Totally Unnecessary! And Better Without!

Eating animals and animal products (like eggs and milk) is totally unnecessary for survival:

It is the position of the American Dietetic Association that appropriately planned...vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. [They] are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and for athletes.

Eating animals and animal products (like eggs and milk) is totally unnecessary for good health and has actually been shown to be harmful to health:

The consumption of animal products exposes humans to saturated fat, cholesterol, lactose, estrogens, and pathogenic microorganisms, while displacing fiber, complex carbohydrates, antioxidants, and other components needed for health. In the process, consumption of animal products increases the risk for cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity, and other disorders. This dietary pattern also promotes the growth of unhealthful gut bacteria, fostering, among other things, the production of trimethylamine N-oxide, a proinflammatory compound associated with cardiovascular and neurological diseases. When omnivorous individuals change to a plant-based diet, diet quality as measured by the Alternate Healthy Eating Index improves, and the risk of these health problems diminishes. Planning for nutrient adequacy is important with any diet. However, a diet based on vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes, supplemented with vitamin B-12, is nutritionally superior to diets including animal products and is healthful for children and adults. —Dr. Neal Barnard

Eating animals and animal products (like eggs and milk) is totally unnecessary to be an athlete—to be strong and energetic. Indeed, world class athletes thrive on a vegan diet. See these resources for more information:

20 vegan athletes you didn’t know ate a plant-based diet

Movie: The Game Changers (Executive producers: James Cameron, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jackie Chan)

So, eating animals is totally unnecessary for survival, health, or athleticism (strength and endurance). Therefore it is totally unnecessary to eat animals and animal products. Therefore eating animals and animal products—along with all the totally unnecessary harms and suffering doing so inflicts upon animals—is completely and totally morally unjustified.

And this is why being vegan is a moral imperative in every sense of the word.

Please don't let another animal suffer and die for totally unnecessary reasons. Please go vegan—right now!

Mahalo for reading. Aloha...