Five Months of Veganism

This January I made the decision to push my nine-year run as a vegetarian into something bigger and better - veganism. Of course, this came with a lot of criticism, shock and horror. "what will you eat?" "why on earth would you do that?" Well to tell you the truth, veganism used to be a lifestyle choice I would never even dream of embarking on. When I was a young vegetarian I used to think veganism was such an extreme and ridiculous idea. "Well it doesn't harm cows when you milk them so it's fine," I used to say. I thank the vegan friends of mine for helping me open up to this lifestyle.I attempted veganism once when was around the age of 14/15, most likely in an attempt to be different. I lasted less than 24hrs. At the time I was in school most of the day and living at home with my family. There were no vegan options at school, so I didn't eat. When I came home I decided to make myself a nice bowl of pasta with tomato sauce. I took one bite and the blandness of the meal caused me to cover the entire dish with cheddar cheese. Evidently, my cooking skills weren't quite up to scratch as I make fantastic vegan pasta meals now! Whenever the truth spills out and people find out about my lifestyle the questions start flooding in. WHY? HOW DO YOU GET PROTEIN? WILL YOU BE VEGAN FOREVER? DON'T YOU MISS BACON?!?!? Well, if any of you are actually curious about the answer to these questions, read on to discover why.

WHY?

Personal

In the beginning, the sole reason that I made the decision to turn vegan was in an attempt to overcome my eating disorder. I bet you didn't see that one coming did you? I have battled a lifelong struggle with food, from refusing food as an infant to finally recently being diagnosed with EDNOS. The past few years have been an incredibly tough battle and I have been constantly flitting between overeating, undereating and overexercising. I needed a way to keep my weight healthy whilst being able to eat as much as I like without feeling guilty. Going vegan has helped me achieve this. I have managed to lose more weight on a vegan diet than restricting calories. I am allowing myself to eat until I am full which stops me from binging later on and gaining weight. Because I'm not watching my weight fluctuate anymore, I feel more able to eat without feeling guilty. With a diet mainly comprising of fresh fruit, vegetables and whole grains it's quite hard to become overweight. I feel more comfortable now and food no longer controls my life to the extent that it used to when I was unwell. Furthermore, going vegan has also helped to combat my fatigue and lethargy.

Animal Rights

Prior to my veganism, I spent the ages of 11-20 as a vegetarian. I used to believe that by cutting out meat only I would being showing support against animal cruelty. I wasn't aware that the dairy industry is equally as awful as slaughtering animals. By consuming animal products, whether it is meat or dairy, we are supporting the exploitation of animals. The way I see it, we as humans should live in harmony and peace every living being that surrounds us and this includes animals. We are all together on earth to live and be free and I will no longer support animals being abused, tortured and humiliated just so that I can have eggs for breakfast or ice cream for dessert.

Regardless of whether animals are being farmed for meat or dairy, the conditions that they are forced to live in and the torture that they are subjected to is downright cruel. The term "free-range" evokes the idea that hens are free to roam around happily and carefree, but the majority of the time this is not the case. It's easy to label eggs as "free range" because companies know that most consumers will purchase the eggs without looking into the practices of the farm that they are purchased from. Most people don't realise that there is actually torture involved in producing eggs as most chicks have their beaks cut off whilst many others are simply thrown into the trash.

Just because we cannot communicate with animals in the same way we can communicate with each other does not mean we should treat them with less respect and kindness!

For more information on the animal rights issues associated with consuming meat products, I recommend checking out the documentary "Earthlings"

Environmental

Until I did my research on reasons to go vegan I wasn't aware of the major environmental impact the meat industry has on pollution. It is estimated that it takes 4,000 to 18,000 gallons to make a McDonald's hamburger. That's a lot of wasted water for one pathetic greasy fattening burger. Eliminating use of animal products is one of the best ways to significantly reduce your carbon footprint. When I see eliminate, I mean ELIMINATE. Don't just stop with food, a lot of hair and beauty products either contain animal products or are tested on animals.

For more information on the effects animal products have on our planet I suggest you watch the documentary Cowspiracy.

Health

Now this one is a no-brainer. Why does the western world seem to be riddled with so many diseases, syndromes, disorders etc? Why is everyone worried about obesity, heart disease, high cholesterol, cancer? All of these health problems are shortening our life expectancies and the only thing we can blame is our diet. The majority of people living in the western world consume high calorie, high-fat diets. All these animal products we are putting into our bodies are causing us to feel tired, slow, sluggish and unwell. A vegan diet is proven to lower cholesterol levels, which will greatly reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. I could talk for days about how the standard western diet is ruining our bodies (not to mention the endless amount of added crap food companies add to processed food) so I suggest you watch Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead and I will list the health benefits I have noticed in myself:

Clear skin (I used to suffer from breakouts and cystic acne)
Increased energy
Stronger hair and nails
Weight loss, less bloating
Greater immunity to illnesses such as colds and flu
Overall feeling of being well and happy!

(Please note: these positive effects were achieved on a plant-based whole food vegan diet. Vegan junk food does exist and although it's better than normal junk food, cutting down on processed foods provides amazing benefits)

Will you be vegan forever?

Yes, as long as my body continues to react positively to this lifestyle and as long as I am satisfied with the food I am eating.

Do you miss bacon?

No.

TIPS:

If you are wondering how to start your vegan journey, the best way is by researching. I have recommended three films to watch throughout this post and I will write them down below. Researching not only provides you with facts and statistics but trust me, when you start to find out the truth about consuming animal products you will feel determined to never go back.
Find out recipes! This is the most exciting part. Most people think vegan food is bland and boring but it is the opposite. It is beautiful and colourful. Youtube and Instagram are great sources of inspiration for meals.
Plan a shopping list. Eating vegan doesn't have to be as expensive as everyone thinks. Vegetables, beans, lentils and whole grains are some of the cheapest foods. It's fruit and fancy imitation foods that will drain your pockets so plan your shopping and meals in advance
Eating food out will be hard at first, and purchasing quick snacks from shops is hell in the beginning, but soon you will learn what brands of snacks you can and can't have. I recommend downloading the "is it vegan?" barcode scanner app.
Always ask for a vegan menu in a restaurant as most have them. If there are no vegan options, or the vegan option is lame then just eat vegetarian. Don't torture yourself, continue to enjoy life!
Bring snacks with you everywhere. Nuts, cereal bars, veg chips, dried fruit etc. When you find yourself wanting a snack and there are no vegan snacks around you will thank yourself. Also honestly, if you are hungry and there are only veggie options then just go for it. Veggie is always better than meat.
VITAMINS!!! Vitamin B-12 deficiency in vegans and vegetarians is no joke, so stock up on capsule because B-12 is only found in meat and fish. I also recommend spirulina as this is a brilliant source of protein.
Be prepared to slip up. If you are planning on moving from a carnivorous diet I would recommend going vegetarian first as your body will need to get adjusted to the change. Don't feel bad if you slip up and unknowingly eat something containing dairy as it's just something that happens when you first start out (it even happens after a while of being vegan). Most importantly please never let yourself go hungry if there are only vegetarian options around you. The most important thing is that you are aware of the issue and doing your best to support animals whenever you can.

Useful links:

The Vegetarian Resource Group Vegan Action NHS Advice for a healthy vegan diet The Vegan Society Vegan Recipe Club Vegan Shopping Accidentally Vegan Foods