Vegetarianism seems more popular than ever . Veggie hamburger gracility menus and barbecues across the land . Children and teenager declare themselves vegetarian to assert dietary independency from their parents . Vegetarian cosmetics and cruelty - free clothes occupy recession drugstores and high-pitched - closing shops . But although vegetarianism is trendy , sometimes rebellious and decidedly modern , it ’s in reality one of the former diets . Some cultures have subsisted without meat for millennia . Socrates , Plato , Leonardo da Vinci , Charles Darwin and Thomas Edison were all vegetarian [ generator : VegNews ] .
The vegetariandietis straightforward enough : Vegetarians do not eat meat . Some people who head off beef and pork but still eat poultry or fish erroneously reckon themselves vegetarian . Although vegetarianism has varying degrees , the dieting ’s core principle is abstention from all meat . Most vegetarians arelacto - ovo - vegetarians– they do not eat core but they allow dairy farm products and testicle . Lacto - vegetariansallow dairy farm , andovo - vegetariansallow eggs . Vegansavoid all animal intersection – meat , dairy , eggs , leather , woolen , silk and evenhoney .
There is , however , plenty for vegetarian to deplete . Lacto - ovo vegetarian eat yield , veg , grains , addict , seeds , legumes , dairy and eggs . They eat meat substitutes like soybean - basedtofuandtempeh , andseitan , a straw protein . Ethnic cooking ’s grow popularity has also opened up a world of novel vegetarianfoodsto vegetarians and substance - eater likewise . Middle Eastern , North African , Amerindic and Asian foods are often vegetarian or easily can be made so .
In this clause , we ’ll learn about why people become vegetarian , the degrees of vegetarianism and how the bm has evolved.
Reasons for Vegetarianism
Even with vegetarianism ’s various degree of stringency , the core dieting is simply abstention from nitty-gritty . But that one decisiveness – the decision not to eat meat – can have a peck behind it . vegetarian choose theirdietfor many reasons . Some are health - conscious , some believe animal agriculture hurts the surroundings and others have moral or spiritual objections to core .
Health
Vegetarianism has become a popular health dieting . Vegetarian favorites like fruit , vegetable , whole grain , and legume are humiliated infatandcholesteroland rich infiber , vitaminsCandE , K , folateandmagnesium . The American Dietetic Association even reports that vegetarian have lowerblood force per unit area , cholesterin andbody mass indexesthan non - vegetarian [ source : ADA ] . Of course , no diet is mechanically goodish . vegetarian must make trusted theytake in enoughprotein , calciumandvitamin B12without overindulging in fatty , high - caloriefoods like cheese .
Environment
Many vegetarian are as concerned with the Earth ’s well - being as they are with their own . Some vegetarians select the dieting for environmental grounds because they consider traditional agriculture has less of an ecologic impingement than beast agriculture . Learn more about this unquestionably modern reason for vegetarianism inHow Vegans Work .
Moral and Religious
People commonly try not to think about where their meat comes from . It can be unpleasant to imagine your hamburger as a wide - eyed moo-cow in the ley , let alone as an unhealthful animate being in a hamper factory farm . But for many vegetarians , dissociation or defense is inconceivable . They often feel morally ineffectual to eat animals mow down for their kernel . Vegans take their ethical objections a footprint further and refuse to eat dairy or egg from fauna that they believe have lead unnaturally short and infelicitous lives .
Some of vegetarianism ’s ethical concerns have spread to the mainstream . Even unwavering marrow - eaters often like the theme of free - range chicken or cage - free orchis – brute husbandry technique that promise a more compassionate alternative to traditional factory husbandry .
vegetarian have long chosen the diet for honorable reason . Although the first practitioners only temporarily annul center for refinement , the first steady vegetarians began the diet after philosophic awakenings in the Eastern Mediterranean neighborhood andIndia .
The philosopher Pythagoras of Samos ( c. 530 BC ) teach vegetarianism to his followers . Pythagoras believed that because we are related to animate being , we should treat them with kindness . Many other famous philosophers agreed – Plato , Epicurus and Plutarch condemned animal sacrifice and avoided eat up meat .
In India , the Buddhist and Jainist religions teach that humans should not defeat sentient creatures for food . Although Buddhism later declined in India , vegetarianism spread to Brahmanism and Hinduism . Many upper castes and some grim caste take the Jainist virtuousness of " ahimsa , " or harmlessness , which forbade hurting living things [ source : Encyclopaedia Britannica ] .
But how did vegetarianism transform into a health bowel movement in the 19th century and an animal right issue in the 20th ? In the next department , we ’ll learn about forward-looking vegetarianism .
The Modern Vegetarian Movement
Today vegetarianism is trendy – 25 percent of adolescents even think it ’s " cool " [ source : prison term ] . The success of vegetarian cosmetics and vegetarian foods like veggie domestic dog and tofurkey is a testament to the diet ’s popularity . Groups that boost vegetarianism and animate being rights , like the Humane Society of the United States ( HSUS ) and masses for the Ethical Treatment of Animals ( PETA ) , have terrible lobbying power with major companies . But vegetarianism has n’t always been so broadly accepted , nor has it always been linked with the animal - right move .
In 17th- and 18th - centuryEurope , some Protestant groups adopt vegetarianism as a moral directive – a direction to be impeccant . By the 19th century , European and North American vegetarianism had become a fringe wellness crusade . adherent push the dietetic benefit of vegetarianism – even pair it with moderation and anti - tobacco movements . modernistic unionised vegetarianism begin with the formation of the Vegetarian Society in 1847 by the Bible Christian Sect ofEngland . Within a twelvemonth , the Society had 478 members .
It was n’t until the mid twentieth century that vegetarianism partnered with beast rights crusade . America ’s most notorious beast rights organization , PETA , vigorously protest against all meat , animal products and creature testing . It is best make love for its bold ad campaigns . The HSUS takes a less rigid approach . It accepts that people will eat meat and focus rather on reducing meat wasting disease , replacing animal products and improving farming techniques . Both PETA and the HSUS , however , are powerful political machines : They holdstockin companies like Tyson , Wal - Mart , McDonald ’s and Smithfield ’s .
Check out the liaison on the next Sir Frederick Handley Page for more entropy about vegetarianism .
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