Science warns of the increase in epidemics of animal origin
All the pandemics experienced in recent years have been an opportunity to learn a little more about the pangolin, the wild ducks of Central Europe, the bats of China, the masked palm civet, snakes and other wild animals, of course. But let's face reality for a moment and find the common factor in all these pandemics: animals. Based on this observation, veganism and vegetarianism quite naturally seem to be adequate solutions if we want to move towards a future without (or at least limited) pandemics.
Let's face it, the epidemics that have devastated the world over the past hundred years are all of animal origin. Moreover, Science clearly points to animal-based epidemics in recent years. So, ready to consider big changes individually and collectively? Ready to gradually change our eating habits? These are the questions...
Non-exhaustive list of pandemics of animal origin
- The Spanish flu of 1918: between 50 and 100 million deaths. Origin: an avian flu passed from birds to pigs before affecting humans.
- The Asian flu in 1957 and 1958: a mutation of the virus from wild ducks. It caused 1.1 million deaths.
- The Hong Kong flu between 1968 and 1970: origin, the central European duck. 1 million dead.
- Mad cow disease in 1996: it spread to reveal the dangers of eating beef.
- H5N1 virus in 1997: also called influenza A, its origin is found in chicken farms.
- Coronavirus or Covid 19: appeared in 2019 in China, went from a bat to a pangolin before contaminating humans.
When Science highlights the increase in epidemics of animal origin
Mr Serge Morand, researcher at the CNRS and specialist in parasitic ecology, underlines in an interview given to FranceTV on March 20, 2020 that "For the past 70 years, we have had more epidemics and 70% of them have appeared because of the consumption of wild, domestic or bovine animals" .
On the other hand, a study conducted by the American biologist Laura Kurpiers in 2016, confirms Serge Morand's speech by revealing that 75% of emerging infectious diseases are of animal origin.
Epidemics that raise the issue of massive deforestation
Serge Morand also explains, based on the 1990 NIPAH virus in Malaysia, that deforestation displaces populations of wild animals towards farms for lack of suitable natural habitat.
In the example he cites, a fruit bat that usually lives in the forest infected a farmed pig in Malaysia. This perfectly illustrates the irresponsibility of man, who in his excessive and egotistical conquest of natural resources, totally deregulates the interaction that should exist between the living, humans and the pathogen. In other words, it is man who encourages these epidemic increases and the increase in farm animals does not help.
Serge Morand indicates that they are very dangerous because they are resistant to antibiotics. Farms are simply incubators of bacteria, real bombs according to the exact words of the scientist. So it's time to change our eating habits and turn to a largely vegetable diet, to avoid these epidemics. So, veganism and vegetarianism are inevitably the future. Change has to happen gradually, but it has to happen. For our own good, but also that of all living beings and the planet.
