The Human Benefits of Veganism
Key Takeaways
A vegan lifestyle carries immense benefits for humans, lowering our risk of dangerous diseases such as heart disease and certain cancers.
Veganism has a key role to play in eliminating world hunger. Animal products are highly inefficient in terms of their caloric input. A shift to plant-based diets would result in a more efficient food system that can systematically reduce world hunger.
Animal products are notorious for being highly water-inefficient, using much of the world’s freshwater reserves. The worldwide adoption of veganism can reduce our water footprint by upto 50%.
Veganism is primarily associated with the ethical treatment of animals, as well as many environmental benefits. We have previously discussed at length how veganism can help the Earth and its species, and the same has been covered by many others as well.
What most don’t realize, however, is that veganism carries immense direct and indirect benefits for humans too. In the following discussion, we highlight three prominent benefits of veganism for humankind.
Veganism is good for human health
By adopting veganism and, subsequently, plant-based diets, we can significantly lower our risk of contracting dangerous ailments such as heart disease.
Research has shown that plant-based diets significantly lower the risk of cardiovascular diseases, and lead to significant improvements in body mass index, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels.
Similarly, research has also shed light on the link between plant-based eating and a reduced risk of cancer. Although the evidence is not definitive on this, some research has shown that adopting a plant-based diet can reduce our risk of certain types of cancer, such as colorectal or breast cancer.
While on the other hand, the consumption of various animal products has been linked to several types of cancers, for example:
A diet high in red and processed meat can cause bowel cancer – the third most common cancer in the world.
High-fat content in dairy products such as milk and cheese has been linked to breast cancer development.
The regular consumption of dairy products has been linked to the development of prostate cancer.
Additionally, research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has shown that men who follow a vegan diet have a lower risk of developing prostate cancer (one of the most common types of cancer among men throughout the world).
Good health is one of the greatest blessings of life that many of us fail to fully appreciate. The Prophet (SAW) captures this in his wise words as follows:
By adopting veganism and plant-based diets (though making sure the diets are free from processed food), we can avoid such deadly diseases and demonstrate our gratitude to Allah (SWT) for the blessing of our health.
2. Veganism helps combat world hunger
Fighting hunger is a duty within Islam. As the Prophet (SAW) instructed us:
Unfortunately, however, we are not living up to the Prophet’s (SAW) instruction as well as we should be. Close to a billion people suffer from hunger around the world, and the numbers keep increasing every year.
This harsh reality is not a result of our inability to produce food – indeed, we already produce enough food to feed everyone. Rather, the issue is efficiency.
Our global food system is highly inefficient and wasteful; less than half (48%) of the world’s cereals are eaten by humans. The rest are used to feed livestock (41%) and turned into biofuels (11%). Similarly, only 7% of the world’s soy is used for human consumption. While 77% of it is used to feed livestock for meat and dairy production.
Similarly, there is a severe disparity in the caloric input-output of animal products. Meaning, that only a small fraction of the calories we feed to animals (in the form of feed) actually make its way into the finished animal products we consume, such as meat, dairy, and eggs.
For example, from every 100 calories of animal feed grain, we get only 40 calories of milk, 22 of eggs, 12 of chicken and just 3 of beef. This shows that a significant portion of the calorie input (60, 78, 88, and 97 out of 100 calories for these products, respectively) is lost in the production of these animal-based food items.
Source: Bite Size Vegan
Additionally, as we have previously explained, animal agriculture causes the degradation of soil, leaving it unfit for cultivation. This will further exacerbate food insecurity and increase world hunger in the near future.
The above discussion makes it clear that a global shift away from our current food system to a more efficient plant-based system is needed to combat world hunger.
Of course, veganism alone cannot end world hunger, as it is a complex issue involving various factors. However, at least this much is clear: Veganism has a key role to play in eliminating world hunger and living up to the Prophet’s (SAW) expectation of us.
3. Veganism eliminates water scarcity
The world’s freshwater supply, i.e. water fit for human consumption, is a highly scarce resource, constituting only 3% of the world’s total water. However, most of this resource is utilized in our animal-products-dominated agriculture industry – which uses about 70% of it!
This, combined with the extremely high water footprint of animal products, results in a situation where about 2 billion people face water scarcity today.
Helping to provide water to the needy occupies significant importance in Islam. So much so, that Allah (SWT) described the act in such glorious words:
By adopting veganism and turning away from animal products, we can help increase access to water and combat water scarcity by significantly reducing our water footprint.
With water scarcity expected to increase, especially across Muslim countries, it is vital that each of us makes a change now by adopting a sustainable, vegan lifestyle.
Helping humanity through conscious living
Helping humanity is a fundamental feature of what it means to be part of the Muslim Ummah. The Qur’an states:
As the above discussion shows, by adopting and promoting a vegan lifestyle, we can help bring about betterment for ourselves and the rest of humanity, as well as countless creations of Allah (SWT) placed under our care.
If you’re ready to make a change but are unsure of where to start, head over to our community forums section where you can find many groups and individuals who can help guide you on your vegan journey.
