Why I Went Vegan
I used to be a girl that loved meat. It’s probably a huge understatement to say I loved meat. I would eat a whole fried chicken in one sitting, I loved steak, and bacon for breakfast? Yes, please! If you had asked me a year ago if I would ever become a vegan I would have said no way. I wouldn’t have been able to do it. Eggs were one of my favorite foods and there was no way I was willing to give that up at the time. Fast forward to December 2015 and I start educating myself more on the controversial issue of animal products. The things I discovered through researching this topic made me never want to eat some of my favorite foods ever again.
- Our bodies don’t need animal products
Milk and meat has a lot of extra fat in it that our bodies don’t need. So many people are lactose intolerant because our bodies weren’t made to ingest things like cow’s milk. Would you ever think about drinking milk from a cat? Cow’s milk is produced by a mother cow to help her calf grow just like our mother’s milk was produced to help us grow.
Things like eggs can be detrimental to our health because the cholesterol and fat in eggs is much more than our body needs. Our bodies already produce cholesterol naturally so adding eggs into our diet isn’t doing us any good. Did you know marketing campaigns aren’t allowed to call eggs healthy or nutritious?
More information here: http://nutritionfacts.org/video/who-says-eggs-arent-healthy-or-safe/
- Animals are being harmed
On the ethical side of things, baby chicks are treated roughly when being sorted into male and female categories. Male chicks are thrown into a grinder to be killed because they won’t be able to produce eggs. Female chicks then have their beaks clipped which is a painful process where no anesthetic is used. Cattle aren’t exempt for poor treatment because more often than not they’re dehorned, castrated and branded with no anesthetic. I won’t get into too much detail but here you can find more information if you want to learn more. http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/free-range-organic-meat-myths/
- You can help the environment
“Livestock are also responsible for almost two-thirds (64 percent) of anthropogenic ammonia emissions, which contribute significantly to acid rain and acidification of ecosystems.”- veganoutreach.org.
Even cutting out just meat and becoming a vegetarian can help the environment. Much of the world’s water is used to help keep livestock growing so we can consume it. I also found that a lot of waste from animals like pigs and cows seeps into major waterways polluting these bodies of water.
More information here: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/jul/18/vegetarianism-save-planet-environment
- You can eat carbs with no shame!
Carbs are good for you contrary to popular belief. Carbs are the food that gives us energy to get through the day. Low carb dieting isn’t sustainable, plus who wants to live without bread and pasta anyway? White pasta and white breads are the carbs that aren’t good for you. Whole wheat pastas, breads, potatoes and beans are great for a well-functioning body. Carbs have a bad reputation because people are taught that carbs make you fat. In reality it’s the things we put on these carbs that are bad for us. Things like butter and cheese are the foods that make carbs unhealthy.
After being vegan for a couple months now, I can saw confidently that I feel so much better about what I’m putting into my body. I’m not trying to force a way of eating on you, I’m just informing you on what has worked for me and how I feel after making this change. I feel like I now have a much more positive outlook, I have more energy and don’t feel sluggish after I eat, not to mention how fast my hair and nails have been growing. And after eliminating the extra fat from my diet, I’ve definitely lost a couple pounds too.
If you’re thinking about transitioning to a vegan lifestyle I would highly encourage it. It’s hands down one of the best decisions I’ve ever made for myself and my health. If you’re worried about not being able to follow through with it, just take it a little bit at a time. It’s a process and it’s nearly impossible to get to your goal overnight. Cooking and buying food on a vegan diet isn’t expensive at all unless you’re buying “treats” like cookies or more processed foods. Rice, beans, pasta and potatoes are some of the cheapest things you can buy so your grocery bill will definitely go down. Making this change can be daunting but educating yourself about the topic can really help make it easier.