In the year 2012, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimated that Americans ate an average of 52.3 pounds of beef, 57.4 pounds of chicken, and 43.5 pounds of pork per day. person. (quote?) Only 5% of Americans are vegetarians and with so much meat eaten by Americans, in just one year why would you force yourself to become a vegetarian? Since meat is the staple of the American diet, there is no reason why we should get meat from the table. This fact alone proves that the diet of most Americans consists of meat sources. According to the United States Census Bureau (USCB) the US population was 313.8 million; meaning that 16 billion pounds of beef, 18 billion pounds of chicken, and 13 billion pounds of pork were eaten by Americans alone in one year. People should eat meat as they have done for the last 2.3 million years. Eating meat has been an essential component of the human diet and throughout human history. Ever since our ancestors discovered meat, we have been eating it ever since. It has benefited the human body in many ways beyond simply satisfying hunger. It has inspired evolutionary improvements to our teeth, jaws, mouth, guts, brains, and even the tools we use every day. These changes are interconnected, so they made our body more efficient as a whole. It all started with the change in our gut. Now that humans could eat meat, our stomachs and intestines got smaller because we no longer needed a huge food processor. With this change it has given our body more energy so that we can exert more energy building a bigger and stronger brain. This made our ancestors smarter and led to the invention of the many tools we use every day. An example of one of these tools is the grinder. Your t...... middle of paper ......org" ProCon.org. April 16, 2014. Web. May 19, 2014. .US Department of Commerce. "USA QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau. "USA QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau. US Census Bureau, March 27, 2014. Web. May 17, 2014. "Fact: Meat Is Good For You." OpposingViews.com. Opposing Views, September 26, 2008. Web. May 19, 2014. Mitchell, Peter. “Negative Effects of Vegetarianism on Pregnancy.” LIVESTRONG.COM, February 25, 2014. Web May 19, 2014. .Chirkova, Yelena. “Vegetarianism is a lethal danger for pregnant women. "English Pravda.ru. Pravda.ru, November 18, 2009. Web. May 19 2014.