Vegan ethics question

[WindsChange]

I don’t know any other vegans in real
life so I’m hoping there are some on here!

I am a fairly strict (but not preachy before anyone starts!) vegan and have been vegetarian my whole life before this.

l am just back from a doctors appointment who has advised me to consume honey for its anti microbial effects for my cough. I am struggling with this one. However, I’ve had this cough for 6 weeks and the other alternative is antibiotics next week if it hasn’t cleared up which is complicated due to an allergy and also they capsules are gelatine which aren’t vegan anyway!

I know medicines are ‘allowed’ under veganism but honey feels more like a food choice.
What would you do? I am torn!

Carrots have recently been discovered to have brains and CNSs it's true. I read it in the Daily Mail just yesterday by A.Paid Scientist sponsored by the Humane Animal Stabbing Society, HASS, they also make avocadoes and it's true because I saw it on telly.

I don’t use almond milk, just oat milk which in my opinion is the nicest and one of the most sustainable.

Thanks for everyones input and opinions, just 1 or 2 judgey pants on both sides of the debate so not too bad!!
The rest of the replies have given me ‘food for thought’ and I will see how this wretched cough progresses over the next couple of days. It really is rough - sympathies for anyone in a similar boat.

hope you feel better soon. if you go down the honey route and it works can you let us know please.

I wouldn’t have honey as a vegan, also because, before I was vegan, when I tried it for coughs, it didn’t help anyway.

Hope you’re feeling better soon.

I would rather have local honey than antibiotics which will have been tested on animals and contain gelatine.

It really is your call to make OP as this thread shows we don't have a vegan hive mind 😂

It's a pity you've got so many non-vegans talking nonsense on your post.

I wouldn't use honey, because it's not actually a medicine and there are alternative options that can work just as well.

But if you decide to do it, that's up to you. It won't stop you being vegan and no one should judge you for it.

Manuka honey is supposed to be good but to be honest, although soothing in a hot lemon drink, it's unlikely to surpress a cough. I did read liquorice was good for that and elderberry. I use echinacea for colds ect which you can buy as a natural tincture or tablets to avoid the capsules if you wish.

I can't really help with the vegan ethics question but I did want to say that I've always used elderberry syrup in hot water with a spoonful of sugar (mainly for the kids) when treating coughs and it does work

If your cough is bad enough to need antibiotics then honey will be very unlikely to sort it out. Honey is more for the soothing effect.

Sentient does not mean what you think it means if you’r categorising carrots and prawns together!

Just realised I have put this on an excisting post!
Answered my own question!

OP, I am also vegan (10 years) and a lifelong veggie, prone to horrendous coughs. I don’t use honey, for the ethics and also because I never found it all that effective.

What works for me is boosting my immune system with really good nutritious food, vit c, multi-vitamins, food as spicy as I can get it, lots of hot drinks. I especially like hot fresh ginger tea with a hint of sugar or maple syrup. I also use Fisherman’s friends and Potters blackcurrant pastilles to soothe the cough. I take oil of oregano (in vegan capsules), which has really strong anti-bacterial/viral properties. I also boost my immune system with probiotics and the supplement NAC, which is proven to help respiratory recovery in lung infections etc and covid too.

Get well soon.

p.s. there is a vegan board on MN, you’ll get more help and less grief if you post on there. 😏

www.mumsnet.com/talk/vegan

@WindsChange get to a local beekeeper. I don't think not having the honey cos it's bee juice then not having the antibiotics cos it's covered in cow juice and needing up in hospital is a great life choice.

Whf, when did carrots gain sentience? What about onions?? I just chopped one up!!! 😳😳😂

I'm a (vegan) nurse but vegan aside I would question that advice. There are large cohort RCT trails which no not show any benefits of honey (or any other drink) vs placebo. Some people do find it helpful but no more than any other hot drink. I'd try agave instead and see if you find it soothing.

If your looking for my vegan answer it's too personal to say, buuut I would still feel guilty drinking honey, wouldn't enjoy the taste etc. so o wouldn't.

I've been vegan a long time, for ethical reasons.
Like some PP have said, I would take something non-vegan for health reasons. It would need to be quite necessary though. Personally I would probably not take the honey, though if I were in your sitation I'd weight everything up and there might be something in the balance that would change my mind. It is entirely up to you where you draw the line, how bad your cough is, how debilitating, how necessary the honey is, whether there are vegan alternatives etc etc.

PS Carrots are NOT sentient lol

P.s. for the h8rs, I’m prone to horrendous coughs because I had whooping cough as a young child in the 80s and it damaged my lungs / nothing to do with my diet.

I'll do a Phoebe style swap with you. I'll avoid honey for a week. And carrots come to think of it, don't want to harm the poor orange fellows.

If I may suggest, colloidal silver.

active-silver.co.uk/blogs/blog/colloidal-silver-as-a-throat-spray

It's vegan and is great for all sorts of things.

I honestly cannot get my head around vegans not eating honey and eggs, both a natural byproduct, but filling their boots with soya, almonds, avocados and cashews, which are insanely destructive to the environment.

It spins my head!

Heating Manuka honey completely defeats the object. It kills off all the antibac qualities.

that's partly because you’re labouring under the misapprehension that vegans primarily consume soya, almonds and avocado. You realise a lot of omnivores eat those items too right?

also do you think veganism is an environmental movement? (it isn’t)
Though plant based eating may be.

plus even if vegans did ‘fill their boots’ on soya avocado and almonds, they’d still have a lower environmental impact than the average meat eater. So I’m struggling to see what your point is.

'Allowed under veganism'? We don't have a Parliament or laws. You can do as you please!

What did your doctor suggest as an alternative when you explained that you want to avoid honey?

Most soya grown in the world is to feed farm animals, and most vegans i know don't eat any of those things because of the environmental impact.