Why I Quit Meat

5 reasons that ended my addiction

Hello readers,

Today, I’m going to present a strong case for quitting meat. But beyond the facts and reasoning, I’m also going to pepper this with anecdotes of my own journey- of going from a meat addict to a vegetarian. Halfway-vegan in a way, because we don’t get any milk products at home, and my only consumption is when I go nuts at wedding receptions (or social dinners) with those greasy-ass Paneer starters.

So what brought about this change? How did I go from that guy who’d convince his vegetarian friends to try meat to the guy who’s now nudging them to quit?

The forces of change were simmering in my unconscious for a while, and ultimately things came to a head in January 2021.

The trigger? A brilliant meal at a South Indian restaurant.

Here’s how it went down.

I went to Savya Rasa, a popular restaurant in Pune with my family, and we ended up having some delectable non-vegetarian dishes, including a mutton dish that was designed for inducing gastric orgasms…but also, heck loads of trouble because mutton is so goddamn difficult to digest.

Our tummies felt even bigger than the time when I went berzerk at my seventh cousin's wedding reception, and we had to skip dinner to give our blasted intestines some rest.

That’s when my wife sensed that something about this was unnatural, and she started reading about it. And then she went down the entire meat industry rabbit hole- something that’d totally alter the way we live.

After watching a bunch of documentaries, she was utterly disgusted with the harsh realities of the industry and urged me to check them out. We even started reading this book called Eating Animals- and that was the death blow to my meat-eating habit.

My wife’s BP dropped while reading the book and after a point, she couldn’t continue. I soldiered on, and I was in for a rude awakening. The material, based on deep research on the meat industry, was harrowing.

I remember being shell-shocked for a few days, wondering why I wasn’t dropping all my work and just spending time trying to end this tragic disaster, this idea of endless meat consumption that’s wreaking so much havoc and producing endless misery at a global scale.

After that, suddenly all my meat cravings evaporated. I’d crossed the Rubicon and there was no going back.

Now that I’ve built up so much drama, let me distill what I learned from the stuff I read, minus all the gory, tear-inducing anecdotes, and share 5 major reasons why every meat eater should consider giving up:

The Moral Case

If a being has the ability to experience pain and pleasure, it deserves the right to live. We don’t need to kill these animals for survival, as many believe. We are the lucky inheritors of technology that allow us to live a healthy life with a vegetarian/vegan diet. Some say that they’re helping keep the animal population in check. If that’s your line of argument, it’d help to read more about the meat industry and know how it manufactures Frankenstein monsters at an unnatural, hyper-scale purely for our consumption (and their fattening bottom lines). Some say “Other animals also eat animals, so why shouldn't I?”. Wouldn’t it be ironic to look to those same animals we call “beasts” who are at a “lower level of intelligence” for moral guidance? We can use our big brains and the gift of reason to understand the consequences of our actions and practice ethical behavior, which those animals can never hope to. Posterity will judge us harshly for this holocaust of the animals- and consider us as guilty as we consider slave owners from a few hundred years ago.

The Environmental Case

It’s a lesser-known fact that the livestock industry is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than even the transportation industry. Beef and lamb production is particularly responsible for the production of deadly quantities of methane. Livestock farming is extremely intensive in terms of land and water usage, causing rampant deforestation, water scarcity, and toxic pollution of communities as they’re dumped with endless piles of animal shit. Who would have thought that one of the most significant steps in reducing one’s carbon footprint would be to simply quit meat?

The Ugly Reality of the Meat Industry

We need not sponsor the heinous torture of countless animals for nothing but a few moments of fleeting, sensory pleasures. That’s what the meat industry is- a giant torture complex that destroys billions of lives. Eating meat isn’t a simple act of denying an animal its right to existence- it also involves inflicting boundless misery and pain, subjecting animals to crowded living conditions and brutal treatment before they reach their ugly ends. Unfortunately, as consumers, we’re so distant from the production process that we fail to comprehend the disgusting things that have to happen for those innocent-looking chicken nuggets to arrive on our plates. Additionally, the testimony of numerous workers in the industry shows how horrific it is as a workplace. Employees are subjected to harsh conditions, resulting in regular accidents and mishaps. Their emotional lives are wrecked, as the exposure to large-scale torture and massacre results in severe emotional trauma, anxiety, and PTSD in some cases. Peak under the hood, read about the meat industry, and the rot will convince you to re-evaluate your choices.

Health Hazard

Numerous studies have shown how meat eating is a major contributor to health hazards, raising the risk of heart attack, cancer, obesity, and many other illnesses. Processed meat is full of stuff you don’t want to put in your body- things like antibiotics and hormones. Red meat, especially, is a killer if you consider the amount of cholesterol and saturated fat it carries. In a world where we don’t need to eat meat to stay healthy, exposing ourselves to this dangerous habit might come to resemble smoking in the subsequent decades and centuries.

Antibiotic Resistance and Epidemics

The aggressive use of antibiotics in factory farms leads to antibiotic resistance- a situation in which germs develop the ability to overcome the very antibiotics designed to kill them. In such situations, humans are prone to a deadly new disease for which they can mount no defense. Secondly, the close proximity of animals in these farms, along with poor health conditions and weakened immune systems provides ample opportunities for pathogens to mutate and eventually jump to human hosts. This is exactly how we get things like the swine flu and bird flu. The more we consume meat, the more we’re exposing ourselves to these deadly phenomena.

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The case against eating animals is far too strong for us to ignore.

On one hand, many people can’t really imagine that they’re doing something wrong by consuming meat. It’s because of ignorance about the production process. It’s because of social proof- when everyone around you is doing it, maybe there’s nothing wrong with it.

But on the other, many people get it. A lot of people I’ve spoken to agree with many of the points and even want to give up but just can’t. I can understand why this is the case. I do believe meat is addictive, and the lust it induces can be extremely difficult to eradicate.

I can empathize with this situation because I was in the same boat.

If you find yourself in a similar situation- where you acknowledge that it’s important for you to quit but just can’t get over your cravings- I might have a suggestion that can work.

The craving to consume meat- to enjoy the orgasm-inducing chicken tandoori or the lip-smacking prawn curry- is not unique. It’s just one out of the countless cravings that our mind-body complex develops in the course of its lifetime. Just like those other deep-rooted cravings, the remedy to come out is the same.

It begins with a deep surgical operation of the mind- a process of rewiring the brain that will change the way you think and live. Instead of being a slave to your desires, you will start to exert much more control over the things you do. Understanding the desire for meat as nothing but a desire for a bunch of ephemeral sensations, you can successfully escape the iron grip of this addiction.

I hope you think deeply about this issue and don’t resort to the trap of subjective morality- the “do whatever you like” principle we often default to when we are faced with a moral dilemma.

Reflect on what you’ve just read. The animals are counting on us to court reason and end this cycle of misery.

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Thanks for reading. If you want to read more about the quirks of human nature and how we can improve ourselves, check out:

• The Illusion Of Confidence

• A Neuroscientist’s Perspective On Free Will

• A Tip For Future Debates