How did Manifest Destiny alter people's lives in the United States?

People decided to settle west to the pacific ocean and south to Mexico. (Novanet)

Manifest Destiny was the idea of America expanding and moving west. People wanted to move west for cheaper land and large areas of land. Many families moved west along the Oregon trail. The idea of Manifest Destiny spread the United States all the way to the west Coast. However, Manifest Destiny also had some negative side effects. A major con was the removal, often causing starvation and death, of American Indians east of the Mississippi. Also, the methods of travel like the Oregon trail and sea voyages were often unsafe and unpleasant. The good news is that lots of new transportation methods came out of this, namely the transcontinental railroad!