Vegan and Vegetarian issues

eavintx

My niece Alix and sister is finally counting calories and losing weight. My sister use to claim to be vegan but I don't think she was, but if she was it seems like her and my niece had issues about bragging on the fact that Alix would drink juice instead of colas, and wild honey instead of sugar.
She also had other natural sweetner's she'd even serve it to us, it was ok, but I wasn't crazy about it.

So they'd eat all they wanted of that and buy lots of bananas and grapes too, and never count calories, never use moderate portions nothing like that. They though if we eat healthy,
that's all that counts and it never worked, she got frustrated.
My niece lost 30 lb.'s last month, I am so proud.

AnnPT77

I'm a big fan of calorie counting, too - worked and works great for me. But . . .

Losing 30 pounds in a month isn't remotely healthy, unless well over 300 pounds. It's great that she lost weight, but there's more to health than body weight, even though body weight is a big, big factor . . . maybe one of the most important, for anyone seriously overweight. If she was well over 300 pounds, then kudos to her. Otherwise, that's a pretty major health risk IMO.

I'd agree pretty emphatically that veganism or vegetarianism isn't a formula for weight loss. I've been vegetarian for over 50 years, thin to fat to obese and back to thin again. It's slightly more nutritionally complicated than being an omnivore, slightly more socially complicated than being an omnivore, and IMO not inherently healthier or inherently linked with healthy weight. I never encourage anyone to become vegan or vegetarian if their only reason to go that route is weight loss or health, even though I obviously think there are good reasons to be vegan/vegetarian.

BTW, honey isn't actually vegan, in the strict definition of vegan. The strictest definition of veganism is against exploiting animals, including stealing stored food from bees. Fully plant based eating is a thing, but isn't the same as strict veganism, and fully plant-based eating can include honey. Honey isn't much healthier than white sugar, though, no matter what the blogosphere may claim.

Best wishes!

neanderthin

Counting calories works for most people temporarily, it's difficult to do that an entire life though and many, over 90% fail. As far as vegan and honey, it's misplaced concern considering the destruction that takes place to facilitate growing crops, and when done on an industrial level, it's pretty brutal not only to the animals, insects and micro environment but the whole ecosystems involved.