• Next to cigarette smoking, obesity is the second most preventable cause of death in the United States. (5)



• According to the World Health Organization, "obesity and overweight pose a major risk for chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension and stroke, and certain forms of cancer." (6)



• Unlike the typically fat-laden, standar d American diet, a low- fat vegetarian diet, paired with exercise, can promote weight loss and overall better health. (7)
  


• The American Dietetic Association reports that "vegetarians, especially vegans, often have weights that are closer to desirable weights than do non-vegetarians." (8)

• Of the 13 million diagnosed cases of diabetes in the United States, 90 to 95 percent of them are classified as type 2 (adult- onset diabetes). (9)



• The onset of type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed. The American Diabetes Association advises that lifestyle changes, including increased consumption of vegetarian staples such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains can help protect individuals from this potentially fatal disease. (10)
  


• Low-fat vegetarian diets that are high in fiber and complex carbohydrates can actually make the body more responsive to insulin. (11)



• The Seventh Day Adventist Health Study, a major body of research on the health and mortality of vegetarians in the United States, reveals that vegetarians have nearly one half the incidence rate of adult-onset diabetes as compared with non-vegetarians. (12)

• According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, "osteoporosis is a major public health threat for an estimated 44 million Americans." Currently, ten million of these individuals already suffer from the disease. (13)



• Several studies have suggested a connection between osteoporosis and diets that are rich in animal protein. Calcium can actually be leached out of the bones by animal protein and ultimately excreted from the body in the urine. (14)
  


• By eliminating calcium-depleting animal proteins from the diet, individuals may be able to lower their risk of developing osteoporosis. (15)



• Calcium can be absorbed from vegetables just as well as, if not better than it can from dairy foods. (16) Healthy sources of calcium include green leafy vegetables and legumes. (17)
  

• The American Cancer Society reports that of the 564,830 cancer deaths expected to occur in 2006, approximately one third of them "will be related to nutrition, physical inactivity, and overweight or obesity, and thus could also be prevented." (18)



• The excessive fat derived from animal products is known to contribute to poor health in several ways. Recent research has uncovered links between animal food consumption and many forms of cancer, such as that of the colon, breast, ovary, and prostate. (19)
  


• A vegetarian diet that is low in saturated fat, high in fiber and packed with phytochemicals can aid in cancer prevention. Epidemiologic studies have even shown that populations on diets high in plant foods and low in animal fat actually reduce their risks of developing some of the most common cancers. (20)



• The primary recommendation of the American Institute for Cancer Research, (21) the World Cancer Research Fund, (22) the American Cancer Society, (23) and the World Health Organization (24) is for individuals to increase their intake of plant foods.

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that food-borne diseases cause approximately 76 million illnesses, 325,000 hospitalizations and 5,200 deaths in the United States each year. (25)



• Factory farms, which crowd animals and render them more susceptible to illness, are a breeding ground for disease-causing pathogens, such as Salmonella, Campylobacter and E. coli. (26)



• Further exacerbating the problem of foodborne illness, the rampant use of antibiotics on factory farms has led to an increase in antibiotic-resistant bacteria that can withstand medical treatment in and cause health problems for humans. (27)


• More recent studies have revealed that foodborne pathogens can contribute to chronic health complications, including heart disease, inflammatory bowel disease, neurological problems, autoimmune disorders, and kidney disease. (28)

• As industrial pollutants empty into America's waterways, fish destined for human consumption are contaminated by mercury, a harmful and very toxic heavy metal. (29)
  


• Methylmercury exposure can lead to serious health complications in people of all ages, especially in pregnant women, developing fetuses and young children. (30)
  


• Even low levels of mercury exposure put developing fetuses and young children at risk for neurological and developmental complications, such as brain damage, poor coordination and speech difficulties. Long-term exposure in adults can lead to brain, heart, lung, and kidney damage. (31)



• Although 45 states have issued advisories alerting high- risk groups to the harmful effects of mercury exposure, many scientists and advocacy groups claim these advisories are inadequate because they do not include information about the toxin's ability to cause chronic health problems in members of the general population. (32)

• A fatal brain affliction known as Cruetzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in humans, Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease, is caused by prions (disease-causing pathogens) that have such remarkable structures, they are able to withstand incineration. (33)



• Once perceived to be a problem for foreign countries only, especially for England where CJD deaths have already been linked to BSE, mad cow disease became a reality for Americans in 2003 when an infected cow was discovered in Washington State.



• Although the USDA has implemented some measures to prevent the spread of BSE, many experts claim that attempts to protect the public, especially after subsequent discoveries of mad cow on American soil, have been inadequate. (34)
  
  
• Utilizing the Freedom of Information Act, the consumer advocacy group, Public Citizen, requested and received USDA records indicating that 829 noncompliance records relating to measures designed to protect the American public from the threats of BSE were cited from January 2004- March 2005 alone. (35)



• The United States continues to disregard World Health Organization Guidelines for BSE by failing to stop feeding infected animals to other animals, establish more adequate testing and surveillance systems, prevent "risky materials" from entering any food chain, and ban the use of ruminant tissues in all ruminant feed. (36)



• Investigation of two mad cow cases in Alabama and Texas has uncovered what are believed to be atypical BSE strains. NeuroPrion scientist and mad cow disease expert, Dr. Jean-Phillipe Deslys, identified some possible explanations for the new variant including, "that the 'classic' BSE infection has mutated, much like a virus; that these cases are linked to scrapie in sheep or are truly spontaneous like most CJD cases in humans and present little or no infective risk; or most ominously, that a new pattern of infectivity has emerged and may not be identified for years." (37)

• According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "avian influenza is an infectious disease of birds caused by type A strains of the influenza virus. The disease, which was first identified in Italy more than 100 years ago, occurs worldwide." (38)



• As current thought dictates, all bird species can contract the virus; however, some are more susceptible to it than others. Typically carriers of avian influenza, migratory waterfowl are among the least susceptible, while domestic chickens and turkeys easily succumb to the disease. (39)



• Avian influenza is most commonly spread to humans by way of contact with infected poultry or surfaces contaminated by the animals' excrement. Although human to human transmission is rare, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explains that "all influenza viruses have the ability to change," so the most current and dangerous strains of the bird flu could eventually mutate into a form that easily passes from person to person. (40)



• Of current concern, a potentially fatal virus strain, known as H5N1, for which humans have no natural immunity or vaccines with confirmed effectiveness, is negatively affecting and killing a growing number of people in Asia, the Near East, the Pacific, Europe, and Africa. (41)



• In addition to causing the deaths of many, some strains of avian influenza can cause symptoms ranging "from typical human influenza-like symptoms […] to eye infections, pneumonia, severe respiratory diseases, and other severe and life-threatening complications," some of which have yet to be determined. (42)



• Poultry and egg interest groups claim that the ways in which American birds are raised, intensively confined by the tens of thousands or more in excrement- ridden warehouses, are superior to rearing methods used in other countries; (43) therefore, they say, "no special precautions need to be taken by the consumer because of any fears about avian influenza." (44) Conversely, authorities like WHO, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) maintain that industrial farms play a significant role in generating disease. (45)
  
  
• While it's true that the H5N1 flu strain has not yet been discovered in the United States, outbreaks of others have occurred in Texas, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland. (46) According to a number of infectious disease experts, including the Secretary of Health and Human Services, a human influenza pandemic is imminent. (47)

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