Fur

[emilou]

Just caught on to this thread and thought id add my two penneth, or however you write that saying down.

Meat is disgusting as is leather and as Mary flynn says fur, never knew about the silk worm thing but that doesnt sound nice. Totally unneccasary.
I believe my views are backed up by the fact ive been to an abbatoire and seen exactly what goes on. Yuck.

 

[anon101]

Cutting down Forest/Woodland/Tree’s is possibly the worst sin of all when it comes to damaging the environment long term.

Trees are precious; they are the Lungs of the earth. Without our Forest's/Woodland’s/ Tree’s we wouldn't survive. They produce our Oxygen. A mature Beech can provide a family of four with enough oxygen to live.

Everybody can help a little by getting involved in a local tree-planting project. There are loads of them dotted across the UK. Another way to help is to buy wood products from sustainable Forest’s/Woodland’s. The Forest Stewardship Council sells products of this nature.

http://www.fsc.org/en/

Louise

 

[Adele]

I feel that whether you eat meat or not, is not the real issue (to me anyway) just that taking a responsible approach as far as you possibly can to the environment in general.
I think what is important is implanting the seeds of change in folks minds, how they may do things differently. This is why it is great that we can share ideas and be pointed in the direction of new web sites to explore so we can make our own educated decisions.

We eat chicken but only free range chicken. Of course this does not mean that I like or approve of how the chickens are killed, but I feel that the free range chickens at least have a better quality of life whilst they are alive.
I think it is about getting a balance, and being armed with knowledge helps us choose what we individually feel comfortable with.
I certainly agree with Louise about deforestation, and I think the tree planting scheme sounds very worthwhile and something I would like to be involved with

 

[Salsa]

I feel that whether you eat meat or not, is not the real issue (to me anyway) just that taking a responsible approach as far as you possibly can to the environment in general.
I think what is important is implanting the seeds of change in folks minds, how they may do things differently. This is why it is great that we can share ideas and be pointed in the direction of new web sites to explore so we can make our own educated decisions.

We eat chicken but only free range chicken. Of course this does not mean that I like or approve of how the chickens are killed, but I feel that the free range chickens at least have a better quality of life whilst they are alive.
I think it is about getting a balance, and being armed with knowledge helps us choose what we individually feel comfortable with.
I certainly agree with Louise about deforestation, and I think the tree planting scheme sounds very worthwhile and something I would like to be involved with

Thank you Adele :thumb: , you have managed to say in a few sentences what it was taking me a long time to explain .

That FSC website is really interesting. Did you also know that IKEA subscribe to a strict way of thinking on the environment and will not buy from suppliers that are environmentally irresponsible? They call it the IWAY (and no doubt someone has already cracked the joke, it's IWAY or the highway :lol: ).

 

[Adele]

Just caught on to this thread and thought id add my two penneth, or however you write that saying down.

Meat is disgusting as is leather and as Mary flynn says fur, never knew about the silk worm thing but that doesnt sound nice. Totally unneccasary.
I believe my views are backed up by the fact ive been to an abbatoire and seen exactly what goes on. Yuck.

Oh dear, well if you say meat is disgusting, how do you view people who choose to eat meat then??.
I choose free range chicken and products that have been produced taking into the animals welfare to a reasonable extent anyway during its lifetime.

I disagree that meat is totally unnecessary, I had a medical condition a few years back and although a vegetarian at the time, was advised to eat some meat to help my failing health.
I agree that we can opt to choose non fur and leather products etc, and I am currently looking into this.
I eat mainly soya based products now, but do supplement my diet with some meat.
I spend my life caring for special needs bunnies, and working very hard to respect other animals and the environment, so I hope no one will think any the less of me for eating meat :?

 

[emilou]

Sorry you dont agree adele. If i thought people who ate meat were yuk too id have no family left, they like it but the thought makes me sick.
I think maybe quite a few less people would eat meat if they saw the animal being killed and didnt just buy is shrink wrapped at the supermarket. The amount of grown hormones and antibiotics that had been given it during life I hope would put people off too if they were more aware.
Sacrificing your health is definately not the way to go for the sake of animals lives but that must have been upseting for you as a vegetarian to have to go back to meat eating.

In another way then if you like, meat eating is totally uneccessary for myselves and my other vegan friends. Its my opinion and I can only speak for myself.
Try www.peta.org for some more knowledge with which to be armed

Extra edit here again, carful about the JLo fur shame the video is aweful!

 

[Wabbit]

I agree, Emilou, all of my family (except my husband) eat meat, and I haven't disowned them :wink: !!!

Things would indeed be very different if people had to kill their own animals or even watch other people kill them on their behalf.

It's also a sad fact that most doctors don't know an awful lot about nutrition, and they are always quick to blame lack of meat for health problems. If I was told this, I would change doctors! There's no way I would go back to eating animal products :shock:

A veggie/vegan diet is nutritionally complete and is actually far healthier than a meat-based one.

 

[emilou]

I didnt mean to say I don't think they are conditions which require you to eat meat to get better.

 

[Adele]

[quote="Wabbit

It's also a sad fact that most doctors don't know an awful lot about nutrition, and they are always quick to blame lack of meat for health problems. If I was told this, I would change doctors! There's no way I would go back to eating animal products :shock:

A veggie/vegan diet is nutritionally complete and is actually far healthier than a meat-based one.[/quote] Wabbit)

I agree that many doctors do not know about nutrition, but My Specialist was into alternative therapies and had a sound knowledge of the impact of diet on health, having a personal interest in that.
I also had quite a rare illness, and I wanted to do anything that was suggested to try and get well, even if it meant eating meat again.

I feel much healthier on a predominantly meat free diet, I agree with you on that point:wink:

 

[Salsa]

I found a website in favour the omnivorous diet. It has taken me a while because I wanted it to be medical and not just general diet stuff.

http://www.powerhealth.net/selected_articles.htm

However, in the course of finding this, I did discover lots of other sites with the odd interesting fact. For instance, did you know that the world's oldest known person lived to 117 and absolutely couldn't stand vegetables ? Now this has very little bearing on things, because the world's second oldest person ever was a vegetarian - so no real difference on the longevity .

I will concede to the fact that the vegetarian diet does seem to be quite good for you in some ways, as a website of a study into time spent in hospital did say that although vegetarians were just as likely to get all the usual diseases as meat eaters, they did get better slightly quicker :thumb: .

However, I can find no such good news for the vegans. My searches on veganism (if you ignore the purely vegan websites and just look at the objective ones) were not so happy. They had tales of vitamin deficiencies and anaemia and shorter life expectancy. However, the good news seemed to be that vegans who are extremely careful with the balance of their diet do still seem to do very well, but just not quite as well as their vegetarian and omnivorous counterparts. So I guess it is just one of those things where if you are very careful all will be well .

All the websites said stop eating the packaged processed food though !! So at least we all agree on that :lol: :lol: :lol: .

 

[Wabbit]

Well, I don't know where you found information saying that vegans are lacking in nutrients, have a shorter life expectancy or are less healthy than vegetarians!

The World Health Organisation recognises the vegan diet as 'nutritionally complete', and there are certain diseases that vegans are far less likely to fall victim to.

Any diet can be unhealthy - for example a meat-eater living on burgers, a vegetarian eating nothing but cheese sandwiches, or a vegan who only eats chips! All diets have to be balanced.

There is no reason why a vegan would be less healthy than a vegetarian. Dairy products are not good for us - they provide calcium but at the same time they contain acids that deplete the supplies we already store in our bodies! In parts of the world where dairy is not consumed, osteoporosis is practically unheard of! Dairy products encourage phlegm production and aggravate conditions such as eczema, irritable bowel syndrome, and even feed certain cancers.

I have never felt better since becoming vegan. I used to suffer from several throat infections and colds every year, but don't anymore. My skin looks and feels better and I have more energy.

There are so many toxins in animal products. Not only the drugs pumped into the poor creatures while they are alive, but also the adrenalin present when the animals are terrified awaiting slaughter and going through the process.

My husband and I became vegan initially for ethical reasons, but soon realised how beneficial it is to your health as well.

 

[aliceechamberlain]

Okay, well here's my bit. I do not eat meat because I cannot bear the thought, however I look after my parents, and cook for my husband and stepson and they all eat meat; basically we all agree to disagree. My father was a farmer until his early 30's, the majority of my family on my fraternal side still farm and they are kind caring people. I live in the country surrounded by farmers, many of whom take an interest in what I do, if I am desperate for some hay bales they always rally round to bring me some! I am sure many consider me 'eccentric' but they do not make me feel uncomfortable.
I wish there was a world where animals were not hurt or frightened. All I can do is my bit, not wear leather, not eat meat my family and friends respect me the way I am, they are not bad people. I know by association men who work in our local abbatoir and they are the type of men who stop on the road to help if you are broken down, or step in if there is a local problem, good men. During the foot and mouth they were desperate that they overlooked the slaughter of local herds to ensure it was 'done properly'. I know, I am sorry, it probably makes you feel ill at the thought, but that is their job, to make sure the animals were killed quickly with as little fear or pain as possible.
But you see, something made me think the other week, we rescued 18 ex battery hens. They looked so appalling and I thought about the shop cakes and biscuits and other ready made food I buy. Unless it states 'free range eggs' - whatever that means - I too add to the misery.
I also think I am so lucky to be able to make the choices I do. I will not starve or become ill if I do not eat meat.
Don't get me wrong, I wish this world was perfect, but all we can do is our bit and try to get it right. Alice

 

[Dorothy]

I too like Adele have had a medical condition that forced me to go back to eating some meat. I have free range chicken and some fish in my diet now and am fit and well again. I have vegan friends who cannot understand how this can be. I did try a vegan diet armed with all the right information and as I am a therapist I called on the expert advise of other therapists trained in nutrition. I blacked out several times and was extremely dizzy while on the diet. I went back to a vegetarian diet but was still unwell. All symptoms stopped and I was well again when I introduced a little meat. I am not happy about this solution to my problems but I have to take care of my health as I am responsible for my Sanctuary single handed and also have to work from home to keep the Sanctuary funds healthy. I do a lot of hard work everyday and cannot cope if I am dizzy and weak. I have looked into other solutions but nothing works.