WHY HUMANS ARE MEANT TO BE VEGETARIANS

Studies of human evolution have shown that our
ancestors were vegetarian by nature. The structure
of the human body is not suited for eating meat.
This was demonstrated in an essay on comparative
anatomy by Dr. G. S. Huntingen of Columbia University.
He pointed out that carnivores have short small and
large intestines. Their large intestine is
characteristically very straight and smooth.
In contrast, vegetarian animals have both a
long small intestine and a long large intestine.
Because of the low fiber content and high protein
density of meat, the intestines do not require a
long time to absorb nutrients; thus, the
intestines of carnivores are shorter in
length than those of vegetarian animals.

Humans, like other naturally vegetarian animals,
have both a long small and large intestine.
Together, our intestines are approximately
twenty-eight feet (eight and a half meters)
in length. The small intestine is folded
back on itself many times, and its walls
are convoluted, not smooth. Because they
are longer than those found in carnivores,
the meat we eat stays in our intestines for
a longer period of time. Consequently,
the meat can putrefy and create toxins.
These toxins have been implicated as a
cause of colon cancer, and they also increase
the burden on the liver, which has the
function of getting rid of toxins.
This can cause cirrhosis and even cancer
of the liver.

Meat contains a lot of urokinase protein
and urea, which add to the burden on the kidneys,
and can destroy kidney function. There are
fourteen grams of urokinase protein in every
pound of steak. If living cells are put into
liquid urokinase protein, their metabolic
function will degenerate. Furthermore,
meat lacks cellulose or fiber, and lack
of fiber can easily create constipation.
It is known that constipation can cause
rectal cancer or piles.

PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS

Climate change is a real and urgent threat to our civilisation and to the natural systems of Australia. We all have to make an effort to reduce our individual contribution to greenhouse pollution. One of the easiest ways to do this is to reduce our meat consumption. Start by doing without meat one day a week, then spread the practice to more days. You'll be surprised how easy it is to make a significant difference.

Professor Ian Low, Chairman, Australian Conservation Council put it nicely together.

Eat less meat! Be green, go Veg!
Use sustainable energy, Drive less,
use eco transports...
Plant trees
Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Repair and Recycle

There is solution, only three steps,

• Vegetarian
• Sustainable energy
• Plant Trees

How more simple, can it be?

GOING VEGGIE CAN SLASH YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT : STUDY

Tue Aug 26, 11:19 AM ET
BERLIN (AFP) - Giving up meat could drastically reduce your carbon footprint, with meat-eaters' diets responsible for almost twice the emissions of those of vegetarians, a German study said on Tuesday.

A diet with meat is responsible for producing in a year the same amount of greenhouse gases as driving a mid-sized car 4,758 kilometres (2,956 miles), the Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IOeW) said.

But the food a vegetarian consumes in 12 months is responsible for generating the same emissions as driving 2,427 kilometres, the IOeW said in a study commissioned by independent consumer protection group Foodwatch.

The calculations are based on emissions of greenhouse gases, including methane produced by the animals themselves, as well as emissions from food production including manufacturing feed and fertiliser and the use of farmland.

Going vegan -- giving up meat and dairy products -- would cut the emissions released in making what you eat more than seven-fold, to the equivalent of driving 629 kilometres, it said.
And if it is all organic, your food footprint is almost a 17th of that of a meat-eater -- the equivalent of driving 281 kilometres.

Beef is particularly environmentally unfriendly, it said, with producing a kilo (2.2 pounds) the same as driving 71 kilometres compared with 26 kilometres for pork.

Switching to organic farming can cut emissions dramatically, "but what counts is the way we feed ourselves ... production and consumption first and foremost of beef and milk must be cut drastically," the study said.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080826/sc_afp/lifestylegermanyclimateagriculture