Published Letters and Op-Eds from
COK’s Writers Group

Diet Balances Health or Cruelty

Editor:

Re: Casper Star-Tribune article, "Vegetarian for life," Sept. 6.

Like Oleta Thomas, I too experienced positive changes in my health after adopting a vegetarian diet -- in addition to no longer living with the ill effects of lactose intolerance, my energy levels have increased while my cholesterol levels decreased. While some people forego meat, eggs, and dairy primarily for the health benefits, many people, like myself, also do so out of concern for the immense suffering animals endure on factory farms.

Most animals on today's factory farms are denied individualized veterinary care and are subjected to cruel practices that are standard in the industry. Baby pigs have their tails cut off and males are castrated without any pain-killers. After having parts of their beaks seared off without pain relief, egg-laying hens spend their lives crammed inside tiny wire cages. And mother pigs spend months at a time in crates so narrow, they can't even turn around.

For the animals and our health, let's make our next meal vegetarian. For more information on vegetarian eating including free recipes, visit TryVeg.com.

Dawn Ratcliffe, Takoma Park, Md.
Outreach coordinator, Compassion Over Killing