The warmer weather is finally upon us and
nothing says summer quite like hanging with friends at the beach or by the pool
and grilling up some of our favorite foods. But is throwing some burgers, hot
dogs, and other meats on the grill hazardous to our health? Let’s look at the
facts.
Studies have found that when cooked at high
temperatures or over open flames, composites in meat undergo a biochemical
reaction that creates carcinogenic compounds. Once consumed, these compounds can
alter a human’s DNA, significantly increasing one’s risk of cancer.
According to a report from the International Agency for Research on
Cancer, more than 34,000 cancer deaths around the world each year
are caused by diets high in processed meat. Thankfully, this biochemical
reaction occurs only in meat, so we can easily avoid it by grilling some
delicious veggie burgers instead.
But it’s not just grilled hamburgers and hot
dogs that are harmful to your health; it’s all
meat. Countless studies prove that plant-based foods are significantly
healthier than animal products. Scientists have shown that a plant-based diet reduces one’s risk of cancer, heart
disease, diabetes, and obesity. In fact, researchers at the Mayo
Clinic found that long-term vegetarians lived on average 3.6 years longer
than their meat-eating counterparts.
What’s more, a recent
study from Harvard Medical School found that at least one-third of early deaths could be prevented
if everyone switched to a plant-based diet.
Eating vegan foods isn’t just great for your health; it also protects the planet and spares farmed animals a life of misery.
At factory farms, animals are subjected to
intense and horrific abuse: gruesome mutilations; cramped confinement and
overcrowding; and violent, bloody slaughter. If we treated just one dog or cat
the way the meat, dairy, and egg industries treat billions of animals, we’d be behind bars for animal abuse.
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