Vegan food is medicine. But during a recent hospital stay, I saw an absurd number of animal-derived foods on the menu: greasy cheese, cholesterol-laden meat, fatty dairy milk. It made about as much sense as a mechanic pouring tallow into an engine.

New York City Health + Hospitals has the right idea: Vegan food has been the default for the group’s patients since 2021. And a recent paper in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine revealed that these hospitals enjoy high patient satisfaction, reduced greenhouse gas emissions and lower costs. So, for our wallets, our health and the planet and its inhabitants, let’s offer vegan foods in all hospitals — and everywhere else, too.

There’s no nutritional need for humans to eat anything from animals. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics says that compared with meat-eaters, vegans enjoy lower blood cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure and lower body mass indexes — as well as decreased rates of cancer, hypertension and type 2 diabetes. Plus, eating vegan, even for a short period, may slow down the aging process of the heart, the liver and the hormonal, inflammatory and metabolic systems, according to a new study published in BMC Medicine.

If we want to combat “superbugs,” we absolutely must go vegan. Antibiotic resistance is primarily driven by the overuse of antibiotics in animal agriculture. Farms use a whopping 80% of antibiotics sold in the U.S., often to prevent disease in animals forced to live in unhealthy, severely crowded conditions. Overusing these drugs accelerates bacteria’s ability to become resistant to them. A brand-new study published in The Lancet estimates that 39 million people will die from antimicrobial-resistant pathogens by 2050. And that doesn’t include zoonotic diseases.

Three out of four new infectious diseases in humans come from animals due to our dependence on animal agriculture for food and other items. These zoonotic diseases, which are transmitted from animals to humans — like COVID-19 — have caused devastating outbreaks. Experts, including the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, have long warned that continuing to exploit animals for food makes future pandemics inevitable.

It’s no secret that healthcare in the U.S. is expensive. Fortunately, vegan staples — such as pasta, rice, tofu and beans — are much more economical than meat and other animal-derived foods. The long shelf life of these items makes bulk purchasing a viable option — driving down the cost even more.

And as we consider how food choices relate to finances, let’s not forget the economic strain that monstrous storms are inflicting on us. There’s a scientific consensus that human activities — such as burning fossil fuels — are driving the climate catastrophe. Studies show that the rate and intensity of extreme weather events, such as floods, droughts and storms, have increased significantly over the past few decades. The number of climate-related disasters, for example, skyrocketed 83% from 1980 to 1999. Monster hurricanes like Helene and Milton will become more common as the planet continues to heat up. But we can all help reverse that trend by going vegan.

Animal agriculture accounts for at least 16.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions. And the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency states that animal agriculture is the single largest source of methane emissions in the country. These emissions trap heat in the atmosphere, leading to a rise in global temperatures — causing extreme and unpredictable weather events, including hurricanes.

And let’s remember the animals themselves, who suffer in crowded, filthy conditions. They’re subjected to mutilations like dehorning and beak-trimming, often without pain relief. The massive corporations that run most factory farms have found that they can make more money by squeezing as many animals as possible into tiny spaces — even though many of them suffer and die from disease or infection. Going vegan means taking a stand against cruelty to animals.

Embracing vegan food is essential for improving human health, reducing costs and addressing critical issues like the climate catastrophe. So let’s prioritize bringing vegan food into our lives as the medicine it is, in hospitals, schools and everywhere else.

____

Rebecca Libauskas is a climate research specialist for the PETA Foundation, 501 Front St., Norfolk, VA 23510; www.PETA.org.

___

©2024 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.