One of the most common arguments presented by non-vegetarians is that plants also have life so why do vegans eat them as well? I try to counter them with statements like they are not sentient and they tell me that science has proved that they do feel pain.
What can be the best counter argument for this statement presented by the non-vegetarian? I am sure there must be some scientific papers and links that can present a solid counter argument.
Apart from suicide, the best way to minimise suffering to plants is to be vegan. Eating meat or dairy will indirectly harm even more plants.
People making the argument that plants feel pain may not realize they are being illogical.
Try to give people the benefit of the doubt and clarify which logical fallacy they applying. "Plants feel pain too," is a False Equivalency.
Instead try stick with the evidence that eating plant-based extends life, decreased rates of obesity, and decreased rates of chronic disease. When you engage in someone else's logical fallacy it hampers the true goal, which is to understand one another and communicate more effectively. For a list of Logical Fallacies see https://www.vanderbilt.edu/writing/resources/handouts/illogical-arguments/
If you would like to read an excellent article on how scientists know plants (which lack nervous systems) do not feel pain click here https://sentientmedia.org/do-plants-feel-pain/
Here is a science article from NCBI on plant signaling https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2633694/
Thank you for the question I hope everyone reads more from Seth Millstein if they are interested in health and veganism. https://sentientmedia.org/author/sethmillstein/
Plants don't have a nervous system so it's a common consensus that they don't feel pain. At least not in the same way as animals.
One of the strongest arguments for being vegan/vegetarian is the sustainability and the environmental friendliness. Consuming meat leads to even a bigger carbon footprint than consuming veggies. The only exception could be growing avocados which can be countered by reducing their consumption and replace them by other protein rich alternatives such as beans/lentils/broccoli and so on.
