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Is a vegan lifestyle and diet healthy for people and society?
Most Validated
Meat can contain poisonous substances.
Every year in the U.S., there are 48 million cases of food poisoning, and 3,000 of these cases are fatal. In addition, the overuse of antibiotics on factory farms has caused many of the bacteria found on animal flesh to become antibiotic-resistant.
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Less Validated
A vegan diet can lead to an unhealthy iron deficiency.
Iron is essential for transporting oxygen around the body, brain function and the immune system. Heme iron - easier to absorb - is only available in animal sources. According to surveys, 46% of girls aged 11-18 years and 23% of women aged 19-64 years have iron inadequate intakes.
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Most Validated
A massive switch to a vegan diet would have a negative effect on public health.
According to recent research, if all animals were removed from the planet, the amount of food available to humans would increase by 23%, as crops would not be used to feed livestock. However, the diet would lose some important nutrients, thus damaging people’s health.
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Less Validated
Vegan lifestyle choices could reduce global mortality.
Transitioning toward more plant-based diets - in line with standard dietary guidelines - could reduce global mortality by 6–10%.
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Most Validated
The vegan lifestyle is eco sustainable.
According to a study published in PNAS, switching to a vegan diet would cut food-related emissions by 70% by 2050.
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Less Validated
Disorganized veganism does not help the environment.
Veganism alone cannot solve global warming but it could make it worse. Biodiversity is the key, since animals are as necessary as crops to enrich soils: their dung, urine and even the way they graze, accelerates soil restoration.
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Unchallenged
A vegan diet can negatively affect the bones.
Some small studies have shown that vegans have a slightly lower bone mineral density (BMD) compared with non-vegans, due to the lack of calcium in their diet. Fracture rates are also nearly a third higher among vegans compared with the general population.
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Unchallenged
A vegan diet causes a D-vitamin deficiency.
In the EPIC-Oxford study, vegans had the lowest mean intake of vitamin D (0.88lg/d), a value one-fourth the mean intake of omnivores. Lack of D-Vitamin can cause tiredness, an increased exposure to illness, depression and hair loss.
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Unchallenged
Going vegan reduces the risk of premature death due to medical conditions.
Those who eat seven or more portions of fruit and vegetables per day have a 33% reduced risk of premature death, compared with people who eat less than one portion.
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Most Validated
Moving to a vegan lifestyle could also have a positive impact on the economy.
Overall, the economic benefits of transitioning to a vegan diet are estimated to be $1–$31 trillion by 2050, which is equivalent to 0.4–13% of global GDP.
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Less Validated
Increasing Western demand for organic vegan food is affecting the producers.
Kenya – the world’s sixth largest exporter of avocado – banned exportation of the fruit because the country’s supply is at risk.The Agriculture and Food Authority says the average price of a 90kg-bag of avocados has reached 2,560 Kenyan shillings (£18),the highest since May 2014.
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Unchallenged
The use of antibiotics on farms is killing people.
In the UK, the government reported that 5,000 people die every year from antibiotic resistant E. Coli, largely caused by farm antibiotics use.
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Unchallenged
Animal products lead to heart disease.
Cardiovascular disease accounts for nearly 836,546 deaths in the US, that is about 1 of every 3 deaths. Nearly 1 of every 3 American adults have high levels of LDL cholesterol (the “bad” kind), caused mainly by animal fats and responsible for cardiovascular diseases.
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Unchallenged
A vegan diet in youth negatively affects development.
Research found that vegans had plasma concentrations of EPA and DHA that were respectively 52.8% and 58.6% lower than in omnivores. DHA is crucial for brain and retinal development, while EPA deficiencies are linked to a variety of neurocognitive disorders.
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Unchallenged
Adopting a vegan diet during the developmental years reduces cognitive performance.
A study carried out in Britain found that 30-year-olds who were vegan at age 10, had a mean IQ of 95.1 compared with a mean of approximately 100 for the general population. This has been linked to a lack of creatine.
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Most Validated
Vegan diets reduce the risk of mortality from cancer and heart disease.
A meta-analysis reports a significant protective effect of a vegan diet against the incidence of total cancer (-15% if compared to an omnivorous diet).
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Less Validated
A vegan diet can lead to a B12 vitamin deficiency.
B12 vitamin is only found in animal products (apart from some types of algae). It has been shown that 92% of vegans are deficient in this critical vitamin, the lack of which causes fatigue, anaemia, increased risk of heart disease and several psychiatric disorders.
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Unchallenged
A vegan diet is not suitable for children.
A study on children in Kenya showed that the consumption of meat vs. milk or vegetables in the diet increased IQ by 10 points; also, children in the meat group gained approximately 50% more mid-upper-arm muscle than those in the milk group.
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Unchallenged
A vegan diet during pregnancy, if not properly supported, can lead to malformations to the baby.
During pregnancy, folic acid consumption of 600 mcg/day is needed to avoid neural tube defects; adequate levels of vitamin D (600 UI/day), choline (450 mg/day), and iodine (220 mcg/day) are needed for normal fetal growth and brain development.
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Unchallenged
A vegan diet drastically reduces the risk of developing diabetes.
An analysis by Harvard scientists, involving more than 300,000 people, found those whose diets were mainly plant-based were 23% less prone to Type 2 diabetes, which is linked with obesity.