What is The Basis For Vegan and/or Vegetarian Eating?

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EDesq
EDesq Posts: 1,527 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I ask this because I heard someone say that she is a Vegan because she detest the killing and/or suffering of animals for food consumption. I have heard others say that it is because they believe that it is a healthier way to eat/Lifestyle.

What's your perspective?
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Replies

  • tuskegee4
    tuskegee4 Posts: 110 Member
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    Did vegetarian eating for 18months for health reasons. No longer need blood pressure or cholesterol medicine. I probably could have eaten better and had same results.
  • penelofur
    penelofur Posts: 81 Member
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    I love animals! That definitely plays a big role. I also follow a vegetarian lifestyle because of the ecological benefits (much less of an environmental impact). It being healthier (if you do it properly!) is an added bonus.

    I think that everyone has their own personal reasons.
  • dontletmegetme
    dontletmegetme Posts: 35
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    Although I'm all for animal rights, I became a vegetarian for health reasons. Meat made me feel tired after I ate it. Once I gave it up, I had more energy to do things, and even lost a few pounds.
  • vampee
    vampee Posts: 103 Member
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    I don't believe that it matters why one is a vegetarian or vegan. It is up to the person. A vegetarian/vegan is one no matter why....it is what they eat that makes them vegetarian/vegan. It's kind of like why someone chooses to pursue buddhism or christianity, it's their own personal beliefs.
  • 1smemae94
    1smemae94 Posts: 365 Member
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    I'm a vegetarian because i couldn't stand to eat meat anymore. It was for moral/ethical reasons. The health benefits are great though.
  • siabevis
    siabevis Posts: 811
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    Im a Pescetarian most days... I eat only fish/shellfish.
  • vegangirl88
    vegangirl88 Posts: 104 Member
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    Animal rights, and videos like "Glass Walls" (meetyourmeat.org). Health benefits are just an added bonus.
  • dsjohndrow
    dsjohndrow Posts: 1,820 Member
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    I am not buying that it is healthier. I looked at some of the ingredients in the all natural veggie burgers and that sort of stuff; not convincing. Health is probably much more related to organic, than vegetarian practices. That said, I eat lots of fresh fruit and veggies every day. I also eat small portions of lean meats that are free range raised and organically fed. However; I am not insensitive to the other positions.
  • lipglossjunky73
    lipglossjunky73 Posts: 497 Member
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    I started eating vegan for animal reasons and was heavy. Then I decided to focus on health and my body changed completely. I eat some dairy now, so I consider myself vegetarian not vegan. Plus, I wear leather shoes!
  • Selyan
    Selyan Posts: 51
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    I stopped eating meat because the world could produce enough food for everyone if we ate/produced less meat. It was after I stopped eating meat, the thoughts about dead animals and stuff like that came. I still eat fish and sea food.

    I have to admit I go around fantasizing about eating hamburgers. But hey, not eating meat makes it more difficult to eat unhealthy, fast food and such!
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
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    I have to admit I go around fantasizing about eating hamburgers.

    I'm not vegan/vegatarian and I STILL do the above.
  • it_be_asin
    it_be_asin Posts: 562 Member
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    For me, it's the way I learned to cook, it's the food I find tasty, and eating vegetarian mostly pushes me towards healthy choices. Vegetarian diets aren't necessarily healthier, but most people who are vegetarian think about their nutrition and food choices more, so these people eat healthier diets than meat eaters as a general rule.
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,554 Member
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    Everyone's reason is going to be different. I stopped eating meat for about 5 years because I just didn't like the way it smells when you cook it (lamb and pork especially, they smell disgusting!) and because I lived on my own so could eat whatever I wanted. Now my husband cooks meat for me, and I'll happily eat it.

    Being vegan or vegetarian is not a guarantee of health by any means - there is a hell of a lot of processed vegetarian food with scary ingredients and you can certainly be vegetarian and overweight - I was.

    Some people genuinely care about animals and the environment and choose to make a statement by not eating or using animal products (although it's really hard to completely avoid them).
    Others are less educated and are just following the crowd but don't really make much of an effort. I'm thinking of the girls who claim that they don't want to eat meat because it means you have to kill animals but don't see a problem with lugging around a giant leather handbag!

    Like everything else it's a personal choice, but not a guarantee of health.
  • Kikilicious84
    Kikilicious84 Posts: 312
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    I don't believe that it matters why one is a vegetarian or vegan. It is up to the person. A vegetarian/vegan is one no matter why....it is what they eat that makes them vegetarian/vegan. It's kind of like why someone chooses to pursue buddhism or christianity, it's their own personal beliefs.

    I agree with this.

    I don't eat meat simply because I don't like it and I'm often repulsed at times by it.
  • xHarleyQuinnx
    xHarleyQuinnx Posts: 8
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    I'm an animal lover, and that was my biggest reason for making the switch when I was 15, but after a few years, I switched back to eating meat. Didn't last long. I'm back to being a vegetarian, but the main reason for the switch this time was developing a severe food anxiety and not trusting eating meat or eggs mixed with health reasons. I still love animals, but it's not my #1 excuse these days.
  • xLyric
    xLyric Posts: 840 Member
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    Animal lover. If they had to kill it, I don't want to eat it. To me, it's not necessary. I can eat without needing something to die. I am, however, a not-so-healthy vegetarian. Burgers and fries are still just as good (if not more) with the beef taken off. :P
  • havalinaaa
    havalinaaa Posts: 333 Member
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    I am not buying that it is healthier. I looked at some of the ingredients in the all natural veggie burgers and that sort of stuff; not convincing. Health is probably much more related to organic, than vegetarian practices. That said, I eat lots of fresh fruit and veggies every day. I also eat small portions of lean meats that are free range raised and organically fed. However; I am not insensitive to the other positions.

    Of course if you eat all the prepackaged frozen crap food that is out there for vegetarians it won't be healthy, it's the same with products that contain meat. If you eat healthy vegetarian meals comprised mostly of vegetables and whole grains, it can most certainly be very healthy. You can also eat organic crap. Labels like that don't matter, it's how processed a food is. How long since it came out of the ground, and how it was handled afterward.

    I was a vegetarian for years, both for moral and health reasons. I now eat a moderate amount of meat, no more than one meal per day, and it's always local/small farm meat that was raised in a sustainable, organic or close to it way.
  • LisaMarieee
    LisaMarieee Posts: 176 Member
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    I follow a vegan diet because I dislike the taste & texture of meat, and I don't really care for animal products anymore (dairy, eggs, etc).
  • zoink66
    zoink66 Posts: 116 Member
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    I grew up only eating meat, eggs and dairy that we raised/butchered ourselves. When I left home I started getting my meat at the shop like most people do, and it just wasn't right. It didn't taste right or smell right and it certainly didn't look right. Then I found out everything that goes into commercially-raised meat (hormones, etc.) and how the animals are housed/fed...it just wasn't doing it for me. So I stopped eating meat (and milk) for several years.

    Then I moved to where I could get meat again that was, well, "organic," you could say (though that's not what it's called here). It's just meat. So I'm back on meat.
  • mandylooo
    mandylooo Posts: 456 Member
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    I stopped eating meat because the world could produce enough food for everyone if we ate/produced less meat. It was after I stopped eating meat, the thoughts about dead animals and stuff like that came. I still eat fish and sea food.

    I

    Yup, for me it's about meat at the rate we eat it being ultimately unsustainable and poor farming practices meaning cheap meat = cruelty to animals. You have to be careful with fish too - many species are being fished to extinction.

    I do actually still eat meat, but it's a treat and I take care with where it's sourced from.

    Everyone has their reasons for doing what they do when it comes to vegetarianism, veganism etc, the worst thing is not to have thought about it all.

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