To become a vegan?

[MissDallas]

OK, I am not your typical hippy type, I have hair extensions and I like fake tans and I have a corporate job. Not sure what that's got to do with it, but wanted to paint a picture.

I have been thinking about becoming a vegan for some time. I hate the way animals are treated in factory farming, it is so cruel. Also in my line of work I have come to know several facts about how meat is produced, mutated chickens, etc and it's awful. I used to think they were urban myths but sadly not. The horse in the ready meals scandal got me thinking as well. We can't even be sure what animal we are eating. Also the hormones, ammonia and other shit used in food... it's all horrible.

On a personal level, I would like to be healthier. I'm always stressed and tired, I'm also overweight.

I keep reading lately about the benefits of a plant-based diet. And people who do 42 day juice fasts and complete my change their health and become happier as a result. It's got me thinking... should I become a vegan?

Is anybody else considering it? Is anybody here a vegan? What do I need to know? Can a vegan diet give you all the nutrients you need? AIBU? Thanks.

Apparently cheese isn't vegetarian - it contains rennet made from calves livers or stomachs or some such. Learnt this on Mumsnet this week.

Most cheese in the uk is vegetarian cheese and has been for years.

Going from meat eater to vegan may be hard, trying being a vegetarian first or a vegetarian who doesnt eat eggs, cutting out the diary and cheese really limits your meal choices so much more.

Im a vegetarian who doesnt eat egg and drinks almond milk but i kept cheese in my diet for the variety. Vegetarian cheese ofcourse.

I know a lot of people will disagree with me, but I don't think it's necessary to label yourself. Why do you have to go 100% vegan at first? Introduce it slowly. I believe the term is fle-gan (flexible vegan).

For example, I absolutely believe that a vegan diet is the best for your health and also morally. However I don't eat vegan all the time. Just as much as I can. If everyone just had one vegan day a month then the world would be a better place.

Thanks for the new posts. LionsLedge, I am especially glad that you posted as I also have coeliac disease so no bread or pasta for me. Other than that though, I eat anything. I love all veg. I love Quorn.

I'm gonna be fine, aren't I ?

Vegan with supplements is fine. Juice fasts are disordered eating for the foolish.

YANBU to want to be vegan, it's your body therefore up to you what you choose to eat.
I've friends that are vegan and they are perfectly healthy with it, a few of them become vegan due to wanting to lose weight.

For myself I only eat meat once a week, the rest of my meals are vegetarian and there is a few vegan recipes I love to eat. And I feel good eating this way.

Very much agree with vulgar
You do not have to put a disclaimer "I am a vegan" from tomorrow.
I reduced red meat to a minimum (2 slices of rasher every week), no beef or other pork.
Paultry max twice a week.
Less milk (alternating with soya when I can)
Less cheese (found it can be quite addictive so try avoid)
More fish, loads of chickpeas and hell of a load of cottage cheese (still love it)

I do agree that todays supermarket meat is not healthy and organic is much more expensive. Locallly sourced quality meat - I would probably eat more of it.

I recently made the decision to cut out animal products, initially for health reasons, but the more I read about the practices that are used in rearing and slaughtering animals (plus some of the horrors of the dairy industry) the more I realise this is the way for me. However, I'm not there yet! Two weeks ago I cut out all meat and eggs, except those added to fake meats such as Quorn. I was already using nut milk, but kept usual butter. This week I swapped to vegan friendly spread. I'm not a huge cheese fan, but I do like feta so I reckon that will be last to go. I think it will be a gradual transition and I doubt I will be fully there until the end of the year.
I feel great on it though, so I do think my body appreciates it. YANBU, try going veggie first, then gradually replace things with vegan friendly products. If you are on Facebook there's lots of groups for info on what to buy.

I went vegan last june after watching 'Vegucated' (literally not eaten meat since it finished). I watched it cause i was curious and OH was at a late work meeting. he got home to find me in floods and buckets and saying 'the poor chickies' over and over (male day old chicks are either gassed or minced alive for animal feed in egg businesses). he was very confused. I can still hear the pig squealing as he was boiled alive to get the hair off him before being processed for bacon shudder. He said as it was an American documentary maybe it wasn't that bad here so I spent the next day researching (and avoiding eating most of our kitchen food), only to find out that it kinda was :(
From then I was vegan.
I found it really easy to do as there's so much support on the internet - the Vegan Society has recipes, try places like PETA (lists of vegan foods in mainstream restaurants - even Nandos!) and Viva (info to read). Plus my OH was supportive and he's mostly joined me as it's easier. There's so much dairy-free and egg-free food around due to allergies that alternatives have been easy to find (I've struggled with cheese, Violife (tesco) has the right texture and close enough taste, some people swear by VBites but I couldn't stand the texture. Garlic and Herb Sheese spread was tasty). You can also get fortified nut milks with calcium and vit D (vegan not animal based). And Moo Free chocolate is amazing! I've also done this without owning a freezer (our rented kitchen is the size of a cupboard).
We're both a lot healthier as we're eating lots of veg and pulses. I've lost weight as previously it was easier to grab processed food and ready meals but that's off the cards now. The main reason I decided to stick with it was it made such an improvement to my IBS, and I think has had a side effect of improving my depression. I was taking a multivitamin for that anyway so just carried it on and made sure to research my food groups.
The only difficulties I've found have been family really. OH's mum is a farm labourer with a beef herd and poultry (her father had a dairy farm) so she didn't get my argument that I didn't want an animal suffering so I could have bacon 'cause it's not always as bad as you think'. But she has grown used to it and makes me vegan food when we visit. My mum doesn't get it. As we live a fair way away I have explained that I don't expect her to go out of her way when we visit for the weekend so take my own milk and accept cheese/eggs/fish to help. That's my choice and we're not there often and it's as part of a meal for everyone so not just for me. If we lived closer I think it would be easier for her to see what it's all about.
If you think you'd like to try it then go for it! The worst that can happen is you try it and don't like it and go back to how you are now - nobody will think any less of you :)

Wow that's quite a long post - apologies!

PS check the labels - I found that not all Quorn products are vegan, some contain egg etc

Good luck with it! I bet you do lose weight, I've known plenty of overweight vegetarians but no fat vegans. But I think if you are very strict about it, eating out will be difficult.

IT will be fine op
I have a couple of close friends who are vegan and one changed from being a meat eater
They were both alarmingly healthy before but now they are like superwoman.

Also I have relatives who were raised vegan, including one who won many a weight lifting competition. He now does yoga daily...he's 80. Way fitter and healthier than my olds even when they were in their 60s

Puzzled by a pp who mentioned extra fibre...I was vegetarian and didn't have an extra fibre issue, can't see why veganism would be much different.

I'm thinking of going back veggie, it may be unrelated as I'm not in my 20s any more, but feel I had more energy. What I might do is say I'm veggie and just have the odd bit of meat at home. I've got to go to a Sunday roast tomorrow and I'll only want either a morsel of meat or none at all. I'm just so off meat and fish right now too.

Be prepared for less invites, I refuse to entertain vegans any more.

YANBU!

I went vegan recently. I was fooled into thinking that welfare standards were okay - but now I see they're definitely not. Even 'free range', even 'grass fed'. And even if it were, the slaughter isn't. (Google slaughterhouse CCTV, TW). Also the environmental impact is HUGE and I wasn't willing to be so stubborn over mince instead of lentils when you can barely tell the difference in a dish. Nutritionfacts.org presents the health aspect really well, from a plant-based perspective. I like this one

I've found the change quite easy, honestly, although I've not been vegan long . A lot of chain restaurants have vegan options, including Nandos, Homemade burger co and Las Iguanas, so grabbing a meal when out isn't difficult. Pretty sure the McDonald's veggie burger is vegan actually, if you remove the sauce. Milk alternatives are great. I've not done meat or cheese alternatives, to be honest, and not missed it at all. And I thought I was a steak lover.

Eat you beans, supplement B12 and you'll do fine! Also, most quorn isn't vegan. Just a heads up.

Howmany, now I'm tempted to go vegan...fewer invites sounds good to me, especially fewer food based ones.....

I have dithered about veganism in terms of could I just try it part of the time. It seems like there are so many benefits, but I'd miss butter. Sounds minor I know.

YANBU - though if you want to go down that path, I'd recommend cutting out things in stages (meat first, then fish, then eggs, then cheese, then other dairy etc.) so that it doesn't feel so drastic, and go for free range / organic versions of the things that you're yet to cut out in the meantime, as they have higher welfare standards.

I often entertain vegans and the vegan food is easy to cook and some of the recipes I even eat myself, they don't get fewer invites from me

So, what about vegan cheese? Any recommendations?

I've used violife cheese when cooking for vegans and I often use there mozzarella cheese when I make pizza for friends

I'm 99% vegan. That's because if I'm eating at a friend's house, while I try not to eat dairy products I will if it's unavoidable rather than make a big fuss. I don't beat myself up about it. I'm a vegan mainly for ethical and environmental reasons but the health benefits are amazing and my energy levels are great.

If we don't need to kill animals to feed ourselves -- why would we?

Supplement wise I take B12 which is pretty much required and vegan Vitamin D3 which I buy online. You could also consider taking vegetarian Omega 3 which you can find at Boots.

I exercise a lot, and I'm in my late 40s, so I also boost my protein intake with protein shakes using Pulsin Sunflower protein powder -- I whizz it up with a banana, peanut butter and soya milk after a workout.

If you're craving cheese the best cheese is a German brand called Wilmersburger. It's super hard to find in the UK at the moment but you can buy it online at Vegan Cross It comes either sliced or in blocks.

When I first became vegan I used a lot of of 'fake' products including fake meat products (you can even get pretty good fake bacon) and fake cheese but my reliance on them has waned. Now, protein wise I mainly eat tofu (it really can taste good), pulses, nuts, quinoa, nut butters etc.

You need plenty of leafy greens lots of broccoli, kale etc to help boost your vit. D levels and also try to use non dairy milks soya, almond, whatever that are fortified.

Being vegan or vegetarian is not that big a deal, really. There are so many amazing cookbooks out there (I love Anna Jones who is very mainstream), a million inspiring vegan blogs and more and more restaurants (at least in cities) are catering for vegans and vegetarians. I have two branches of Mildreds within a short distance and they are always packed with normal people -- not hippies (though there is nothing wrong with hippies). More and more vegan and vegetarian products are becoming available, and what you can't get in the shops you can order online.

So do it, absolutely and enjoy it and feel proud that you're listening to your conscience and doing the right thing.

On How Not to Get Old on the television last week or the week before they showed Seventh Day Adventists who live in a town in the USA who have all lived longer than anyone else due to their diet. It was in California so they had absolutely wonderful supermarkets full of every kind of fruit and vegetable.

What others are saying is true, you have to do it well and not be a sugar, oil and starch vegan because in order to stop being hungry it is easy to fall into that. Going out it is true, the easiest thing is chips or a cupcake so you can see it would be easy to put on weight.

You need enough protein everyday. There can be disagreement about that but some people who are relatively active might need about 70 grms. At least get the minumum which must be about 50 grms. You need to eat pulses, nuts, seeds and lots of vegetables. Some vegatbles have quite a lot f protein like broccoli and spinach.

Have Vit B 12, and possibly Vit D if you are not drinking milk and are living in a dark place as that has supplements of it.

There must be excellent vegan sites. I think there are some Irish twin brothers called "Pear" something who have done a good cook book. I read they themselves are vegan, but I am not certain if their book is.
Watch out for Ella who though vegan has ad hoc recipes without necessarily enough protein and a lot are high in sugar even if its from fruits. Middle easter food and Indian food can have very good recipes.

My experience is as a vegetarian, sometimes vegan. It is very easy to not get enough protein or a balanced enough diet. But if you plan it well, and put the work into proper home cooking/preparing it can be a wonderful diet.