Last month I participated in the Meatless March campaign, a social movement aimed at spreading awareness about the harmful affects of consuming too much meat (beef, pork, chicken, even seafood) in our diets. Excessive meat consumption has been shown to lead to the following health condition:
- obesity
- heart disease
- high blood pressure
- poor digestion
- many cancers
- diabetes
What studies are finding is that it’s not just the meat itself that is causing the health problems…but, also how the meat is being processed and sanitized before being packaged. The meat you are buying (specifically ground beef) is not 100% pure beef…it’s mixed with a Pink Slime (a disgusting filler…read below) and is sprayed with harmful chemicals (ammonia…read below) before packaging.
Meatless March proved to be easier than I thought. In fact, I did not miss eating meat one bit. Instead, I had an amazing month where I took the time to try new fruits, vegetables and grains, as well as many vegetarian recipes from around the world! I felt amazing…experiencing:
- more energy than normal
- feeling lighter…my stomach never felt heavy or bloated
- feeling cleaner…probably due to eating so many more vegetables and legumes
- feeling better after meals…digesting meat is very tough on the body, taking more effort and more hours to complete pass through
I encourage you to give a meat free month a try! Or, at the very least, start by participating in the Meatless Monday campaign.
Below is an infographic with some startling facts regarding meat consumption in our diets and how it affects our health.