Who really think plants can feel pain or feeling?

Question

In many questions and anwsers, many people are justify to eat meat because it is also bad to kill a growing plant. So my question is : do you really believe a plant can feel pain? Can feel scared? Can feel hapyness? Can feel compassionate? If yes, it is just a feeling you have or you have serious sources?

25.12.2007 Thanks to all of you for answers. I almost agree with all of you. Certains plants have probably some "sensitive" system, but I have no reason to think that it can be compare to the complexe one of animals. A chemical communication between plants, dosent mean that they can feel anything.
Like some of you said, even if they can feel pain, its a better way to be veg, as we eat less plants than meaters.
But I still dont believe plants can feel pain, because it will be non-sence to feel pain if you have no way to withdraw yourself from the pain source (a plant cant move place to place). So thank you for your answer, I will choose now the best answer.

Answer 1

I believe they have some rudimentary sort of sense.

I saw this episode of Fact or Fiction years ago in which a murder of a florist was committed inside the florist's shop. The investigators hooked up some sort of sensory detectors onto this big flower that was near where the murder occurred and brought out all potential suspects. On the monitor, there was more activity coming from the flower when the actual murderer was put near the flower and the guy tried to run and I think admitted his crime.

I thought it was Fiction. It was fact.

That then made me feel sort of bad for eating plants...

But, as a vegetarian and a human being, I want to cause the least pain possible (my psych research professor called me a "nervous system chauvanist"). Now there are fruitarians who really get close to the least pain possible. And then there are breatharians...which amaze me. I met one once (a famous guy, goes by H.R.M.)

Sorry for rambling. I've put lots of thought into this topic.

Answer 2

Actually plants can respond to the environmental changes so technically speaking you are KILLING a plant. The plant has to eat and absorb nutrients for food. They die when their roots are cut off. When they die they turn brown from the loss of oxygen because the chloraplast cease function.

They did a study where they played rock music in a room and another with classical music playing. They found out the room with the rock music, the plants didn't grow very well but the ones with classical music grew a lot more than the one in the other room.

Also venus fly traps and other plants like toadstools eat or should I say digest other creatures for nitrogen and nutrients.

Everything has feelings, Plants get each other pregnant and have offspring from their seeds. If they doesn't count as being alive then you are a hipocrite for not eating meat.

I don't care if I get a thumbs down, you can ignore the fact and stay ignorant about plants having living functions. I will remain educated and a meat eater.

Answer 3

Plants are alive, but it's just not the same thing as an animal. Cut a piece off of a plant, stick it in the ground, and it might grow into a new plant. Try doing that with an animal.

Answer 4

Plants don't have a central nervous system like us. But however science is finding that plant do response to pain. There is a report I don't know the link off the top of myhead that there are several species of plants the talk with each other my linking up by only what can be describe as communication tunnels. (Root like systems). Then an insect attacks one of these plants a chemical signal is release that tell the plant and the other in its network to produce a chemical that makes the plant tastes bad, so the insect reminders not to eat it again. Other studies have shown that plants then damage do repond to human pain killers. The thing is if plants don't feel pain why would they bother to do this.

I guess theres a close minded bigot who disagrees with science out there and gave me a thumbs down.

If you don't believe me read this and then do some research yourself.

http://plantneurobiology.ibcas.ac.cn/
http://plantneurobiology.ibcas.ac.cn/downloads/Abstract.pdf

Answer 5

This is just what I think, but...

Plants do not feel in the same way animals do. It's true that they are alive, but I don't think they feel pain or fear. Also, when people try to use this arguement, shoot back this: Isn't it better, though, that even in plants feel pain to eat only plants and only hurt them rather than hurt a ton more plants AND animals?

Answer 6

It's just an ignorant argument by ignorant people.

Especially considering their animals eat multiple times as many plants as I do, so I'm still doing less harm.

Answer 7

Plants have no central nervous systems, nerve endings, or brains, so there's currently no reason to believe that they experience pain. It's theorized that animals can feel pain so that they can use it for self-protection purposes. For instance, if you touch something hot and it hurts, you'll learn from the pain that you shouldn't touch that thing anymore. Since plants can't move from place to place and don't need to learn to avoid certain things, this sensation would serve no purpose.

Seriously, how many people believe that cutting your lawn is equivalent to doing these things: http://www.chooseveg.com/animal-cruelty.asp ?

Answer 8

I don't think plants feel pain. They do react to stimuli though of course. There are animals that don't feel pain either (oysters, clams, scallops). What's wrong with eating them then?

Answer 9

this belief comes from scientology. L. Ron Hubbard tested this on a tomato plant and declared that the tomato felt pain. but we will probably never know.

Answer 10

that would be Klausner from The Sound Machine written by Roald Dahl