Thoughts on veganism?

ethically, i think it's incredible.
health wise, consult your doctor.

i was a vegetarian for 6 years & did so without asking my doctor about it. i'd get sick all the time, easily bruised, high fatigue, etc. i was younger, stubborn, lived far away & by myself, & never went to the doctor. many years later, when i came home to visit my mother, she made a doctors appointment for me. turns out i was/am highly anemic & because i didn't eat the way i was supposed to, i ended causing some on-going health problems for myself.
some people just need meat; regardless of how high in protein some veggies/beans/grains are. i made sure to eat high protein food all the time, but it didn't get the job done for me, apparently.

i still don't eat red meat or pork, & i hate the fact that i do eat chicken & fish, however, since i don't have much choice in the matter, i am very picky about where i buy meat from (because of ethical reasons). just because something says organic & free-range, by no means does that mean that the animals were treated better.

i go to a local farm that raises & treats their animals humanely & allow them to live out a happy life on huge land where they are free to roam around & not be packed so tightly together with a million other animals (& are also free of antibiotics, growth hormones, & medications once they have passed). before buying from this place, my farmer even let me come stay with the family for a weekend & help out on the farm to see how the animals are raised & understand the process of how everything works.

though i wish i was able to not eat meat at all (because i don't eat anything dairy is produced from, i also dont eat dairy, if that means anything), going to a humane farm & getting know my farmer & ensure that nothing unethical happens to the animals does put my mind at ease as much as it can.

also, if this is something that interests anyone, i found my farm through eatwild.com

Cognitive dissonance is awesome! Do it! - sarcasm. (Not healthier and not more "ethical" and it's easy to figure out why with just a bit of research and logical thought. But what other adults decide to do doesn't really affect me much so whatever.)

I have several hardcore ethical vegans in my family.... it seems quite strenuous to me. While I respect much of what they believe, I am not able to incorporate it fully into my life-style. Over the years, I have found that what works best for me is to eat primarily a plant-based diet and eliminate red meat for the most part (which admittedly is more of a taste-bud thing with me). But I can't give up eggs, butter, cheese... and while I try to get as much protein from plant sources as I can, it just gets to be too much sometimes. I mean, it's really hard to beat a can of tuna and a bunch of cottage cheese for a major protein hit...and not having eggs for breakfast would be particularly problematic...

I am just going to go outright and say this, but I don't have all that much respect for the "vegan belief system" whatsoever. If you are vegan, great. Don't tell me about it. I don't care. I don't want to know. I likely wont even notice if we happen to be eating together and you don't happen to say. I don't pay attention to what anyone else eats, or orders off a menu.

But as soon as that conversation comes up - I immediately lose respect for the person. Why? Because I have never had this conversation with anyone where it *didn't* turn into a holier-than-thou conversation.

Veganism is a religion. It is no different than someone getting their belief system out of an old book.

I tried Veganism and I found it too hard to give up eggs and the cheese. I switched back to vegetarian. I HATED the fake cheese. I didn't mind the fake meat though, some are quite tasty but full of sugar.

Now that I am on the Dr. Oz diet, I had to give up the cheese, AGAIN. At least, I still have the eggs. I get them from my farmer friend. It's a small operation, mostly different heritage chickens.

I personally think that the non vegans are more hostile in this thread and people are needlessly getting on their high horses.

So it's ok for there to be threads asking opinions about all sorts of things but veganism is a no no? I put it out there that I don't eat meat etc because I am in the minority so I'm seeking out others who share the same thoughts.

I also think calling it a religion is ridiculous and can't stand the it's not healthy argument. There is something unhealthy in every diet it's just that it's harder to be a vegan, you have to be really dedicated.

thelazydandelion wrote: »

I also think calling it a religion is ridiculous and can't stand the it's not healthy argument. There is something unhealthy in every diet it's just that it's harder to be a vegan, you have to be really dedicated.

How is it different from a religion? It has a set of rules that are defined by an arbitrary line in the sand as to what is considered "ethical". Every adherent seems to draw that line in a slightly different place based on whats convenient for the adherent. Saying it's harder to stick to than other "diets" is like saying your preferred religion is harder to stick to because it has more behavioral restrictions than that other religion.

In fact, I would say all diets are "religions" because they tend not to have any basis in reality, only in belief.

*by "diet" I mean the ones that say you cant eat X food for Y reason, not the "prevailing set of foods a particular culture eats"