Animals being used as food all around the world is a widespread issue. Every year 70 billion animals are used for food in the world. Each day about 25 million animals are slaughtered in the U.S, and just last year nine billion animals were slaughtered in the United States. Animals get stress, disease, or injury that 850 million of them die before they get to the slaughterhouse .

Alexis Armijo is an animal activist who is vegan. “I read a book and it changed my life, I always knew the health benefits but reading from slaughterhouse employees about their experiences made me instantly never want to contribute to that.” That’s the reason Armijo decided to go vegan. There’s a lot of health risks that go with eating meat, Armijo says “Cancers and life-threatening disease. Anything from an animal with mass production you have cheap antibiotics filled with harmful chemicals. Animals used for mass production also pass through their meat their depression, anxiety, stress, etc. That also has an effect on people when they consume it.” Using animals for food doesn’t only affect our environment it affects us, humans. Eating meat can cause heart disease, obesity, cancer, stroke, diabetes, harmful cholesterol,  Alzheimer’s Disease, and a shorter life span. Also, acne can be caused by drinking milk because in pregnant cows the pregnancy hormones increase oil production. Armijo feels that if people stopped consuming meat then, “Most Cancers and disease would cease to exist, the world would be a better place because when people feel good, they exude goodness. Less violence, depression, and mental strife.”

Another big issue is that it’s not just the animals being affected, it’s the world. Animal agriculture is responsible for 30% of the world’s fresh water. Just to raise livestock it takes 34 trillion gallons of water in the U.S. To just alone produce a ¼ pound hamburger it takes 660 gallons of water. All though people try to take shorter showers, a hamburger takes the equivalent of two months of showering. Global warming also plays a big role in this, the by-product of animal agriculture is nitrous oxide, which leads to 296 times more global warming potential. Animal agriculture occupies 45% of the earth’s land and it is also responsible for 91% of the destruction of the Amazon Rainforest. Also, animal agriculture is a leading cause of dead zones, habitat destruction, and species extinction. All of the facts above came from a documentary on Netflix called “Cowspiracy”.

Trupti Patel, a mother of two children, lives in Happy Valley and is vegetarian. Patel was born into veganism from being raised in India in Hindu religion. People associated with the religion of Hindu choose not to eat meat for many reasons including, spiritual reasons and health risks. “Food is the source of the body’s chemistry, and what we ingest affects our consciousness, emotions and experiential patterns. If one wants to live in higher consciousness, in peace and happiness and love for all creatures, then he cannot eat meat, fish, shellfish, fowl or eggs. By ingesting the grosser chemistries of animal foods, one introduces into the body and mind anger, jealousy, anxiety, suspicion and a terrible fear of death, all of which are locked into the flesh of butchered creatures”. Patel explains that going out to eat at certain places may not have a lot of vegetarian or vegan options, most menus have a lot of meat and only provide a couple of cruelty-free options. “The only options are salad and I don’t really like salad all the time 24/7.”

Mary Wessman lives in Happy Valley and eats meat. Wessman has thought about going vegan or vegetarian but thought she wouldn’t get much protein. This is a common misconception, most people think they need to eat meat to get protein, but there are many non-cruel ways to get protein such as vegetables and nuts. A lot of the strongest animals in our ecosystem are herbivores. Some of which include, elephants, rhinos, hippos, bison, wildebeest, horses, manatees, deer, and yaks. This shows it is not necessary to consume meat to obtain protein. Wessman also states, “I think they should be aware of how that food is processed and what chemicals are in it.” Most of the meats that are consumed are full of chemicals such as, hormones from milk, antibiotics in meat, and synthetic chemicals.

   Most people think that they need to eat meat to get protein, but there are lots of other options such as beans, yogurt, cottage cheese, almonds, peanut butter, eggs, and all kinds of vegetables. The consumption of animals affects the environment, global warming, ecosystems, and our water supply. But eating meat does not just affect the things around us, it also affects us and can cause health risks that are deadly. Lots of animals in our ecosystem even eat a fully plant-based diet and are still powerful and still get lots of protein. Just a simple change could really change us and the environment around us.