Some posts here are ridiculous. Yes, I'm very active in sports; powerlifting, bodybuilding, sprinting and martial arts, I can clearly say you won't get very far on a vegan, or vegetarian diet for that matter. Suggesting soy protein is pretty much joke.
I am personally against animal farming, I believe animals should be given to protect themselves, evolve freely and eat freely (What they're fed in farms is not their natural diet). I have faith in wildlife, and I think one of the biggest mistakes humankind has done was to think themselves as a superior being. As John Zerzan puts it, people domesticated themselves before they domesticated animals and I'm against that. But I'm also against agriculture. It is pretty much the scum of the earth. Overpopulation, organized religions, imperialism, civilization, in many cases draught, land damage, destructive technology/industrialism are all children of agriculture (Not to mention billions and billions of bugs, ruminants, birds sacrificed for agriculture). I think it is only okay to eat meat if you hunt your own food, a free animal that is. It is okay to be vegan, if you are raw vegan, more of a gatherer. Unless you're a raw vegan, you don't live according to your nature. Legumes and grains aren't in your natural diet, they're pretty new in our diet (Unless you believe the earth is 6000 years old), not even all of us have enzymes to digest legumes properly.
I for one am very intolerant to fiber, cramps legumes give me are unexplainable. I can't get more fiber than a couple plates of veggies, a couple handfuls of nuts and a few fruits per day. But I have to eat way more than that. Grains are out of question, because unlike carb fanatics in sports, I find that carbs terribly affect my performance. I'm sure people out there know what I mean.
I'm not saying vegetarians are doomed to be unhealthy. If you know what you're doing, you can just do fine on a vegetarian diet - As I said, I'm against animal farming so I don't think stealing another baby's milk is moral either. - But claiming that vegetarian/vegan diet is healthy is BS. The problem of our society in terms of food is corn-based products and trans fats. Yes, a McDonald's menu is unhealthy, but it is the bread, it is the coke, it is mayo, it is french fries, it is hundreds of crap they add to the burger, not the tiny amount of meat they use (Even though that meat is raised artificially, making itself not favourable). Animal products have been a staple food in human's diet for 3 million years, we should stop seeking the cause of problems in the wrong place.
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froghawk
12 years ago
This simply isn't true. We are actually the only species that can drink milk beyond infanthood, and most of us actually can't (the majority of the population is lactose intolerant - many just don't realize it). People who can digest lactose are a genetic mutation.
Look at the revised food pyramid, if you can find it (which is difficult to do thanks to lobbying pressures). Fruits and vegetables now take up the bottom. Lean proteins like fish are on there, but you will find NO other meat. It is not at all essential to a human diet, and is actually detrimental. Not to mention all of the environmental impact and the absurdity of raising tons of food to feed your food when the population is out of control....
You can't just pinpoint corn and say it's the problem. Processed food is the problem, period. Nonorganic agriculture is highly problematic, and it's the way it is thanks to demands from processed and fast food. The meat industry is the way it is for the same reason. Food production is backwards and we need to find a way to gradually set it straight again... the easiest way to do that is to create a demand. Change your diet. Don't just get rid of animal products - buy organic and avoid processed food.
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onurbole
12 years ago
I agree that food production is backwards, but don't you think human production is? We constantly keep breeding, this is not "organic" so to speak. I can't expect fair food production in a world where the only solution to increasing starvation is more food production, which results in more population and more starvation. I'd say this is a big problem to begin with. I don't think industries and lobbies give a flying damn about it.
We shouldn't be drinking milk, we shouldn't consume processed food. I agree with that and I personally don't consume dairy or processed food. Then again for many of us legumes and grains are more problematic than lactose, I have to avoid them as well. So I barely "buy" anything. That still leaves me numbers of options, I do pretty well thanks to my omnivore body. But I have to consume animal products because I can't tolerate much fiber, so I can't continously eat raw plants like a gorilla. I don't buy meat but provide my own. That is mostly seafood and fowls. If I ever buy animal products, it is cheap by-products like unwanted organs waiting there to be thrown away. I wouldn't say that creates demand for the industry I stand against.
There is not a single food or any type of food which is "essential" to a human diet so it is not a valid argument. There are essential amino acids, fatty acids and micronutrients, if you can get them on a vegan diet and feel good, more power to you. I personally can not.
Maybe it's time we start joining VHEM :D
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KaleCat
10 years ago
To the OP your a Pescitarian fyi just thought you should get the term right, not stepping on any toes :>
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