Have you ever considered going vegan? It’s a question that happens every January as veganuary comes into effect. There are plenty of reasons to go vegan, from the amazing vegan menu that you can get in a restaurant to the health benefits that come with it.

If you’ve ever considered switching your diet from a meat eating one to a vegan one, you should know that this is a pretty big step. You want to ensure that your choices are good choices, whether you are vegan or not. So, why should you go vegan?

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• For the animals. This is the most important reason for most people who do decide to go vegan. They realize that they can have a full diet without having to enjoy products that come from animals that have been slaughtered for their food. Animal agriculture is sometimes cruel and inhumane, and while animals are beautiful and sentient beings, we now raise them to be food. Some people believe that animals don’t deserve this, and they should be raised and loved rather than raised for food. The conditions that they live in while they are waiting to be slaughtered is usually a factor in this decision.

• Factory farming. We just talked about the conditions for animals, but factory farms are on another level. Not only are the working conditions hazardous, but there are hazardous gasses that workers inhale, stress injuries and health issues. If more people were vegan there would be fewer factory farms and this wouldn’t happen. Factory farms are also not great for the animals who are crammed into small spaces and expected to grow and breed.

• For the environment. Animal agriculture is actually terrible for the environment, because the farms that are raising animals create tonnes of waste every day. The problem is that the manual at that level goes into the ground and then runs into the waterways. This contributes to contamination and manure can also give off toxic gas. Methane and carbon dioxide are both greenhouse gasses and these contribute to climate change.

• Full health benefits. Plenty of health professionals out there recommended plant based diets for a variety of reasons. Having too much red meat can actually harm your heart, and if you have less meat on your plate you can reverse heart disease.

• To expand your thinking. Most people have their dinners, lunches and breakfast surrounding protein carbohydrate and a vegetable. Sometimes, people are a bit blind to which protein they can have, but going vegan forces you to try new things. Plant proteins such as chickpeas and lentils can replace chickens or meats in Curry. You could also consider tofu and other options that you can eat instead of eating meat. Not everybody can handle a vegan diet and that’s OK, but a step towards vegetarianism is a great plan. Maybe if you don’t plan to go fully vegan, you can still enjoy trying new things and you can start by ordering off restaurant menus in vegan places and decide to make better decisions for your food intake.

This is a collaborative post.