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Naked or Not, Famous Vegetarians Are a Passionate Bunch

By Laura Ferreiro Posted Nov 14th 2009 11:00AM

What could inspire Alicia Silverstone to strip naked in an ad, Natalie Portman to blog passionately and Morrissey to walk off stage at a festival? The answer might surprise you: vegetarianism. Countless actors, rock stars and folks from all walks of life have decided to take meat off the menu and go veggie for an array of reasons as colorful as their personalities.

Most of us know that Paul McCartney hasn't eaten meat for years (and his late wife, Linda, launched her own brand of meat-free products), but did you know that Red Hot Chili Peppers' Anthony Kiedis was voted the world's sexiest vegetarian by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), '30 Rock' star Alec Baldwin is a long-time veggie who campaigns for animal rights, and Woody Harrelson convinced director Ruben Fleischer to eat vegan while shooting 'Zombieland'?

One of the most outspoken vegetarians in recent weeks has been Silverstone, who's promoting her new book 'The Kind Diet.' The 'Clueless' star writes that eating a meat-and-dairy-free, plant-based diet can improve your health and appearance, increase energy levels and even help cure diseases. She also offers up scrumptious vegan recipes including healthy "chorizo" tacos, crispy rice squares and chocolate peanut butter cups.

"There's nothing in the world that's changed me as much as this," Silverstone says. "I know deep in my heart that when you eat this way you'll feel better than you ever have in your life. You get younger and stronger. When I went vegan, people thought I was glowing...I lost weight and felt like I was walking around the world a little lighter. You can heal yourself through eating this way. The cure is in the food."

Putting her money where her mouth is, the vegan actress took off her clothes for a sexy PETA ad promoting vegetarianism.

Jonathan Safran Foer's new book, 'Eating Animals,' takes an entirely different approach. The hot young author zeroes in on the questionable practices of the meat industry, writing about the deplorable and shocking conditions animals live (and die) in at factory farms after spending a year and a half visiting farms around the country. He argues that we are defined not just by what we do, but also by what we are willing to do without.

The non-fiction book made such an impression on Natalie Portman that it caused the Hollywood star to go from being a vegetarian to a vegan, eliminating all animal products from her diet such as milk and cheese in addition to meat and fish. "Perhaps others disagree with me that animals have personalities, but the highly documented torture of animals is unacceptable, and the human cost Foer describes in his book, of which I was previously unaware, is universally compelling," the star wrote in her Huffington Post blog.

Meanwhile, famed vegetarian Morrissey told thousands of fans at California's Coachella Festival this year that meat makes him sick. "I can smell burning flesh and I hope to God it's human," he said dramatically as the scent of barbecued meat from nearby food stands wafted through the air during his performance.

Celebrities including Casey Affleck, Joan Jett, Bryan Adams, McCartney, James Cromwell, Kevin Nealon, and Forest Whitaker have all participated in PETA's ongoing "I Am a Vegetarian" campaign in which they passionately express their personal motivations for eliminating meat from their diet. "Life is full of choices," Whitaker says, "and many years ago I chose to become a vegetarian. It was one of the best choices I ever made."

Silverstone adds that you don't necessarily need to become a vegan for the rest of your life, you can simply "flirt" with a plant-based diet and see how it makes you feel. "The flirting plan I created for people who say, 'OK, I've read all this information and I really want to do this. I really want these results, but I feel a little shy that I wont be able to do it all the way,'" she told the Wall Street Journal. "Then do it slowly. Flirting means you keep an open heart, an open mind. You're sort of dating a healthier lifestyle, and you're slowly adding new concepts and new foods to your life."

Tags: alec baldwin, AlecBaldwin, alicia silverstone, AliciaSilverstone, Anthony Kiedis, AnthonyKiedis, natalie Portman, NataliePortman, paul mccartney, PaulMccartney, peta, Woody Harrelson, WoodyHarrelson

Comments

(33)

Sunday 15 November

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*giggles*

Its Steve-O as in the letter.

this made me chuckle

Saturday 14 November

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Vegetarians are those who choose not to hunt! As if most of us still hunt! Most people only hunt for their car keys, so that they can go and pick up whatever meat they want from the aisles at the grocery store. Vegetarians are aware of how animals are treated and have a little sensitivity to other creatures we share the planet, contrary to the meat eaters approach.

Saturday 14 November

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Hmm, the PETA is definitely a cult. A crazed one. Don't let them to tell you how to live. I remember reading about a vegetarian freak couple that fed their baby with soy milk and the baby died very skinny. Any doctor would tell that the baby must gain weight nutritionally. The Hollywood leftists think that they are so famous that we would be trembling at their presence. I'll swear you that if any of them ever get high-minded with me, I'll f**k them up bad. I hate their arrogance.

Sunday 15 November

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Don't forget to add Adolf Hitler to your list of famous vegetarians.

Sunday 15 November

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Charlie Sheen ROFL, that's a lie. NO ONE GETS THAT FAT on veggies.

BTW, when you are in a burning building, you won;t yell, save the dog and cat, NOT ME! lol...or at least I haven't seen anyone do so yet.

Sunday 15 November

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Actually, you CAN get fat on a non-meat diet, and it doesn't even all have to be fried. I knew a "vegetarian" once who'd stopped eating meat, but she never really cottoned to vegetables, other than, say, salsa. A better label for her would have been "starchitarian".

Sunday 15 November

By JT

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Eat more meat, eat less plants. If EVERY animal on earth died, the plants would live on and evolve (probably into parasitic lifeforms again, i.e. animals). Kill all the plant life on earth, and the planet would be a dead ball of rock VERY quickly. So, all you ego- and species-centric vegitarians and vegans actually have it bass ackwards. PLANTS are MORE important than animals.

Sunday 15 November

By JT

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Humans have a relatively short digestive tract. That means that evolution has deemed us to be omnivores. I don't fight mother nature. Also, being an omnivore is superior, survival-wise, than being an herbivore or carnivore. So, choosing an all vegetarian or vegan diet is nutritionally and naturally inferior...just as choosing to be a solely carnivorous diet would be deficient. However, who expects humans to be logical..they try to change evolution to fit their psychological profile rather than trying to fit into their natural niche.

Sunday 15 November

By drastichange

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I have lost repect for this actress. God put the animals here for us to eat! As far as rather going naked, thats just a load af crap! Enjoy your winters honey. You would rather wear "man made" material wich produces harmful chemicals wich is BAD for our PLANET. Then wear what nature has given us? I am AGIANST the wrongful treatment of the animals at meat plants, I am also AGAINST the meaningless deaths of animals whos meat and skins get tossed in the trash. BUT I am not against useing "EARTH PROVIDED" materials.

Sunday 15 November

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So, God told you this? I always have to laugh at the "God put such 'n such here for US" ..How the hell do you know? The bible was written by man..WAKE UP.

Sunday 15 November

By smoothoperator

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I have been vegetarian for many years. I feel much healthier and I tilt the scales at 250 lbs. I am not emaciated. I have more firearms than the gunstore. My guns are for hunting humans. Libtards are only good for target practice... Original diet GOD gave us was grains, nuts, fruit.

Sunday 15 November

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So you've seen people in a burning building? WOW! Did they stand outside and watch their pets burn? NO! JACK***! Most people who have pets LOVE them like they are children! I know I would risk my life to save my pets- I know it may be stupid and selfish- but that's just the way I feel about them. I couldn't live with myself if I didn't try.

Tuesday 16 February

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Some of the tribes were vegetarian.

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