Why are you Veg/Vegan?
 

I've been veg in the past, but I'm not currently. However, I feel that God is pushing toward making the change. And this time I'm considering vegan. I'm not sure why, but it's been something on my mind for a couple months now and it just keeps getting stronger.

What prompted you to make the change? Are you veg or vegan?

Re: Why are you Veg/Vegan?
 

I am mostly vegan (minus some slips here and there - mostly when we are out to eat).

For me it started as a health thing. I've got a bunch of auto-immune issues (endo being one of the biggies) and everything I've read says that a vegan (and gluten free diet) is a big help in reducing inflammation. I have noticed a big difference - my periods are not nearly as bad as they used to be.

For us it wasn't a huge change as we had already been eating less meat and dairy for environmental reasons....animal rights have since become a more important part, but still less significant than the health and environmental ones.

Re: Why are you Veg/Vegan?
 

I was not a consistant meat eater as a child. I was picky. By age 17 I would make other choices or lean more towards seafood. In 1988 I stopped eating red meat and the next year stopped all but seafood. I have been vegetarian since the early 90's. I have been vegan a few times, however I have gone back to eggs and goat cheese more in the last few years.
I feel like I can be healthy and happy without eating animals. :shrug3 There are many yummy ways to eat and be happy without that. My boys eat meat and I make better choices for them. (organic-grass fed as much as I can afford).

You can call me or come check out my stacks of cookbooks if you want. :heart

Re: Why are you Veg/Vegan?
 

I'm not currently veg due to life circumstances, but I can definitely feel God pulling me that way. Right now I'm reading up, researching, and learning to make veggie dishes so that when I'm in the position that I can be veg (or mostly veg) I'll be ready.

Re: Why are you Veg/Vegan?
 

Mostly vegan here. I'm not hard-core, but I try to keep a "clean" diet at home, where I do most of my eating.
Why? Mainly health. Since changing to mostly-vegan, I've lost 12 lbs., feel a whole lot better, and have dropped my bp a few points (it was already in the normal range, but drifting up --now that's stopped :rockon). Reading the China Study and having a dad who survived a double bypass are big motivators as well. My family history is riddled with type2 diabetes and heart disease.

Re: Why are you Veg/Vegan?
 

I am not either one strictly. I am close to vegan. I have fish, eggs, or turkey once in a great while. If I had more risk factors for cancer or heart disease, I'd probably limit those even more than I do.

I was vegetarian as a young adult once I was out on my own, because cooking and eating meat just grossed me out. Even growing up I was not a big red meat eater or milk drinker. Once having kids and nursing them, the thought of consuming milk from a cow concerned me even more, though I still ate cheese and yogurt. A few years ago, I became convinced that animal proteins and fats, and especially dairy, should have a very minimal place in the diet for the best long-term health. That along with factory farming practices and other nutritional considerations did not leave many doubts in my mind. If wanting to be scientific about it, the vast majority of the nutritional evidence is squarely on the side of animal products comprising a very limited part of a healthy diet in the society we live in (perhaps not zero for every person--hopefully it's okay to say that here--but very limited). On a personal level, I feel much better this way, feel good about having less of an environmental imprint, and do not have any trouble maintaining optimal weight when I avoid animal foods and most oils.

Re: Why are you Veg/Vegan?
 

Mostly vegan here, too (I use raw, local honey and very, very occasionally indulge in something dairy). I do it for the health benefits, since I feel best eating vegan.

The rest of my family eats localvore - as far as it is within my control (i.e., in the home or with meals prepared from home). I'm okay with that.

Re: Why are you Veg/Vegan?
 

I've been vegan for almost seven years, and it's made a huge difference in my life. I started eating raw vegan entirely for health reasons, and my cholesterol dropped over 100 points (it needed to; the good HDL stayed healthy and high). Once I stopped eating animals and their products, I took a clearer look at what I had been doing, and realized that for spiritual, human rights, and animal rights reasons, I just didn't want to be part of that system anymore. So now I consider myself an ethical vegan.

I feel great physically, and I believe it's deepened my faith in the sense that there aren't so many unexamined corners of my life anymore. In the past, I would've rationalized my behavior with some really illogical excuses, and now that I've stopped doing that in this area, it's harder to do it in others. I feel generally more compassionate. I have two healthy vegan children, and our family is so happy eating vegan. So it was a really great decision for us!