Go Veg For A Day

Green Foods

If you're the kind of individual who can't picture life without the occasional bacon and eggs breakfast, or for whom the thought of Thanksgiving without turkey is simply too much to bear, the thought of going vegetarian or – gasp! – vegan could be enough to send a chill down your spine.

And we get it! Changing our habits can be difficult, especially when it comes to the way you eat (plus, it's hard to argue against the proven fact that bacon is, quite simply, delicious). A lot of our relationship with food is intertwined in our cultural background, genealogy and emotional connections, the thought of changing everything in such a major way if you have never dabbled in a meat-free lifestyle can be daunting – especially if it involves passing on major food categories that you have developed enjoying. But with so much evidence visiting light extolling the virtues of the plant-based diet, benefits which range from better health to a healthier planet, it's hard not to wonder if we ought to be passing on dairy, meat and eggs.

It's true, evidence indicates that reducing our consumption of meat will have a host of advantages, including reducing the production of greenhouse gasses that bring about climate change, lowering the quantity of agricultural land required to farm livestock, and reducing the use of water and energy used to produce that burger in your plate. But it is not only the earth that may benefit from a reduction in meat and animal product consumption – your own health stands to benefit too. Reducing use of animal products might have beneficial effects around the heart, potentially prevent certain types of diabetes, and could support kidney health.
“Ok,” you're probably thinking “that all sounds great, but I'm happy with my food choices!” And we don't blame you, and never only that, we're not here to change your mind. BUT (there's always a but, isn't there?) let's say we told you that merely going meatless one day a week could support all these positive benefits? Refer to it as a Meatless Monday, a vegetarian Tuesday or vegan Friday, whatever you want to call it, eschewing animal products just one day per week has been shown to have profound effects on earth and our overall health, benefitting both your personal wellness and the Earth's.

Benefits of a plant-based diet on our bodies:

Eating more vegetables, legumes, pulses, nuts and seeds – and cutting out junk foods – could support heart health and may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Reducing your meat consumption and eating more plants may support kidney health.
Swapping foods like legumes and vegetables will let you support a proper weight.

Benefits of a plant-based diet on the planet:

Skipping one serving – one serving! – of steak once a week for a year may save the same emissions of driving nearly 400 miles. Now consider how many emissions would be saved is everyone in the US skipped meat for a day.
Reducing our reliance upon livestock for food would free up more agricultural land and reduce deforestation (livestock production uses 75% of the planet's farming land)
Cutting back on meat consumption would also cut back on greenhouse gasses – livestock production produces more greenhouse gasses than all modes of transportation – cars, trucks, trains, planes – combined.
Reducing our reliance upon meat may reduce the world's hunger – nearly half of the world's crops are used to feed farm animals.
It saves water. If everyone went meatless for just one day per week, it would save the equivalent in water of around 5,000 Olympic pools.

Many people choose to go meatless on Monday because if its simplicity – a few days is just getting started, it might feel great to pay attention to plants and healthy options after a fun-filled weekend, and planning around a particular theme may simplify the night's menu – but every day of the week works. Once you go meatless eventually each week, you may even find yourself reducing animal products more often, looking for plant-based beauty products and experimenting with easy methods to eat less meat.

Need help finding delicious plant-based recipes? An easy explore Pinterest will yield a host of results, or check out some of our favorite (mostly) plant-based blogs for Meatless Monday inspiration: