered, the biochemistry of the terrified animal undergoes profound changes as it struggles for life. Toxic by-products and large quantities of adrenaline are forced throughout the body, thus pain poisoning the entire carcass. According to the Encyclopedia Britannia, body poisons, including uric acid and other toxic wastes are present in the blood and tissue. "...protein obtained from nuts, pulses (lentils, peas etc.), grains, and dairy products is said to be relatively pure compared to beef with a 50% impure water content." The fats of animal flesh, such as cholesterol, line the walls of blood vessels, and as a meat eater gets older, the openings of his vessels get smaller and smaller. Pressure on the heart increases: heart failure, high blood pressure and stroke result. In our society (the highest meat consumers in the world), one person in four will die of heart disease or related blood vessel disease, whereas these diseases are relatively unheard of in societies where meat consumption is low. Among the most prominent wastes that a meat eater loads his or her system with are urea and uric acid (nitrogen compounds). Beefsteak, for example, contains about 14 grams uric acid per pound. An american doctor analyzed the urine of meat eaters and vegetarians and found the kidneys of meat-eaters have to do three times the amount of work to eliminate poisonous nitrogen compounds in meat than do the kidneys of vegetarians. When people are young, they are usually able to bear this extra burden so that no evidence of injury or disease appears; but, as the kidneys age and become worn out prematurely, they become unable to do their work effectively, and kidney disease is the frequent result. When kidneys can no longer handle the excessively heavy load of a meat-eating diet, the un excreted uric acid is deposited throughout the body. There it is absorbed by the muscles like a sponge soaking up water, and later it can harden and form crystals. When this happens in the joints, painful conditions of gout, arthritis, rheumatism result; when the uric acid collects in the nerves, neuritis and sciatica occur. Now many doctors are advising patients suffering from these diseases to stop eating meat completely or to drastically reduce the amount of meat they eat. By the time a person who has been a heavy meat eater all his life reaches about 40 years old, they may have 5 to 15 pounds of un eliminated toxic waste products that result from meat eating coating their colons. This keeps the colon from performing its proper functions and is now believed to be the main reason for colon cancer. The main reason most informed westerners become vegetarians is health. Consistently all medical studies done to date show that vegetarians get sick less often, are overally healthier and live longer than meat eaters. There are a number of "spiritual and ethical" reasons that some people have for not eating meat. These will be addressed in another article.