Where People & Piggies Thrive

Newbie or Guinea Guru? Popcorn in!

Register for free to enjoy the full benefits.
Find out more about the NEW, drastically improved site and forum!

Register

Veg*n Considering going vegan

spudsthepiget

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Posts
1,119
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Messages
1,119
I've been a vegetarian for the last 17 years since I was 3, but I'm considering going vegan now, because of the cruelty that goes with producing milk in cows. But I'm worried, because it will mean giving up so much. I was anemic for a long time and I've only recently gotten over that.

I'm also considering instead switching to more humanely produced cheese at a health food store, but then I worry about the price.

Does anyone have any advice about this? Has anyone been in this dilemma?
 

Amalee

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Mar 8, 2013
Posts
319
Joined
Mar 8, 2013
Messages
319
Maybe a list of all the foods you will be changing/removing from your diet and give it to your doctor before you make any decisions. They should have a lot of good advice for you. I'm not vegetarian, but I would love to be; I'm still recovering from an eating disorder. I wish I could help you out more. Goodluck to you.
 

spudsthepiget

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Posts
1,119
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Messages
1,119
Thank you, Sweetie. :) A list is a great idea! I will definetly do that!
 

madelineelaine

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Posts
2,597
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Messages
2,597
@Amalee I'm recovering/recovered from an eating disorder as well, feel free to DM me anytime.

I've been a vegetarian since I was 12, and this summer will make 3 years. Since 2010 and counting!

I want to go vegan too but I need to move out first as my parents do not approve of it. I really don't think eliminating milk products will affect iron levels, B12 is a concern for vegans so I suggest you talk to a nutritionist or your doctor (at the least) before making the switch. Someone I know is actually doing vegan days, to get better accustomed to it. You should look into nutritional yeast, it's supposed to have a cheesy flavour and it is an AMAZING B12 source for vegans :) I bought some and I'm going to try it out in a vegan potato chowder I want to make.

There are tons and tons of recipes too, and if you do enough research into it I don't think you'll miss the milk that much. There are tons of delicious foods, and a lot of things actually don't have milk/eggs in them already. Dark chocolate is super yummy, healthy, and mostly vegan!

Good luck with whatever you decide, but definitely do research.
 

Hhbean

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Aug 27, 2011
Posts
2,045
Joined
Aug 27, 2011
Messages
2,045
Good luck with your endeavor to become a vegan! I have been a vegetarian for about a year and a half, I have thought about becoming vegan. I found it very easy to give up meat but giving up dairy and eggs is just not that easy. I do try to get free range eggs(my aunt has chickens). I am also transitioning to almond milk. Sadly, I have to wear shoes made of leather since I had my ankle fused a few years ago, orthopedic Dr. says I should only wear MBT shoes>(.
 

CookiesMom

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 7, 2013
Posts
91
Joined
Apr 7, 2013
Messages
91
I'm vegan, mostly. I was vegetarian for over 20 years (I am old). The main reason I am vegan, mostly, is that have hereditary high cholesterol and eggs and dairy are high in it. I make exceptions when I am eating out or at friends o families to make their lives easier, but am still vegetarian then. 99% of the time I am vegan.
I think creating a list of the foods you need to get iron is a good idea. I've never had a problem with my iron, so never looked into it much. There are lots of veggies with iron though, and I know some who say cooking in a cast iron pan can help.
There are ways to get what you need. Definitely talk to your MD, but keep in mind some are against a vegan diet, and MD's are not nutrition experts. WIth your health concerns, I would also talk to nutritionist.
Good luck!
 

spudsthepiget

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Posts
1,119
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Messages
1,119
Thank you, everyone, for your kind words of encouragement! I certainly appreciate it! I think I am going to try a vegan day and see how that goes.
 

MochaAndMoo

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Dec 18, 2012
Posts
1,600
Joined
Dec 18, 2012
Messages
1,600
After being a vegetarian for 10 years, I recently went vegan.
I drink a specially formulated almond milk which is designed for vegans and has added B12 and B2.
Giving up dairy was way easier than I expected. I just use substitutes (like almond milk, soy spread, carob chocolate, egg replacer ect.) Becoming vegan for me was literally an overnight transition. I also feel way better after giving up all that dairy junk :)
(broken link removed)
Some vegan cooking blogs:
https://veganyumyum.com/
(broken link removed)
 

Nessy

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 1, 2013
Posts
143
Joined
Apr 1, 2013
Messages
143
The very best of luck with you going cruelty-free, and please don't beat yourself up if you find that something you have done or eaten wasn't as cruelty-free as you first thought, after all, intentions to live a kind life go a long way and it is a journey where things change as new information come in for you.

Please please please can I ask you kindly to look into where your soya products come from if you purchase soya, because so many vegans rely on soya in the belief that they are doing the right thing by animals (and of course often they ARE doing the right thing), yet SOME soya is produced from plantations grown from knocking down huge swathes of valuable rainforest, and seriously I personally would rather a calf be killed in order for milk than to kill by displacement orangutans and other valuable rainforest animals and plants. Once the rainforest has gone it takes a long time to recover (if allowed).

Some soya is grown ethically but please please please check, as it breaks my heart to see vegans who genuinely care so much about doing the right thing happily (unknowingly) drinking their soya from one of the most cruelty intense sources you can imagine! I do wish vegan sites would mention about the possible cruelty pit-fall of (some) sources of soya on thier sites.

Can I also mention that cruelty-free is not always about killing farm animals, it is about killing animals through intensive agricultural farming and that also includes veggies and grain - farms that have cleared huge swathes of land - sometimes miles - no hedges, no room for wildlife, pesticides and artificial fertilisers, they are like deserts, poison in the water table going into the streams and eventually the sea. Awful, and eventually the soil itself becomes devoid of nutrients. Cruelty free is a journey of trying to find ethical farming methods that do not involve killing wildlife (it's not just about killing cows, sheep, chickens and pigs).

Cruelty-free is about weighing up the environmental impact of the purchases we make too. Some vegan substitutes, such as PVC, are very environmentally unfriendly. Anything produced from plastics made from oil has the potential to come from a very unethical source, again I think many of us here, simply by the fact that we are very caring people, have heard the sad and tragic tales of the tribes-people of South American rainforests being killed and maimed by unscrupulous oil companies, and about those oil companies who want to drill in the precious Arctic.

Dear mods please, if I am pushing things too far or upsetting people please let me know. It is not my intention. Please @spudsthepiget my intention is not to make you feel guilty about any choices you make or to put you off your path, but it is a journey you are making, and it really is very hard in our modern world to live our lives without harming animals. It can be excedingly difficult to know the impact of our purchases on the animals and the environement and all we can do is learn along the way and be prepared to adjust our thinking and purchases as best as we can.

Please don't call me a hyporcite, I am not vegan as my health really won't allow for a vegan diet. There are many protein substitutes that my body literally cannot tolerate and I do become ill if I try. It's just that I am very into saving rainforests and environmental matters and I know that our purchases of every kind, including meat-free food, can in some cases have an impact on animals as bad as or worse than a livestock farm. The best thing that we can all do is be as cruelty-free as we can in our own way by educating ourselves on the choices we make and buying accordingly. So again, I hope very much that you manage to give up the dairy and remain healthy, but I do know plenty of people who have tried very hard and couldn't as their bodies would not allow for total veganism, and I know friends of friends who have managed easily. All of our bodies are different. Therefore good luck to you, hope you can do it, and please please don't beat yourself up if you can't.

Sincerely all the best xx
 

Nessy

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 1, 2013
Posts
143
Joined
Apr 1, 2013
Messages
143
Ooops sorry bad example with the orangutans, their homes are being destroyed for palm oil, not soya production. Brazil's rainforests are suffering for soya but much of the soya sold in the USA comes from the USA thankfully. Sadly for Europe we import most of ours from.... Brazil! urgh.
 

CookiesMom

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 7, 2013
Posts
91
Joined
Apr 7, 2013
Messages
91
Nessy, as a vegan, I appreciate your concerns about palm and soy products. I think it is important though to lay the responsibility of these issues on every person who uses or potentially uses these products. Omnivore's diets are no less damaging to the environment, and as a whole, arguably more damaging. Not only is palm and soy in a wide range of foods, that a wide range of people eat. Rainforests are cleared to raise cattle as well.
I am not arguing your concern, these are major concerns. Vegans do sometimes rely too much on processed substitutes. I am justing pointing out that vegetarians and vegans are no more responsible than anyone else to be aware of where their foods come from, and how it affects the planet. I also don't want people who want to try a vegetarian diet to be discouraged by these concerns, and I also do not want the haters, and there are many, to consider this sort of thing ammunition against vegan or vegetarianism.
All people can be kind to the planet, and conscientious about where their foods come from.
 

spudsthepiget

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Posts
1,119
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Messages
1,119
There is certainly a cause and effect for every lifestyle and decision, and there are certainly ways to help the effects of those as well.

[MENTION=27454]Nessy[/MENTION] I definetly understand where you are coming from; the distruction of the rainforest is a serious issue. I respect your passion for this topic. :) Thank you for wishing me luck, it really means a lot to me. <3

[MENTION=27528]CookiesMom[/MENTION] I definetly agree, we can all be kind to the planet.
 

Nessy

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 1, 2013
Posts
143
Joined
Apr 1, 2013
Messages
143
Nessy, as a vegan, I appreciate your concerns about palm and soy products. I think it is important though to lay the responsibility of these issues on every person who uses or potentially uses these products. Omnivore's diets are no less damaging to the environment, and as a whole, arguably more damaging. Not only is palm and soy in a wide range of foods, that a wide range of people eat. Rainforests are cleared to raise cattle as well.
I am not arguing your concern, these are major concerns. Vegans do sometimes rely too much on processed substitutes. I am justing pointing out that vegetarians and vegans are no more responsible than anyone else to be aware of where their foods come from, and how it affects the planet. I also don't want people who want to try a vegetarian diet to be discouraged by these concerns, and I also do not want the haters, and there are many, to consider this sort of thing ammunition against vegan or vegetarianism.
All people can be kind to the planet, and conscientious about where their foods come from.

[MENTION=27528]CookiesMom[/MENTION]
I agree with everything you have said there, and believe you are right. Infact I would go as far as to say many omnivores couldn't give a flying fig about where their food comes from and the impact it has on the animals they eat or the environment. It really is frustrating and sad. The average omnivore diet, I believe, is more damaging, though there are a growing minority who are increasingly ethical in their choices.
My point was made really not to put anyone off veganism, I really wouldn't want to do that at all, but by their very nature vegans tend to be extremely kind and caring people who want the best for the animals of the world, so to be aware that SOME ingredients are actually very damaging to animals IF they come from certain sources (such as soya from Brazil), even though technically these ingredients are labelled as vegan.

Darn what I wouldn't give to have all of the eath's farming done in an ethical and none-destructive/damaging way!

But thank you, your point is very true in my opinion and well said.

[MENTION=26424]spudsthepiget[/MENTION] I'm glad you were not put off by my post. I just know that I try to be ethical and when I find out that something I purchase is not as ethical as I thought I get that sinking feeling, I wouldn't want that to happen to you or any other vegan who relies on soya. You should be safe in the USA though :)
 

madelineelaine

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Posts
2,597
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Messages
2,597
I actually recently read about the orangutan horror going on and so I'm hesitant to order palm oil for my soap now. I'm still toying with that one.

One thing that sort of 'grinds my gears' so to speak, is people who go vegan and just eat all the substitutes. To me, that's not what going vegan/vegetarian is about. I'll be the first to admit that I enjoy a nice veggie burger at barbaques, but I don't live off them. I know people who just drank soy milk, ate soy cheese, and faux meat products. Yes that is okay occasionally, and especially during a transition, but being vegan/vegetarian is said to be a healthier diet and really eating all that isn't doing your body as much good as it could be.

Of course I'm not judging people who do that, as it is there diet and their body so they are free to do as they please, it's just my opinion. I'd much rather sit down to a nice vegan dinner (think grilled avocado and pepper on a whole wheat wrap with smashed beans and fruit)
 

Nessy

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 1, 2013
Posts
143
Joined
Apr 1, 2013
Messages
143
Yes, I remember going through my cosmetics looking for palm oil and making sure it wasn't on anything bought past that point. In a way it's a shame, because I'll bet not all of it is grown unethically, but it was nota risk I was willing to take, or an industry I was willing to support.
 

madelineelaine

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Posts
2,597
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Messages
2,597
@Nessy that's exactly it, it's not an industry I want to support.
 

CookiesMom

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 7, 2013
Posts
91
Joined
Apr 7, 2013
Messages
91
I do not use many substitutes, but they can help a great deal with transitioning if your diet was mostly processed and convenience foods to begin with. Many people on the standard American diet struggle with the meaning of a whole foods diet. But yes, I agree, if you can move over to a whole plant based diet, that is best.


I actually recently read about the orangutan horror going on and so I'm hesitant to order palm oil for my soap now. I'm still toying with that one.

One thing that sort of 'grinds my gears' so to speak, is people who go vegan and just eat all the substitutes. To me, that's not what going vegan/vegetarian is about. I'll be the first to admit that I enjoy a nice veggie burger at barbaques, but I don't live off them. I know people who just drank soy milk, ate soy cheese, and faux meat products. Yes that is okay occasionally, and especially during a transition, but being vegan/vegetarian is said to be a healthier diet and really eating all that isn't doing your body as much good as it could be.

Of course I'm not judging people who do that, as it is there diet and their body so they are free to do as they please, it's just my opinion. I'd much rather sit down to a nice vegan dinner (think grilled avocado and pepper on a whole wheat wrap with smashed beans and fruit)
 

madelineelaine

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Posts
2,597
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Messages
2,597
For transitioning [MENTION=27528]CookiesMom[/MENTION] it's great for sure! I just get annoyed when people ask vegans, "so what do you eat" and the answer is,"Tofu, soy milk, veggie burgers ..."
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.

Similar threads

4boipigs
Replies
1
Views
667
Guinea Pig Papa
Guinea Pig Papa
Guinea Pig Papa
Replies
0
Views
581
Guinea Pig Papa
Guinea Pig Papa
LordOfThePigs
Replies
4
Views
6K
Comely Guineas
Comely Guineas
CavyQueen13
Replies
14
Views
2K
spy9doc
spy9doc
Top