[bpcyclist]

So, am prolly gonna go full vegan. Did it for two yrs but went back to fish slowly. Tiny bit of meat. Right now, am about 85 percent vegan, 90 percent veggie. I take fish oil, but wondering about people's experiences with veganism and instability. Lot written about it being a problem on the down pole. Not what I need.

Doing this mostly for personal health goals but def also climate change. Plus, I love animals and fishies. I am contradictory.

Grandad was a Texas cattle rancher who lived to 98 after red meat three times a day, so, um, yeaaaaah.....

[Fuzzybear]

I'm not, I love salmon I do eat a lot of vegetables though, some from our garden.

[bpcyclist]

Yummer!!! Cannot live near Scotland or Oregon and not love salmon...

[Soupe du jour]

I am neither, but would have a heck of a time eating vegan. Vegetarian would be significantly easier for me as I love real dairy and eggs. As an enthusiastic cook, I just find vegan eating distressing. I briefly tried it to lower my cholesterol and it was a total no-go for me.

I also believe in treating animals kindly, so think decreasing meat and dairy consumption is the right thing to do. I am all for going back to the kinder ways of raising our animal friends. I would be quite willing to pay more for that, and eat meat and dairy in smaller quantities. My brother raises quite happy chickens. I like going more local for many things, when possible. It used to be easier.

[cygne]

Originally Posted by bpcyclist

but wondering about people's experiences with veganism and instability. Lot written about it being a problem on the down pole. Not what I need.

Doing this mostly for personal health goals but def also climate change. Plus, I love animals and fishies. I am contradictory.

Grandad was a Texas cattle rancher who lived to 98 after red meat three times a day, so, um, yeaaaaah.....

Meat was definitely different back in the day.
Dad was hunting a lot and we grew up on a farm.

I always thought it was weird to eat pigs or boars when we pet cats and roll our eyes at the Chinese for eating dogs when we eat deer. And so on. Melanie Joy calls it carnism.

So I'd say I'm an ethical vegan — when I was eight I used to say I'd like to stand on my head when I'll be eighty.
I don't see differences between animals and humans. We're primates belonging to the same kingdom, Animalia.
Historically we ate animals to survive, hence why we're omnivores, but our anatomy proves to be more closely related to that of herbivores. See comparative anatomy.
Dairy is addictive because of the casein. It's worse on the body than eating a whole ribeye steak. This is the main reason why vegetarians can't shift to a plant-based, vegan diet.
In the old China Study by Dr. Colin Campbell (I say old because China's changed its diet significantly over the decades), a diet absent in animal protein is advised for better health.

[FluffyDinosaur]

I don't eat much meat, dairy and eggs, but I don't consider myself vegetarian or vegan. I guess I eat meat about once a week. I've had a bunch of vegan meals, both homemade and from professional restaurants. I have some vegan family members, so I eat that sort of stuff fairly regularly. While some of those meals are good, I often feel like they're just missing something. And if gluten-free comes into the mix, forget about it. Gluten-free "bread" is not deserving of the name.

Going full vegan would take the fun out of life for me. They don't even have anything approaching a good pizza or lasagna. Can't have nachos. Can't have a proper cake on your bday. No thank you, I'll pass. I'm not saying you should eat that stuff every day, but I want to be able to eat "unhealthy" food now and then.

Even most "regular" products you can buy contain things like lactose, so you're pretty much limited to expensive specialized vegan products. Besides, I'm not convinced that any radical diet is the only healthy way to eat, and some of them are actually quite unhealthy if done wrong. I'm more of an "everything in moderation" kind of guy. In fact the more miraculous claims around some diet, the more skeptical I get. Also, the "holier than thou" attitude that some vegans have really puts me off. Same reason I'm not fond of France.

P.S. Sometimes I go through weeks or months of eating no meat/dairy/eggs and effectively eating vegan. Other times I eat non-vegan more often than usual. I don't think I've noticed any clear effect on mood (or energy levels for that matter--a claim often made by vegans).

[fern46]

I was a vegetarian for years. I enjoyed it. I didn't notice any major health benefits though. I was extremely sick while pregnant and couldn't keep anything down. I went back to chicken at that time because I was losing so much weight and I was able to keep it down. Now I eat poultry and fish, but no beef or pork.

I could go back to being a vegetarian, but not a vegan. I don't eat a lot of dairy, but I need pizza in my life. I also like to bake and while vegan baking has come a long way, some things just aren't even close.

I'm leaning more toward a Mediterranean diet. It has been shown to be beneficial for physical health and new studies show it aids mental and emotional health as well. In general, eliminating processee foods that cause unnatural chemical responses just seems like a solid idea.

[fern46]

Originally Posted by cygne

Meat was definitely different back in the day.
Dad was hunting a lot and we grew up on a farm.

I always thought it was weird to eat pigs or boars when we pet cats and roll our eyes at the Chinese for eating dogs when we eat deer. And so on. Melanie Joy calls it carnism.

So I'd say I'm an ethical vegan — when I was eight I used to say I'd like to stand on my head when I'll be eighty.
I don't see differences between animals and humans. We're primates belonging to the same kingdom, Animalia.
Historically we ate animals to survive, hence why we're omnivores, but our anatomy proves to be more closely related to that of herbivores. See comparative anatomy.
Dairy is addictive because of the casein. It's worse on the body than eating a whole ribeye steak. This is the main reason why vegetarians can't shift to a plant-based, vegan diet.
In the old China Study by Dr. Colin Campbell (I say old because China's changed its diet significantly over the decades), a diet absent in animal protein is advised for better health.

China Study was refuted by so many scholars, but I found a lot of helpful info in that book.

I could never be Vegetarian

my diet would consist purely of fries because that's all I would eat

my X friend laura was a Vegetarian, and honestly I never understood it

I didn't reject her for it (what she eats is up to her), but I'm a meat eater and always will be!

for the record, I do feel sad when the animals go for slaughter (and I've seen programmes where they show you how it is actually done), but I rely on meat. I'd starve without it

[bpcyclist]

The barriers to veganism for me are fish, esp local Chinook salmon I was raised on, burger once a month, pizza, and ce cream. But there are good alternatives to all. Hugs!!!

[bpcyclist]

I am extremely worried about the environment we are leaving to our kids and their kids.

Originally Posted by bpcyclist

The barriers to veganism for me are fish, esp local Chinook salmon I was raised on, burger once a month, pizza, and ce cream. But there are good alternatives to all. Hugs!!!

right

and I could never eat fish either

I don't like the smell (it makes me gag) and, unless it has breadcrumbs or batter on it, you won't get me near it

fussy eater alert

[FluffyDinosaur]

Re the environment, I think the main thing is for people to eat less meat (and dairy/eggs), but cutting it out entirely is not necessarily required. Hopefully we'll have good artificially grown meat soon, although I believe some people object to that.

I'm of the opinion that if you do eat meat, you shouldn't be squeamish about acknowledging where it came from. Something about honoring the animal I suppose.

[Breaking Dawn]

Most animals are vegetarians. But carrots & all the other vegetables want to live, too. And they don't eat anybody. Well, most of them don't. I must admit, I eat fish. And all the fish eat fish. Well, except krill are vegetarians.

[Nammu]

I was a vegetarian for years, from around 14-5 to menopause. Then I started getting the most intense cravings for meat. I believe the body knows what it needs and started eating meat. I too think the Mediterranean diet is the most healthy for a human.

I was vegetarian for 7 years many years ago. It was fish that broke that run, I just love it. Anyhow, currently, I often end up with vegan options because I can't eat dairy. And cheese is EVERYWHERE. I also don't eat much meat, for a couple of reasons. It is expensive and I suck at cooking it, lol. (Spend a lot of money for a ruined dish? No thank you.)

And speaking of cooking, I gave up on cooking hamburgers because it was so INCREDIBLY messy and greasy. So I switched to a veggie burger and love it (I don't love them all, but my favorite is Grillers.)

I have not found any vegan "cheese" that is worth a toss. (But would love to!) There is VERY good non-dairy "ice cream" though.

So the short answer is no, but I go pretty light on the meat.

[Mountaindewed]

I am not a vegetarian but I go days at a time without eating meat for no particular reason. I was asked a couple weeks ago if I was a vegetarian. I just don’t crave meat a lot.

[*Beth*]

I'm going to say that yes, I am vegetarian. The exception is that once a month (no more) I eat beef, chicken, or fish if I am craving it. I believe that if I'm craving meat my body needs it. But I am deeply opposed to eating animals and have been almost completely vegetarian for decades.


I would love to go vegan, but I like dairy products.

[venusss]

Not me. I tried to be vegetarian in like 2001... it didn't work for me. I was permanently hangry.


Plus, when I see lots of the vegan "food", that is trying to emulate meat with lots of unnatural stuff that had been processed so much... eh, I don't really see how is that healthy. I eat meat (mostly chicken, seafood, fish and pork...) AND vegetables. I can have vegan food like baked veggies from time to time. Though even those are better with some butter, sourcream and cheese.

[bpcyclist]

Originally Posted by Breaking Dawn

Most animals are vegetarians. But carrots & all the other vegetables want to live, too. And they don't eat anybody. Well, most of them don't. I must admit, I eat fish. And all the fish eat fish. Well, except krill are vegetarians.

I always felt trout had cruel and evil faces.

[fern46]

Originally Posted by Breaking Dawn

Most animals are vegetarians. But carrots & all the other vegetables want to live, too. And they don't eat anybody. Well, most of them don't. I must admit, I eat fish. And all the fish eat fish. Well, except krill are vegetarians.

I just planted a bunch of carrots with the intent to eat them. I like to think the appreciate their role in the circle of life, but maybe that's just wishful thinking

[Breaking Dawn]

Thank you, @fern46. By the way, your name says you are a lovely plant.

[lightly toasted]

I was a hardcore vegan for the animals - eco warrior for 10 years. before hitting burnout. It wasn't just the food, I wore or purchased no leather or wool, and only used cruelty-free toiletries and cosmetics. I was taking my own grocery bags to the store when no one else was - at least not where I lived.

My physical health was fine , however, in hindsight it was all a bit crazy-making.

Back in the day, and this still exists today, there is a lot of pressure on ethical vegans to be good representatives for the cause. This means remaining thin. Although the animals don't really give a toss if you're fat or thin, just that you're not eating them. There remains a lot of fat phobia within the vegan movement also lot of omnivores would just not take a fat vegan or vegetarian seriously So it it was often preached especially by the strictly vegan for health types, that we were doing a disservice to the animals if we allowed ourselves to get fat. Despite having gone vegan for the animals it was pretty easy for this little bipolar person, to get caught up in a lot of disordered eating practices in order to appear the "good vegan" ...not too thin, not too fat. For years I was caught in exercise bullimia and a never ending restrict/ binge cycle.

Going vegan for animals is great, but doing it for "health reasons" or in other words chasing thin and getting sucked into that healthism/diet culture aspect can be dangerous territory for people with mental illness and a history or disordered eating. And many vegans who are in it strictly for the animals can get sucked into this aspect as well.

Same with the eco-warrior approach, this can quickly become a crazy-making, obsessed/religiousity for those of us with mental health issues - it did for me.


TL;DR ... in my experience, folks with mental illness should tread very carefully when restricting what they eat, regardless of the reasons behind it.

Related to what lightly toasted said, I also found a strong "more vegetarian than thou" attitude that I found a real turn off. If you didn't conform to the same criteria, you must be taken to task for it. What? Not a vegan? Not macrobiotic? Not a fruitarian? Not strictly organic?

Maybe it was where I lived and/or where I worked (a natural food store), but it was annoying. Told a person or two to *** off.

[bpcyclist]

Originally Posted by lightly toasted

I was a hardcore vegan for the animals - eco warrior for 10 years. before hitting burnout. It wasn't just the food, I wore or purchased no leather or wool, and only used cruelty-free toiletries and cosmetics. I was taking my own grocery bags to the store when no one else was - at least not where I lived.

My physical health was fine , however, in hindsight it was all a bit crazy-making.

Back in the day, and this still exists today, there is a lot of pressure on ethical vegans to be good representatives for the cause. This means remaining thin. Although the animals don't really give a toss if you're fat or thin, just that you're not eating them. There remains a lot of fat phobia within the vegan movement also lot of omnivores would just not take a fat vegan or vegetarian seriously So it it was often preached especially by the strictly vegan for health types, that we were doing a disservice to the animals if we allowed ourselves to get fat. Despite having gone vegan for the animals it was pretty easy for this little bipolar person, to get caught up in a lot of disordered eating practices in order to appear the "good vegan" ...not too thin, not too fat. For years I was caught in exercise bullimia and a never ending restrict/ binge cycle.

Going vegan for animals is great, but doing it for "health reasons" or in other words chasing thin and getting sucked into that healthism/diet culture aspect can be dangerous territory for people with mental illness and a history or disordered eating. And many vegans who are in it strictly for the animals can get sucked into this aspect as well.

Same with the eco-warrior approach, this can quickly become a crazy-making, obsessed/religiousity for those of us with mental health issues - it did for me.


TL;DR ... in my experience, folks with mental illness should tread very carefully when restricting what they eat, regardless of the reasons behind it.

Sage counsel. Thanks.

The health reasons I was referring to had nothing to do with thinness or thickness. My dad is 88, but prior to him, every single male on his side of the family died of heart disease by 50. I run 6 miles a day and ride my bike 26-50 miles a day. For purposes of vascular and brain health.

Hugs.