To be a vegan or not?

Question

Pros and cons please. And why can't a vegan have milk & cheese? It's not like you have to kill the animal to get them. I was on an Atkin's kick... now I've considered going vegan... crazy huh?

Answer 1

Truthfully the only cons are social ones(getting asked dumb questions,etc)....

“It is the position of the American Dietetic Association and Dietitians of Canada that appropriately planned vegetarian diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate and provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases.Well-planned vegan and other types of vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including during pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood and adolescence. Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than nonvegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease; vegetarians also show lower blood cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer.”They may also have a lower risk for some other diseases such as constipation, diverticular disease, gallstones and appendicitis. Women who eat little or no meat are four times less likely to develop breast cancer than women who eat meat reguraly.An English study that compared the diets of 6,115 vegetarians and 5,015 meat eaters for 12 years found that the meatless diet yielded a 40 percent lower risk of cancer and a 20 percent lower risk of dying from any cause. According to William Castelli, M.D., director of the famed Framingham Heart Study, vegetarians outlive meat eaters by 3 to 6 years.After reviewing 4,500 scientific studies and papers on the relationship between cancer and lifestyle, a team of 15 scientists sponsored by two leading cancer research institutions advised that those interested in reducing their risk of many types of cancer consume a diet that is mostly fruits, vegetables, cereals and legumes. They declared that up to 40 percent of cancers are preventable, with diet, physical activity and body weight appearing to have a measurable bearing on risk. In 1996 the American Cancer Society released similar guidelines, including the recommendation that red meat be excluded entirely from the diet.Heart disease does not have to be a death sentence or mean a life of cholesterol-lowering drugs and bypass surgery. By prescribing a vegetarian diet, regular exercise and spiritual nourishment for his heart patients, Dean Ornish, M.D., proved that the progression of this number-one killer can be halted and even reversed.In 1995, 683,000 people died prematurely as a result of atherosclerosis-related diseases. In other words, they died largely as a result of their meat-eating ways. This figure represents 29 percent of all deaths for that year.

Meat contains 14 times the amount of pesticides as plant foods, since pesticides get concentrated as they move up through the food chain, and since they're more easily stored in fatty tissues.The EPA discovered that the breast milk of vegetarian women contained far lower levels of pesticides than that of average Americans. A study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine found that "The highest levels of contamination in the breast milk of the vegetarians was lower than the lowest level of contamination…(in) non-vegetarian women… The mean vegetarian levels were only 1-2% as high as the average levels in the U.S."In the fall of 1996, a study showed that prenatal exposure to PCBs, even relatively small amounts, can impair intellectual development in children. Aside from fish, PCBs can be found in other high-fat foods such as cheese, butter, beef and pork. Women who plan to become pregnant were also advised by the study to avoid foods containing PCBs because the chemicals can remain in their bodies for years.An early '90s EPA report found that 95 percent of human exposure to dioxin, a known carcinogen, comes from consuming red meat, fish and dairy products. Later, chicken and eggs were added to the list. Dioxin builds cumulatively in fatty tissue. The only way to flush it out is through rigorous fasting or via lactation. When a batch of dioxin-contaminated soybean feed entered the food chain in 1997, the FDA set limits on concentration at one part per trillion. If all animal foods were held to this standard, it is likely that many would not be cleared for human consumption.

In the United States, farm animals receive 30 times the antibiotics that people do--not so much to treat infection, but to make the animals grow faster on less feed. Though perfectly legal, the practice is, in effect, promoting the selection of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Some of these bacteria can cause human diseases that physicians are finding difficult to treat. The practice is adding to the general worldwide crisis of drug-resistant disease. Each year, 60,000 Americans die because their medications were ineffective in combating bacterial strains.Every year, on average, each American becomes sick and 9,000 people die from something they ate. That something was probably of animal origin.Except in rare instances, neither the USDA nor the FDA has any regulatory powers on farms where pathogens originate. With the exception of E. coli O157:H7, dangerous bacteria are legally considered "inherent" to raw meat. It's up to consumers to neutralize pathogens with cooking. Two of the "legal" ones--campylobacter and salmonella--account for 80 percent of illnesses and 75 percent of deaths from meat and poultry. One hamburger can contain the meat of 100 different cows from four different countries. One infected animal can contaminate 16 tons of beef.The Centers for Disease Control estimates that campylobacter infects 70 to 90 percent of all chickens. Campylobacter infections give their human victims cramps, bloody diarrhea and fever and lead to death for up to 800 people in the United States each year. For 1,000 to 2,000 people per year, infection will lead to Guillain-Barré syndrome, a disease that requires intensive care for several weeks. A September 1997 sampling of supermarket chicken in Minnesota found 16 percent infected with an antibiotic-resistant strain of campylobacter.A USDA microbiologist declared in a Time magazine story on processed poultry that "the final product is no different than if you stuck it in the toilet and ate it." No wonder: A 1978 USDA rule allows poultry processors to wash contaminated birds rather than discard them or cut away affected parts. "Wash," as interpreted by the poultry industry, means "communal dunk" in what amounts to a virtual fecal soup that ensures salmonella cross-contamination.

Vegetarians have also been shown to have more endurance.At Yale, Professor Irving Fisher designed a series of tests to compare the stamina and strength of meat-eaters against that of vegetarians. He selected men from three groups: meat-eating athletes, vegetarian athletes, and vegetarian sedentary subjects. Fisher reported the results of his study in the Yale Medical Journal. His findings do not seem to lend a great deal of credibility to the popular prejudices that hold meat to be a builder of strength.
"Of the three groups compared, the... flesh-eaters showed far less endurance than the abstainers (vegetarians), even when the latter were leading a sedentary life."
Overall, the average score of the vegetarians was over double the average score of the meat-eaters, even though half of the vegetarians were sedentary people, while all of the meat-eaters tested were athletes.
A comparable study was done by Dr. J. Ioteyko of the Academie de Medicine of Paris. Dr. Ioteyko compared the endurance of vegetarians and meat-eaters from all walks of life in a variety of tests. The vegetarians averaged two to three times more stamina than the meat-eaters. Even more remarkably, they took only one-fifth the time to recover from exhaustion compared to their meat-eating rivals.
Wherever and whenever tests of this nature have been done, the results have been similar. Doctors in Belgium systematically compared the number of times vegetarians and meat-eaters could squeeze a grip-meter. The vegetarians won handily with an average of 69, whilst the meat-eaters averaged only 38. As in all other studies which have measured muscle recovery time, here, too the vegetarians bounced back from fatigue far more rapidly than did the meat-eaters.
------------------------------...
What to eat
Eat a variety of "whole foods," with plenty of beans, nuts, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. Avoid unhealthy foods like trans fats, which are usually listed as partially hydrogenated oils. Deep-fried foods often contain trans fats. Choose margarines that use nonhydrogenated oil, like Earth Balance or Smart Balance. Although a diet consisting of Coke and French fries is technically vegan, you can't be healthy if you eat nothing but junk food. Vitamin B12: Vitamin B12 is produced by bacteria, and some experts believe that vegetarians used to get plenty of this vitamin from bacteria in drinking water. Since drinking water is now treated with chemicals that kill the bacteria, it's important to make sure that you get enough vitamin B12 from fortified foods (like most brands of soy or rice milks, some breakfast cereals, and many brands of nutritional yeast,also eggs and milk) on a daily basis or by taking a sublingual B12 tablet of 10 mcg per day.


Iron-beans, dark green leafy vegetables (like spinach),whole grain breads, Also eat something with vitamin c when you eat something with iron, it increases absorption

Calcium-dark green leafy vegetables (spinach, broccoli, soymilk)

Protein-MYTH: "Vegetarians get little protein."

Fact: Plant foods offer abundant protein. Vegetables are around 23% protein on average, beans 28%, grains 13%, and even fruit has 5.5%. For comparison, human breast milk is only 5% (designed for the time in our lives when our protein needs are as high as they'll ever be). The US Recommended Daily Allowance is 8%, and the World Health Organization recommends 4.5%.
Isn't really hard to get protein, just eat a variety of foods, good sources are beans, brown rice, nuts, whole grain breads,soy foods

Omega-3 fatty acids-flax seeds/oil,walnuts,canola oil

Zinc-pumpkin seeds (best source), beans and lentils, yeast, nuts, seeds and whole grain cereals

Selenium-Brazil nuts are a particularly good source of selenium, so try to eat a couple every day. Eating a small bag of mixed unsalted nuts can be a convenient way to get your daily selenium intake, but make sure it contains Brazils. Bread and eggs also provide some selenium.

Vitamin D- Vitamin D, often called the sunshine vitamin, is another common deficiency in those not drinking vitamin D fortified milk. Synthetic vitamin D is added to both cow’s milk and most brands of soy milk today.

Vitamins A (beta carotene),C, K, E and Folate-variety of fruits and veggies

Iodine-Iodine is a trace mineral that's important for healthy thyroid function. Table salt is the most common and reliable source of iodine in Americans' diets. (However, sodium in processed foods usually does not contain iodine.) If you don't consume table salt, you can get iodine from a multivitamin or from kelp tablets.

Source(s):
http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/f...

http://michaelbluejay.com/veg/natural.ht...

http://goveg.com/healthconcerns.asp...

http://www.chooseveg.com/health_overview...

http://www.cspinet.org/eatinggreen/index...

Order a free vegetarian starter kit
http://www.tryveg.com/cfi/toc/

Answer 2

Vegans don't eat or wear ANY animal products. Many people do it for ethical reasons, while others choose it as a diet.
If you choose to follow a vegan diet, be prepared to know about all ingredients in the foods you eat. This means preparing many of your own meals or paying a higher amount for vegan-friendly foods. Also, make sure to take vitamins to keep from having an iron deficiency. I had a friend who was vegan and had a terrible problem with this.
Good luck with whatever you choose!

Answer 3

Vegans do not eat anything from an animal, milk comes from a cow, and cheese comes from milk. They believe that cow's milk is for their calves and that humans should not drink it. It's not crazy to go vegan, I mean I'm not but you have to believe in a life with just vegetables and vitamins for every never to taste meats, milk and other products. Remember most dressings for your salads contain animal fat, so that's a no-no. Good luck with your change of life, if you go ahead wtih it.

Answer 4

Pros: It helps save the planet due to the growing meat industry raping the nutrients of the soil and using up water sources. It is healhier for you since the human body's digestive system is made for herbivore consumption. It helps prevent heart disease and diabetes since vegan food contains no cholesterol.

Cons: Eat wisely, because a well-planned vegan diet can be healthy, but just eating french fries, soy ice cream, and cookies can cause you health problems.

Answer 5

I'm a vegetarian, but can understand Vegan's decision not to consume milk or eggs. Those cows are impregnated for that milk. They spend all their lives on dairy farms and then to the slaughterhouse. We are the only species that drink another species milk. Would you drink breast milk from another woman? Eggs same thing, chickens are cooped up popping out eggs that we grab from them. These animals live in horrible conditions so we can have milk and eggs.

Answer 6

you should go to milksucks.com then youll see how gross milk really is. Harvard studies state that milk can actually cause more problems than i can prevent , even osteoporosis the very same thing that milk is said to help prevent . It is the milk industry trying to brain wash you into thinking that its good for you . Do the research and then decide for yourself. its the only way you can help being a puppet to the big corporations . Whatever you do good luck and best wishes

Answer 7

2

Answer 8

1

Answer 9

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/21/opinion/21planck.html?em&ex=1180152000&en=04ec62217430bb85&ei=5087%0A

dont be a vegan if you're pregnant.

vegans don't eat milk and cheese because the way they get the milk and cheese from animals is cruel.

Answer 10

This is perhaps one of the most compelling arguments I've ever read. It's a lengthy piece but well worth the read.

http://www.rawfoodinfo.com/articles/art_ananimalsplace.html

Answer 11

i really think that you should do what feels right. i am a vegitarian, not really because i wouldnt eat meat but because of the way animals are treated. i would eat free range but it is still promoting meat. maybe compromise by buying milk that you the cow been treated right... you can alwways change your mind!