Monday, July 27, 2009, 1:37pm PDT
PETA to UnitedHealth: Promote vegetarianism
Los Angeles Business from bizjournals - by Chris Newmarker of the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal
Animal rights activists are urging one of the nation’s largest health insurers to wage war against hamburgers.
The group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, said Monday that it had sent a letter to UnitedHealth Group Inc. CEO Stephen Hemsley that calls for the insurer to promote vegetarianism.
The group is suggesting that UnitedHealth lower rates for vegetarians, and raise them for nonvegetarians. A PETA spokeswoman said the insurer would optimally reward people who don’t even eat fish, eggs or dairy products.
PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman said in a news release that the “range of serious diseases linked to eating meat and dairy products adds up to a huge financial toll.”
“By encouraging policyholders to go vegetarian, UnitedHealth Group would save on claims, employers would see less absenteeism because of illnesses related to the consumption of meat and dairy products, and policyholders would avoid high premiums,” Reiman said. Read More
Add this to the list of outrageous letters that PETA has sent out. Eating a vegetarian diet is not healthier for you. How can it be healthy to leave out entire food groups from your diet? If PETA wants to encourage something, maybe it should be eating a balanced diet along with proper exercise. They continue to endanger human health through the promotion of their agenda.
3 comments:
http://www.eatright.org/cps/rde/xchg/ada/hs.xsl/media_22003_ENU_HTML.htm
"It is the position of the American Dietetic Association that appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life-cycle including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood and adolescence and for athletes."
The American Dietetic Association also says that it is very important to get your servings of dairy and dairy products, which PETA claims makes you sick as well.
The food pyramid that is recommended by the goverernment, would not suggest eliminating entire food groups from your diet. Nor would any of th dieticians that I have talked to. Beef for example, provides you with a very nutrient dense source of zinc, iron and protein.
Tracy you must also remember that no food has ever been shown to directly cause cancer or any other disease. Proper exercise and other lifestyle choices will have as much or more impact on your health as what you eat.
Here's what your USDA says:
http://www.mypyramid.gov/downloads/TenTips/VegetarianTipsheet.pdf
Notice that nowhere on this page, not even under "Calcium" recommendations, does it mention dairy.
Post a Comment