My path to a meat free diet has been long. I grew up on a farm where we raised much of our own food, including beef and chicken. Ours was a hobby farm that my Grandfather bought in the 1940’s (probably to relive his overly romanticized childhood) and was not our main source of income. However, it was still a working dairy farm and my playground as a kid and animal lover.
Our farm animals were both treated well and well loved. For that reason, I never gave much thought to modern day farming until I became pregnant with my daughter and began to obsess about what I would allow into my body, and the bodies of family.
As I educated myself I switched to organic and free-range. For me it was a slow leaning toward vegetarianism, slowly cutting out meat strictly for health reasons. At that time I was still under the delusion that all farms were like ours. I had no moral motivation.
At a certain point in my personal development I intensely desired a big leap in my growth. I wanted to take myself to a new higher level, mentally, physically, and spiritually. It was Kathy Freston’s book Quantum Wellness that was the tipping point for me.
She clearly outlines three compelling reasons for not eating meat:
1. Physical health – I read about the adverse health effects of sugar, caffeine, gluten, alcohol, and last but not least, animal products.
2. Environmental impact – I read compelling facts about the amount of grain and water needed to produce even small amounts of edible meat. Grain and water that would be better allocated to starving people in the developing world. Additionally the greenhouse gas produced from so much farming, “A UN report says that almost a fifth of emissions that contribute to global warming come from livestock, including chickens, pigs and sheep, in addition to cattle”. (Quantum Wellness p. 114)
3. And finally, I read about the absolute horrors of modern day factory farming. We’ve all heard of mad cow disease, which is the result of feeding herbivores a diet of animal byproducts, (disgusting!) and hopefully we’ve all heard about the incredibly abusive ways in which chickens and other animals are raised for our consumption.
Thich Nhat Hanh, in his book Anger, talks about the relationship between consuming an animal that has lived its short life in horror, pain, and frustration, and the effect of that on our mental and spiritual wellbeing.
Freston recommends trying a cleanse in which we eliminate sugar, gluten, caffeine, alcohol, and all animal products.
I was ready for the challenge and embraced the cleanse. I never felt better in my life! I almost immediately felt incredibly energized, lost a few pounds effortlessly, looked more radiant than ever with clear, glowing skin. Something I never had before.
I was convinced of the three-fold benefit to eliminating animal products from my diet once and for all. Although I did go back to moderate sugar, gluten, caffeine, and alcohol consumption, I haven’t eaten meat since. I occasionally enjoy cheese but aspire to eliminate all animal products and even gluten from my diet.
I now believe from my own personal experience that a vegan diet is the most enlightened way to eat. I have found that it nurtures not just your body, but your mind and spirit as well.
Tia Tuenge, Los Angeles, CA, Visionary Life Consulting
my favorite vegan things:
olsenHaus Vegan Shoes
Quantum Wellness (Book by Kathy Freston)
Newman's Own organic cookies: chocolate with mint cream filling
No comments:
Post a Comment