The Pros and Cons of Vegetarianism

   I live in a family of (mostly) vegetarians. My little sister, Claire, is the only one in our household who does not subscribe to the meat-free lifestyle. And by "the meat-free lifestyle," I mean abstaining from eating anything that could once be classified as an animal. An animal, by my own definition, is any living organism that can breathe, move of its own accord, and/or has a face. Not all animals posses all three of these characteristics, but most do. Anything that possesses even one counts, except, of course, bacteria and other microscopic life-forms.
    So, without further ado, here's a list of the pros and cons of being a vegetarian:

       

          Pros:

• Killing less animals. This is a major plus. If you've never seen the move Food, Inc., I highly recommend you watch it for details on why it's a plus.
• Our (vegetarians') cholesterol is generally much lower than that of those who ingest large amounts of meat, especially red meat. Low cholesterol means a reduced risk of getting heart diseases and clogged arteries.
• Reduced risk of getting E.coli, Salmonella, and other food-borne diseases. This is mainly because, unlike chicken, tofu and other plant proteins won't cause you to get a disease if you don't wash the knife directly after chopping them and then use the dirty knife for cutting up your broccoli.
• It's easier to maintain a healthy body if you don't have to worry about whether or not the protein you eat is lean enough.

         Cons:

• It is harder to get your required daily protein when you don't eat meat.
• For some, it is very hard to be a healthy vegetarian. Those who don't know about the joys of meat-free nutrition usually subsist on a diet of junk food. 
• Most people automatically assume that, just because you're a vegetarian, you a) only eat vegetables, or b) don't eat any animal products. This gets very annoying after a very small amount of time.
• You have to repeat yourself over and over again when people ask you why you decided to become a vegetarian.  It's just a hard lot to bear, I suppose.