Lifestyle of a Vegan?

[PeaceChic99]

I am just posting this because I'm curious about how a Vegan and Non-Vegan's lifestyles are different. (I'm non-vegan by the way) I have heard about PETA's vegetarian campaign, but I'm just curious about how they differ and how they are similar.

[knightofalbion]

It's a matter of putting your LOVE where your mouth is.

Fundamentally the biggest difference is scrupulously checking ingredients labels in supermarkets to make sure 'it' hasn't got any undesirable ingredients in it.

[Aeon.]

I have been a vego my whole life but never really understood veganism. it would be a drab diet. Life without cheese would be unbearable and eggs are a good source of a load of vitamins. I guess if it's an animal welfare thing it depends on how you get the eggs, My chickens are very well looked after and in return reward me with a delicious breakfast every morning. Cant see whats wrong with that

[sunsoul]

The main issue is where you live and how much you travel. If you try to be a vegan in Japan, China, Colombia and the Middle East (all places where I have worked or spent time in) then it would be almost impossible to go out and eat... Even vegetable noodles that you buy in the street would probably have been cooked in chicken broth or some meat based stock if you had any way of finding out. You would have to be very selective and only eat at Western restaurants or double check everything. I have ordered caesar salad before and had pork shavings on top even though it wasn't mentioned on the menu in Japan. Many people have no real understanding about what it is to be veggie let alone vegan.

I was veggie for six years in Japan and I have been vegetarian for 20 years all together. It was limiting at times to eat but I have come to accept that. There is some fantastic veggie food to be had in all of the above places but at times you are limited to cheese salad or simple sandwiches/noodles.

I remember years ago talking to a die hard vegan about this and he simply said that he would not travel to places like Asia or Africa because of his strict diet. I also remember having an Israeli friend in Colombia who was an orthodox Jew and she would only eat 100% kosher food. It was a nightmare to go out with her as she wouldn't eat anything at all outside her hotel which was run by Jews. No wonder she got home sick!

If you grow your own vegetables and live in the countryside and/or you have lots of time on your hands then I think the vegan lifestyle could be a good choice, though.

[kris]

http://vegankit.com/why

[Tobi]

Originally Posted by knightofalbion

It's a matter of putting your LOVE where your mouth is.

A wonderful way of expressing veganism, dear Knight! In a matter of just a few words! Thank you.

Originally Posted by knightofalbion

Fundamentally the biggest difference is scrupulously checking ingredients labels in supermarkets to make sure 'it' hasn't got any undesirable ingredients in it.

Yes that becomes an everyday thing until certain products are familiar and you know you can trust them. Some products actually have "suitable for vegetarians and vegans" written on the label, or "suitable for vegans".

For the OP: Regarding the vegan lifestyle it also means becoming mindful about clothing....what is it made from? Is the 'fur trim' on that jacket really faux-fur? Boots -are they leather or man-made material?
(Horrendously, some leather items are from animals skinned alive.)
Some labels are hard to get enough information from. I bought a jacket with faux fur trim, so I was told, and it looked like it. Took it home, and from reading the label my heart sank. It appeared it was real fur. The wording just said 'fur trim'.....I then cut off a tiny piece and set it alight and smelled it. It smelled like burning plastic, not that smell of burning hair or fur. I was glad.
But the label did not completely make that clear.
If you are very unsure, then sinking your nose into the 'fake fur', really warming it up and smelling it might help before buying. If it is real fur, you will doubtless smell that.
(In my case it didn't smell like fur, however. But the label made me second-guess.)

What's in your hair conditioner or beauty items, etc? Are they tested on animals? Is there any percentage of angora (rabbit hair obtained through the most cruel methods) -woven into your sweater?
It means being willing to find out before buying and not wanting to support animal cruelty, terrible conditions for them in imprisonment, or the taking of a valuable life.

[Green.Heals]

This is my idea on Veganism,

It is no longer about YOU.

If you become sick later on & choose non Veganism - could take place after years. Than one was never Vegan to begin with.

If one decides that no matter what their health becomes, they will always choose Veganism - than so be it.


The above is a harsh reality, but one must choose to give their life for the next, instead of taking lives for their own.


It is the clothes you wear, the vitamins you take, the wine you drink, the floss for your teeth, the candy you suck, the bedding you sleep on.... I could go on ( my cell is dying)


To some it is not just a lifestyle but a Religion.

To me there is no such thing as being a non ethical Vegan. it pains me to see those that choose the route for the wrong reasons..

[Green.Heals]

Again, I know I have a very harsh way of seeing this.

An example: Does a Vegan use Paper made from a tree?? Does a Vegan live in a city, that drove Wild animals from their homes?? Does a Vegan consume goods, that are sold in bulk from a factory that pays $0.25c/hour & pollutes the Earth?

Do non Vegans not care for the living, & stick up for the rights of animals? I think not.


I don't actually think anyone is an absolute Vegan, as we tend to hurt our planet in other ways & other living things.

I chose non Veganism. It was an area I leaned heavily towards however, in the end, Vegan means to consume no animal products.

You, (generally speaking), can still make healthful choices, we all draw our line somewhere, even in Veganism. One can still choose cruelty free in many different area's.

However, no matter how an animal/bird/ect are raised, they still die, if eaten. & I'd rather buy them from a Farmer that did not abuse them in the end.

[mogenblue]

I feel just great living on a plant based diet.

Today is about 15 degrees Celsius outside (57 F for our US based members ) and there I was walking downtown in my thin turquiose t-shirt between all the people in their comfy winter jackets, all packed up and ready for the bad weather that didn't come.
It's just great to walk between everybody else packed up and thinking they don't have a blood circulation, because I DO have a blood circulation and until the temperature drops below 13 or 12 degrees (55 F brothers and sisters...) and it's dry I don't need a coat or jacket when I go outside. Only when it's very windy.

It wasn't always like that. Back in 2009 things looked pretty grim for me. It wasn't that I felt depressed or so, but feeling good was a different thing. I felt hungry all day long, my digestion was seriously deteriorating, heartburn was becoming a serious problem and food just didn't tasted like anything anymore.
So because of that I decided to go vegetarian. That improved my digestion and most of my problems disappeared by that. But I still could not lose weight and I still didn't feel all that good about myself. Although my health noticably improved.
By the end of 2012 my weight was going up dramatically so something HAD to happen. I threw out the last bit of dairy: cheese. And all of a sudden losing weight started to happen like with no effort at all. It was nothing less then miraculous to me.
I also started to walk because I have a bad knee and I was really getting close to have it replaced by a stainless steel one. That foresight frightened me so much that with all I had in me I stood up and started to go walking outside using a cane. Slowly, with walks of 15 minutes gradually expanding the distance and time I expanded my reach until I could walk at least an hour or so and then I didn't need the cane anymore. That was a big achievement. I never believed that would happen anymore other then with a stainless steel knee inside of me. That was so great. Just think how many people end up in hospital and leave it with a steel knee or hip or so.

With the cheese away from my diet I was practically on a vegan diet. Gradually my mood started to improve too. And my appetite came back too.
Today I feel good about myself. My food tastes great and quite often I feel like it's just so great what I am doing to be healthy and fine.

So I am very happy that I made the switch to a plant based diet. It took me quite some effort to get into it, like knight said, you do check ingredients labels in supermarkets to make sure it hasn't got any undesirable ingredients in it. But I am not too tight on having a clean plant based diet. I think my diet is about +95%, maybe even up to 98% plant based. Occasionally something still slips through that has like egg yolk in it or stuff like that. I don't make too much fuzz of that.
But meat, poultry and fish are nogo areas for me. If someone offers me some food that has it in it, I accept it and eat it with taste, but I will not buy it myself anymore.

I switched to vegetarian when I was 49. I am now 55 and the way I feel now I can grow up to 90 years old with 2 fingers up my nose. That's how strong I feel about myself.

[Gem]

I think there's a huge display of the stuck up holier than thou 'oh so spiritual' vegan poser, so a health life choice is one thing, the pretence of being more loving and caring that the general person in pubic is a big spiritual ego entertaining self aggrandising delusions.