Why should I go VEGAN??

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  • Lib_B
    Lib_B Posts: 446 Member
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    i live in iowa and i can attest to the factory farms. but even if you put the treatment of animals aside, factory farms are devastating for local economies, they drive family farmers off their land, owners are absentee and do not invest in the communities, surrounding homes see their property values plummet by 50% or more due to the stench, the stench is full of toxins known to cause asthma and upper respiratory problems, they keep the poo in giant lagoons which are prone to leaking into local tributaries -- our impaired water list in Iowa is over 700 -- all that water makes its way to the mississippi and contributes to the giant dead zone in the gulf, etc. etc. etc.

    agriculture is good. factory farming is awful for people, for the environment and for the creatures they are to be stewards of. buy local. if you do eat meat, do like i do and find a farmer and buy direct. i buy my beef, chicken, pork and turkeys from local farmers who adhere to certain standards.

    if you live in a large urban center - check out Niman Ranch online. you can purchase meat from them via mail order. i swear, next time you buy pork at the store, open it and sniff. i guarantee it smells like hog ****. also, check out your farmers markets. and be wary of the label 'organic' on meat. tyson has a line of 'organic' chicken. but it's still factory farm raised. if you really want to ensure your meat was raised in a sustainable and humane way, you need to know your farmer or be within two or three degrees of him/her.

    i should note that i used to be a vegetarian, but then i began working for an organization that works to stop factory farms from building in iowa and we have lots of great farmers and ranchers who raise their animals ethically. it was at that time that i returned to eating meat in moderation.
  • Riemersma4
    Riemersma4 Posts: 400 Member
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    MMFM (More Meat For Me!)

    I wish there were lots more vegans in teh world.

    Nothing wrong with going vegan as long as you are getting your macro/micro nutrients.

    Good luck (and please pass the steak, eggs and salmon!)
  • olDave
    olDave Posts: 557 Member
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    I heard that cows were going to march on Washington for their "animal rights". :-)
  • MorgueBabe
    MorgueBabe Posts: 1,188 Member
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    I'm in the in between. I don't eat any meat (except seafood and eggs), but I consume NO dairy.
    Honestly cutting out dairy made a HUGE difference for me. My joints felt better, my dark circles under my eyes went away, my migraines went away (I used to get blinding, call out of work, I'm throwing up for HOURS kinds at least 3 times a month even on daily meds for it). I mean after I cut out meat I felt better, but cutting out dairy i felt AMAZING.
  • Cath2016
    Cath2016 Posts: 19
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    I've recently discovered that I have an allergy to dairy and eggs. Since I've cut them both out of my diet, I find that I've lost some weight and I don't bloat at all. Cutting out the meat too would cut out the fat in your diet. Who's seen an overweight vegan? There's a good book called Veganist by Kathy Freston that can help you out. Just make sure, if you go down this path, you take vitamins. You will be vitamin B12 deficient and iron deficient. And you'll need to take Calcium too.
  • jlemoore
    jlemoore Posts: 702 Member
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    I get where you're coming from and I've thought about it myself.

    But those vegan substitutes are so processed, I'd rather eat chicken.
    Can the average person pronounce all of the ingredients in those fake meat crumbles or the fake cheese?
    Some of the additives are pretty bad...

    ^^^ this
  • kateguy1981
    kateguy1981 Posts: 68 Member
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    Regardless of which diet you follow you can choose to eat healthy or not too. I'm Veggie my husband is an absolute carnivore I do eat more healthy then he does but thats purely through his choice in foods lol. My children are also meat eaters because they are very young and its hard to get anything healthy down them let lone limiting this further. I love animals and hate the thought of eating one but thats my choice I wouldn't expect my husband/children to do this also
  • cheshirequeen
    cheshirequeen Posts: 1,324 Member
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    if you live in a large urban center - check out Niman Ranch online. you can purchase meat from them via mail order. i swear, next time you buy pork at the store, open it and sniff. i guarantee it smells like hog ****. also, check out your farmers markets. and be wary of the label 'organic' on meat. tyson has a line of 'organic' chicken. but it's still factory farm raised. if you really want to ensure your meat was raised in a sustainable and humane way, you need to know your farmer or be within two or three degrees of him/her.



    I saw Tyson had an organic line on a commercial and started laughing.
  • Tw1zzler
    Tw1zzler Posts: 583
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    No Vegan Diet - No Vegan Superpowers!


    scott-pilgrim-vs-the-world-13_zps6aa7cc22.jpg
  • resistance_freak
    resistance_freak Posts: 899
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    If you've gone vegan and you're happy with it, then more power to you!

    But for me, when I look at how humans have evolved over time eating a diet consisting in large part from animal products I just don't understand how cutting them out will make me healthier.

    When I follow a high fat, animal product centric diet, I look and feel better than ever.
  • nannadawninsc
    nannadawninsc Posts: 8 Member
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    I take the vegan diet one step further - eat NO processed food, including dairy, bread, cereal, if I can at all help it. Eat only 'ancient' grains as wheat and corn are so corrupt now. Did you know you have to eat 32 peaches to get the same nutrients you would have out of eating 1 peach just 30 years ago? Recommend Dr. Joel Fuhrman's book "Eat to Live'. It's my bible. Processed food is poison. SAD really means Standard American Diet.
  • RhonndaJ
    RhonndaJ Posts: 1,615 Member
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    I like the way the OP posted.

    Personally, I've no interested in going vegan or even vegetarian. Not because I don't care about my own health or animal rights, but simply because I can't personally justify the drastic change.

    Health-wise, I'm a pretty darned healthy fat person. My cholesterol is low, my blood pressure is slightly low so those aren't concerns of mine.

    Animal rights... I don't have a problem with animals being bred and killed for food. I don't particularly like how some places treat and kill the animals, but there's one heck of a lot of stuff in the world that I don't particularly like that keeps on happening, and honestly I don't think that my not eating animals is going to make the slightest dent in the meat industry.

    I also don't take seriously any movie, documentary, book, etc, that is slanted to one particular mindset, because they're always going to market the worst they can justify.

    In the end, I'm going to be dead honest. I'm apathetic about the whole thing, and really, really enjoy my meat.
  • Micahroni84
    Micahroni84 Posts: 452 Member
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    I don't have a problem with vegans. I have a problem with vegans who assume that because I eat meat (lots of it, like at least 2 lbs per day), I am ignorant about where it comes from or its nutritive properties or how the animals are treated. I grew up on a beef cattle ranch. I raised orphan calves, pigs, chickens, rabbits, goats, etc., throughout my childhood, so give it a rest. My diet is perfectly healthy. I guess I'm just not virtuous enough to care that an animal has to die so that I can eat what I want. I bought a crap ton of steak yesterday for a great price, and I feel awesome about it. Every day, I am proud not to be vegan. Or a hypocrite. You say you care about animals ... well, stop eating all their food.

    I love all of this.
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
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    Hmmmm...I don't recall anyplace in the Constitution that mentions "animal rights".


    does not make sense.

    for a long time it also had no rights for Native Americans, African Americans, or women.

    ETA: Ok, this is me being a total geek. The new South African Consitution actually has in it rights relating to a healthy ecosystem, and this is actually connected to how we farm the land and use resources.
    http://www.info.gov.za/documents/constitution/1996/96cons2.htm#24
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
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    I had incredibly good reasons for my choice to limit animal products in my diet, both as a vegetarian and as a vegan. None of those were health reasons, though I do benefit from a diet low in cholesterol.

    This conversation is going to go nowhere.

    The only people interested in really hearing good reasons for choosing vegetarianism/veganism will either look it up or ask.

    No one ever wanted to go vegan after meeting an argumentitive self righteous vegan.
  • Jay_Jay_
    Jay_Jay_ Posts: 194 Member
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    We taught a lion to eat tofu!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRSLQu-d6ZQ
  • Bakkasan
    Bakkasan Posts: 1,027 Member
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    I encourage you to watch the documentary and then take a definite stance, but don't just deny the information for the sake of wanting to stay ignorant.

    I know how bad the industry is. That is just how it is right now and I accept it. And I love beef.
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
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    Lecterman stated.....

    "A. Plants are not sentient beings
    B. We made up religion...so why not animal rights?"

    Thanks for making my point for me. People "made up" animal rights.

    erm my gawd. Don't make a legal argument here. You are going to drive me nuts. Take a constitutional law class, study your history, and then come back.
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
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    I encourage you to watch the documentary and then take a definite stance, but don't just deny the information for the sake of wanting to stay ignorant.

    I know how bad the industry is. That is just how it is right now and I accept it. And I love beef.

    ^ this is honest. And I respect it. No one can live a life 100% in balance, not in this day and age. And even if you could, you wouldn't want to. We all decide where we draw the line for our sanity. I say this becuase I used to be a raw foodist...and even in that, I found more that I could be cutting out of my life to be "good." And because I seen vegans treating people like crap, but a meat eater who would do anything to help out a single mama he hardly knows...who are we to say one person is better than the other based on how they eat??? There is so much more to life than this.

    I know this is a "fitness website" but veganism and vegetarianism is, in fact, an ethical argument. And we can't really judge a persons ethics on only one part of their lifestyle.
  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    I get where you're coming from and I've thought about it myself.

    But those vegan substitutes are so processed, I'd rather eat chicken.
    Can the average person pronounce all of the ingredients in those fake meat crumbles or the fake cheese?
    Some of the additives are pretty bad...

    This is an agreeable statement.

    Also, the amount of soy in tofu, and other soy products is not healthy............Before someone starts in on edamame or the soy that Asians eat.............it is far different than what Westerners eat and the stuff that is in America, especially is NOT healthy for us.

    Also, there are ways of sourcing humanely treated animals for consumption and then you are supporting your local economy. Find a farm and visit.

    Yes but how animals are raised does not change how they are killed. Find a slaughter house and visit. Even if you could find truly "ethical meat" there is no way that sort of production is sustainable for the amount of current animal consumption. Also you may want to research soy a little more. All tofu is simply edamame that has been cooked, curdled with calcium or nigari, and pressed...EXACTLY like in Asian. It has 2-3 ingredients if you count water.

    Here's an example of a great product with "unpronounceable" ingredients. http://www.gardein.com/products.php?p=2 This one does have soy protein thought there are many that don't. I would love it if you could show us legitimate research (that has not been refuted) on why soy is not healthy for "us."

    I'm vegan because I really care about my health, humanity, the environment, and animals. I have done TONS of research to make this decision. I haven't regretted it for over four years.

    First of all, I grew up around and on farms (a lot of my family were and are farmers). I have milked cows, collected eggs, drove tractors and such.

    We slaughtered our own meat in the basement of my grandparents house. It was done in a quick and humane manner.

    Almost ALL soy in this country is GMO. Soy in the United States is not processed the same as in Asia and in Asia MOST soy is fermented, it is NOT in the United States.

    Soy being in everything is what is causing children to have accelerated growth, especially young girls.

    I have a friend that moved to Japan to live with her boyfriend. She is a vegan. She would NOT eat soy in the United States, but went to Japan and said it is fabulous.

    My Metabolic Endocrinologist has told me to stay far, far away from anything that contains soy, including soy isolates.

    He stated that is part of the reason I am now Hypo-thyroid and have imbalances in my female hormones from when I was vegetarian myself and used to consume soy products.

    A 1991 study found that eating only 2 TBL/day of roasted and pickled soybeans for 3 months to healthy adults who were receiving adequate iodine in their diet caused thyroid suppression with symptoms of malaise, constipation, sleepiness, and goiters (Nippon Naibunpi Gakkai Zasshi 1991, 767: 622-629)!

    Six premenopausal women with normal menstrual cycles were given 45 mg of soy isoflavones per day. This is equivalent to only 1-2 cups of soy milk or 1/2 cup of soy flour! After only one month, all of the women experienced delayed menstruation with the effects similar to tamoxifen, the anti-estrogen drug given to women with breast cancer (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1994 Sep;60(3):333-340).

    Dietary estrogens in the form of soy foods were found to have the potential to disrupt the endocrine system with the effects in women similar to taking the breast cancer drug tamoxifen (Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine 1995 Jan;208(1):51-9

    Estrogens consumed in the diet at low concentrations were found to stimulate breast cells much like DDT to increase enzymatic activity which leads to breast cancer (Environmental Health Perspectives 1997 Apr;105 (Suppl 3):633-636).

    Don’t eat soy when you are pregnant ladies! Scientific research has shown that the developing male fetus which is exposed to soy phytoestrogens may suffer from higher susceptibility to prostate cancer later in life (Prostate 1994;24(2):67-78).

    Ward H and others. Breast, colorectal, and prostate cancer risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition-Norfolk in relation to phytoestrogen intake derived from an improved database. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2010 Feb;91(2):440-8. “Dietary phytoestrogens may contribute to the risk of colorectal cancer among women and prostate cancer among men.”

    The link has many other studies from 1950-present.

    http://www.westonaprice.org/soy-alert/studies-showing-adverse-effects-of-isoflavones

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