Meat Eaters, Urine Trouble! UTI Study Prompts PETA Vegan Message in Southern California
For Immediate Release:
October 31, 2025
Contact:
Sara Groves 202-483-7382
Meat-eaters might want to sit down for this: Following a just-released study showing that nearly one-fifth of urinary tract infections in Southern California patients were linked to E. coli from contaminated meat, PETA plans to place an urgent reminder in the area that the number one way to avoid a meat-induced infection is to go vegan. PETA plans to run the message near medical centers, clinics, and pharmacies in San Diego and Bakersfield.
The study, which involved more than 23,000 patients, found that a whopping 18% of infections were related to E. coli from chicken, turkey, pork, or beef—suggesting that the consumption of meat may be a far greater source of UTIs than previously known.
“While meaty meals spell misery for animals and can come back to sting the humans who consume them, plant-powered eats can give everyone some relief,” says PETA Founder Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA is encouraging everyone to make the painless choice to go vegan, and stands ready to help with tips, recipes, and more.”
PETA points out that pigs are soothed by music, cows have best friends, turkeys are doting parents, and chickens dream when they sleep, just as humans do—but in today’s meat industry, the animals are raised in filthy, crowded conditions, trucked to slaughterhouses through all weather extremes, and violently killed.
In addition to carrying a risk of E. coli contamination, meat, eggs, and dairy contain no fiber and are loaded with artery-clogging saturated fat and cholesterol. Each person who goes vegan spares nearly 200 animals every year and slashes their own risk of suffering from cancer, heart disease, strokes, diabetes, and other ailments. PETA’s free vegan starter kit is filled with tips to help anyone looking to make the switch.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
