In response to your article “Students struggle with eating well, dietitian says” on March 29, it was interesting to read about students’ experiences reducing their consumption of animal products, due to the detrimental health impacts of a meat-based diet.  By choosing vegetarian and vegan dishes, UK students will not only cut their chances of developing cancer, stroke or heart disease in half, but they will also not be contributing to the immense amount of suffering involved in the modern meat industry.

On today’s factory farms, chickens have their beaks seared off with a hot blade, pigs are crammed into tiny spaces that don’t even allow them turn around and cows are often skinned and dismembered while fully conscious.  Cruelty like this is standard in an industry that refuses to make even the most basic changes in the way they treat animals.  If these kinds of abuses were inflicted upon cats or dogs, they would be grounds for felony cruelty to animal charges.

Thankfully, with so many cruelty-free dishes available these days, such as vegetarian barbeque “riblets” and vegan pizza, which are lower in cholesterol and saturated fat than their meat counterparts, there is no excuse for continuing to support this cruel and unhealthy industry.  For more information on transitioning to a healthier, more animal-friendly diet, visit peta2.com to request a free vegetarian starter kit, as well as stickers and a DVD.

Ryan Huling

college campaign coordinator, peta2.com