No longer a Vegan after 11 years

A few years ago I started to eat more vegetarian meals (I wasn't Vegetarian though), as I also eat white meat and fish. I started to feel unwell and so tired. Blood test revealed I was anemic. My G.P told me to drop some of the veggie meals and eat more red meat (I thought I was doing the more healthy option eating white meat and fish), and I was put on a course of iron. Since then I eat two red meat meals a week, along with the white meats, fish and vegeterian meals. Thankfully I've not had any issues since.

My daughter-in-law was vegan for about 3 years (having always been vegetarian previously). She began to feel something was missing and she wasn't as well as she used to be. She's now gone back to eating cheese and feels fine again. Veganism leaves out so much of the various food groups and substitutes for things like milk and cheese are just massive chemical mixes.

Alison333 it's the same with mushrooms, I hate them and they make me feel horribly sick if I eat them but non vegetarians seem to think they are a staple item for veggies!

Some people suffer lactose intolerance which gets commoner as you get older. I discovered that it was one of the problems with my IBS.
There is also research which suggests a link between consuming dairy foods and breast cancer.

There’s research that suggests a lower risk of breast cancer if you have dairy foods.

Take your pick?

I’ve been semi vegetarian for 74 years and I’m from a farming family. I do eat fish a couple of times a month, ditto poultry but other than that my diet consists of fruit, vegetables, grains, dairy and eggs. I have the usual aches and pains for somebody in their late seventies but my main ailment is copd from too many years of smoking. Gave up six years ago but should have done it long long ago.
I think moderation, variety and nothing processed is the best way.

I would recommend that any diet is balanced. Hospitals are full of meat eaters who have ailments. Processed meat is a proven carcinogen. Recent news adds to the growing research showing that meat was a very rare treat and both men and women were hunters and gatherers.
As for the “I knew a vegan who…” stories, I could regale people for hours talking about meat eaters I know who became sick and died. Any diet needs balance to be healthy or you will get sick. I could like on Greggs veggie sausage rolls and get sick, that doesn’t mean a vegan diet caused it.

I suppose the odd thing for me is how strongly people want to put vegans down. So many call themselves animal lovers but happily eat them. There are some great videos out there to watch before calling judgement.

I'm vegetarian, though I do switch to veganism when the dairy becomes problematic digestion wise. My daughter is vegan, has been for several years, and finds it very easy as there are so many options now available that it doesn't leave her feeling like she's missing out. She does take supplements as prescribed by her GP, as she did become quite low in certain vitamins just recently.

I wish all the wonderful options were available when I went first went veggie, 40 + years ago. It was eat what's in front of you or go without in those days. Sunday dinner consisted of mash, veg and tomato sauce for me. The only veggie option in most shops was cheese and onion pie, which I hated. It's so much better nowadays.

I suppose the problem is Razzy, that most vegans/vegetarians aren’t happy just to make it their choice, but feel the need to convert others. It irritates people to be preached to, especially when you’re just having a friendly get together and you’re criticised publicly for your choice of food and given a lecture,

I’m sure you get that too from confirmed meat eaters. I wish both camps would be a bit more polite. And accept each other’s choice.

I suppose the problem is Razzy, that most vegans/vegetarians aren’t happy just to make it their choice, but feel the need to convert others
Some vegans/veggies might do this, or maybe a few vegans/veggies might do this. But most? Lol

Perhaps I just attract them?

You’re right, most is very unfair. After all, I wouldn’t even know about the quiet ones?

Since when was avocado a “vegan” food? Plenty of non vegans eat them.

Gillycats

A vegan diet is no less healthy than an onmi diet. It’s ridiculous to say otherwise. It may not be for everyone but it is better for the planet. Also, it’s really cruel to consume meat and dairy. The animals , organic/local/whatever suffer so much. Long gone are the days of smaller local farms and local slaughter. For the vast majority of these poor creatures it’s unimaginable cruelty and suffering. If people want to carry on consuming them in that knowledge and don’t care about sustainability then that’s up to them! But the negativity around veganism is a joke. I can only think people do it to try to justify their personal choices. Why else would you criticise those that chose compassion and kindness over the misery and suffering of sentient creatures.

Well said Gilly

Peasblossom

Perhaps I just attract them?

You’re right, most is very unfair. After all, I wouldn’t even know about the quiet ones?

Peaseblossom??

I've been a vegetarian for several years, but eat eggs, cheese and all dairy products. I have no intention of going vegan, my other half is a meat eater who happily will eat vegetarian food, so he has lately bought me vegan food, I've shown him the fat content and other things that have gone into it quite shocked by it, a true vegan tends to eat non manufactured food. This current vegan theme of must become one is yet another fashion fad!!!
My reason for initially becoming a vegetarian was due to animal welfare and too much medication given to them... They deserve a better life as do we all!

natural compost from decomposing vegetables - you don't really need chemicals .

Hear! Hear!

kjmpde

natural compost from decomposing vegetables - you don't really need chemicals .

Er , no sorry. That doesn’t really work in terms of tonnage needed. I’m afraid you’d have to add what we excrete and our dead bodies to achieve a balance.

veganism may be a fad for some but not for all.
i became vegetarian in the belief it would be better for animals but as male chicks in the egg industry are shredded , male calves are set to slaughter then is it?
i think to be vegan is far better

A traditional three year rotation would be much better for soul health but it would mean changing our diet somewhat to make it work.

Less demand for legumes and roots, more for brassicas. Trouble is the vegan diet is legume heavy.

Razzy, as I said up thread, and Lilyflower puts so well The idea that vegans become so as the result of an ‘ethical’ choice, thus implying that non vegans are morally suspect and ethically inferior is a large part of the reason why I dislike veganism.

Veganism is just one of many thousands of different eating regimes people around the world choose for a variety of reasons.

The sooner vegans can accept that their food choices are no better or worse than the decisions of anyone else and every eating pattern can be good or bad for your health, the environment etc, depending on the choices you make within it, the sooner any hostility against vegans will disappear.

i think comments against vegans is equivalent to those of years ago when women that wanted equality Some old comments can still be found referring to "bra burning". nobody states that now so hopefully snide remarks against vegans will also disappear

Soil health ?Oh dear…

if you go to the centre for alternative technology in machynlleth (sorry if mis spelt) , you will see that it produces enough compost .