According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, vegetarian diets that are
adequately planned, including totally vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthy,
nutritionally adequate, and can provide health benefits for the prevention and
treatment of certain diseases. Well planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for every
stage of life, including pregnancy, breastfeeding, infancy, childhood, adolescence, and
even for athletes.
Without a doubt, vegan food is among the healthiest in existence, capable of notably
reducing illnesses and health disorders. To begin with, vegans possess much lower
levels of cholesterol than those who eat meat and, consequently, suffer less frequently
from cardiovascular afflictions. As far as substituting animal protein for vegetable
protein, it has been shown that this helps reduce the amount of cholesterol in the
blood. Recent studies have also shown that a diet rich in complex carbohydrates (only
obtainable from vegetable foods) and low in fat is the best medicine for controlling
illnesses like diabetes. On the other hand, vegetable fats tend to reduce arterial pressure
while animal fats increase it. Generally, vegans are less likely to suffer from heart
conditions, as well as hypertension, obesity, diabetes, cancer, intestinal disorders,
kidney and vesicle stones, and osteoporosis. Any doctor would advise following a diet
low in fats and rich in fiber and vitamins.
The World Health Organization (WHO) itself recommends lowering the consumption
of fats and increasing the intake of fruits, vegetables, cereals, and legumes—basic vegan
foods. The antioxidants present in fruits and vegetables are essential for protecting our
bodies from external aggression. On the other hand, carbohydrates are one of the
body's most important sources of energy, and the vegan diet is rich in this element,
thanks to the abundance of fruits, cereals, legumes, and vegetables. Finally, it is worth
noting that vegetables are the foods richest in vitamins, minerals, and fiber.

There are more and more people suffering from indigestion on a regular basis, most of
the time as a result of a deficient diet. To avoid this, it's very important to eat a good
amount of fiber. This eases the movement of digested food through the small and large
intestines, as well as helping the body to absorb vitamins and minerals and to eliminate
toxins. The vegan diet is ideal for regulating the correct functioning of the digestive
system and avoiding problems such as being overweight or obese.

A vegan's shopping list, full of all kinds of fruits, vegetables, cereals, and, in general,
any other ingredients belonging to a vegan diet, is cheaper than that of an omnivore
that includes meat, fish, shellfish, and dairy. Even so, you should follow these tips if
you want to reduce your spending even further:
Plan your meals. Spend 15 minutes a week to prepare a menu for the next 7 days
and build a shopping list with everything you need (Sunday afternoon could be a
good time to do this).
Trust in the basic foods of your vegan diet. Generally, they tend to be cheaper,
and their versatility allows for an infinite variation of dishes. For example,
legumes are cheap, durable, and offer many combinations depending on how they
are cooked and the ingredients that accompany them.
Buy fruits and vegetables that are in season. Whenever you are shopping, you
can always find seasonal products that are much cheaper and tastier.
Cook in bulk. Once a week, plan to make a large amount of a single dish and then
freeze it, so you can eat it over the course of several days. Choose ingredients that
you can ration out, such as cooked beans, pasta sauces, and vegetable stock.

The world of cinema, music, and art is full of people that have adopted veganism
or vegetarianism as a philosophy and style of life. Here are some of the most
prominent:

• Pamela Anderson, actress
• Uma Thurman, actress
• Natalie Portman, actress
• Alanis Morissette, singer
• Bill Clinton, former president of the United States
• Brandon Flowers, vocalist of The Killers
• Steve Jobs, former executive president of Apple
• Mark Zuckerberg, creator of Facebook
• Chris Martin, vocalist of Coldplay
• Donna Karan, fashion designer
• Drew Barrymore, actress
• Fiona Apple, singer
• Jennifer Connelly, actress
• Martina Navratilova, tennis player
• Moby, musician
• Paul McCartney, musician
• Joaquin Phoenix, actor
• Prince, singer
• Sinéad O'Connor, singer
• Stella McCartney, designer
• Sting, musician

Protein is necessary for growth and the maintenance of tissues. It is comprised of a
series of amino acids necessary for the proper development of the human body. Most
foods contain protein in some small or large amounts. Protein with all the essential
amino acids needed by the body is known as high quality protein. Some foods have a
greater amount than others, but the key is knowing how to combine them so the body
receives enough of these essential amino acids. Vegans who maintain a balanced diet
based on cereals, legumes, seeds, nuts, and vegetables consume a mix of high quality
protein.
The ideal amount in a balanced diet should be around 15 percent protein. However,
much of the time, people are eating in excess of 25 percent protein and losing out on
other important nutrients like carbohydrates. The vegan diet allows one to limit the
excessive consumption of protein that can be detrimental to one's health in the long
run. In fact, a high intake of protein can increase the body's loss of calcium and
accelerate the onset of diseases such as osteoporosis.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the
livestock sector generates more greenhouse gases than the transport sector. As such, it
is also one of the leading causes of the deterioration of the ground and hydrological
resources. The Food and Agriculture Organization has made it clear in one of their
recent reports:
It is expected that agricultural impacts increase substantially as a result of
demographic growth, increasing the consumption of animal products. Unlike fossil
fuels, it is hard to find alternatives: people have to eat. A substantial reduction of
these impacts can only be made possible with a substantial change in the whole
world's eating habits, steering far away from animal-based products.
It is clear that reducing or completely eliminating the consumption of meat and its
derivatives is a move that could contribute to reducing our ecological footprint on the
planet.

Many people turn to veganism because of an ethical conviction against the intense
breeding techniques imposed on present day livestock. Animals destined to be food are
excluded from laws against animal cruelty and receive no legal protection. As vegans,
we can contribute to lowering the impact of this situation and avoid the exploitation,
suffering, and sacrifice of many species of animals destined for human consumption.
Veganism is a lifestyle based on respect for animals. Vegans advocate applying to all
animal species the same human rights that defend the right to life, personal safety, and
freedom from slavery and torture. As a result, these obligations and rights prevent the
consumption of animal-based products. The current exploitation that animals suffer at
the hands of different sectors such as the food industry, fashion industry, cosmetics,
etc., is considered by veganism to be a violation of rights and a state of being
comparable to slavery.
Animal rights defense movements report that on a daily basis millions of species are
bought, sold, deprived of freedom, taken from their families, artificially inseminated,
or sacrificed, all to benefit the economic interests of industry. When we eat, when we
dress, when we use products that have been tested on animals, we are contributors to
their suffering and torture.
Animal rights groups insist upon the need for society to be conscious that all animals
that possess a nervous system (human beings, dogs, pigs, cows, chickens, tunas, rats,
etc.) have the capability to feel (be it pain, pleasure, or fear) and that, as such, also have
the same needs and should be respected. These same groups advocate to eradicate
speciesism, or discrimination on the basis of species.
Speciesism establishes a hierarchical order for the importance of the needs of one
determined species over another. For example, we are speciesist when we give priority
to the needs of a dog over the needs of a cow or pig. This culture hides the fact that
human beings are also animals and that they do not have the right to own the life of
their non-human fellows. It is clear that we are different, but what animal rights
movements denounce is that those differences give us the right to dominate other
species. They reject the self-awarded "right" of humans to treat other species as mere
objects that exist simply to satisfy our own desires and serve as a means to reach our
own goals. According to the philosopher José Ferrater Mora, "speciesism is to the
entire human species what racism is to a single specific race. Being speciesist is being
human racist. The appreciation of the human being as a species becomes speciesism
when it equates itself to the denial of the rights of other species, but not those of
humans."
To avoid this discrimination (equal to both sexism and racism in its injustice), this
movement promotes veganism as being the only valid choice. This involves avoiding
the use of animals in any aspect of life by committing to a one hundred percent
vegetarian diet (no dairy products, eggs, or honey); choosing clothes and accessories
that do not have leather, wool, or silk; not using animal-tested products; boycotting
zoos and aquariums; as well as not participating in parties or shows where other
animals are used for entertaining or amusing the public.

• Animals sacrificed by the fur industry. This business sacrifices an enormous
amount of animal species on a daily basis to make all kinds of coats and other
clothing items. Mink, chinchillas, adult and baby seals, otters, foxes, pine
martens, squirrels, and other animals die cruelly every day to avoid any
imperfection in the appearance of their skin.
• Sacrifice and exploitation of cows. Bovine livestock is submitted on a daily basis
to the ingestion of growth hormones, antibiotics, and other substances for the
purpose of increasing the output of milk and meat.
• Exploitation and sacrifice of rabbits. Between 75 and 90 days after being born,
rabbits are sacrificed after having spent their entire lives in captivity.
• National holidays. The traditional running of the bulls make a bloody spectacle
out of the torture and death of these animals for the amusement of a few.
• Hunting and fishing. Daily, millions of animals die of suffocation or after having
been shot. Many are returned to the water, injured by hooks or nets, or flee,
bleeding from bullet wounds or the bites of hunting dogs.
• Bee-keeping. The process of harvesting honey causes the death of masses of bees
(either squashed or mutilated), as well as the unjust abuse caused by making
them work exhaustively to produce a precious food product that will later be
stolen and replaced by a simple mixture of water and sugar.
• Exploitation of pigs. Despite being one of the smartest animals in existence, far
surpassing dogs, human beings exploit and torture pigs with rare cruelty. The
modern pork industry kills millions of pigs every day all over the world after
they have endured months of hard conditions.
• Exploitation of lambs and sheep. The harvesting of milk, meat, leather, and
wool, as well as other derivatives from these species reduces their existence to a
brief period of life that is destined for ultimate sacrifice.
• Exploitation of chickens. After only 35 days of life, a chicken is ready to be
sacrificed. They live a short life, spent stuffed in fattening farms, with their
beaks half amputated (without anesthetics) to prevent them from attacking their
fellows. For their part, laying chickens spend their lives piled into wire cages.
There they spend about two years until their egg production decreases, and they
are killed. In its natural habitat, a chicken could grow to be 15– or 20–years old.
• Testing. Every year, millions of animals all over the world die as a result of
testing. Primates, monkeys, dogs, cats, horses, bovines, pigs, sheep, goats,
rabbits, ferrets, chinchillas, groundhogs, possums, armadillos, guinea pigs,
hamsters, and an ongoing list of mammals are tortured and sacrificed in labs the
world over.