Vegan Diet

[salamangkero 0]

The problem with many people who eat meat, is that is their 'main food' on their plate, having a HUGE peice of meat, and a small pile of vegetables is NOT healthy.

True, true. Not to mention that being continually assaulted by the odor of meat can sometimes make you feel nauseous.

 

The way i look at it, is if you have to cook the meat you don't need it...sure people supposedly have 'canine' teeth but compare them to animals and you'd see your teeth aren't nearly as equipped.

I'd have to disagree with this one, respectfully, of course. And tactful as well. Not cooking meat is very dangerous 'coz a lot of dangerous pathogens can reside even in a single slab of well-washed meat. I would also like to point out that, comparing ourselves to herbivores, we can also see our teeth are not as well-suited for grazing. The way I see it, we probably have evolved to eat both. After all, a creature that has a varied food source can more easily adapt to food-related events like famine, animal and plant diseases, crop failure and, sometimes, crop circles No, strike that last one out.

 

Sometimes, though, I regret that we have lost the ability to digest cellulose because of evolution. Heck, I still wish we humans can photosynthesize! Imagine the advantage of a photosynthetic, sentient being capable of locomotion and digesting plants, animals, everything!

[Yratorm, LightMage 0]

Oookay, first off, those "stupid doctors" didn't get the title "Doctor" for being stupid. If anything, I think the title is indicative of the opposite. Also, if you really read the original post, you'd find that some vegetarian diets bring about, not lack of protein, but lack of cobalamin, or Vitamin B12. The complexities of vegetarian diets do not end with protein.
Also, the strength of a creatures relies not on its size. Just because an elephant is large does not mean it necessarily is strong. Look at ants. They can lift up to 50 times their own weight! They also eat meat, btw

Another thing, just because you are healthy now does not mean it will stay that way forever. It may take months or even years before the effects of a new diet begins to manifest themselves.

Lastly, there is no point in comparing humans to cows and elephants when it comes to diet. For one, cows and elephants are completely capable of digesting cellulose, which is why they need not eat meat. We, humans, on the other hand, can only get starch and vitamins from most plant matter that we do need to eat meat to get our protein somewhere.

salamangkero, this is one of the most sensible, informative and to the point posts that I have ever seen. That's just my personal opinion, of course. You have a fine intellect. Great stuff, keep it up.

I know I usually write a lot more than this, but this time salamangkero has beat me to it

Just one point, about cooking meat - I keep cats and live in a 'primitive' place where cat-food isn't easily available. So I have to feed them meat. And I cook even the meat I give my cats (carnivores, mind you), after one of my cats killed an animal and ate it raw and then died of food poisoning (yes, I know, poetic justice, but at the time I couldn't appreciate it).
My point - cooked meat is safer even for carnivores, it's just that they haven't quite mastered fire.
Edited January 13, 2007 by Yratorm, LightMage (see edit history)

[me_boxer_dude 0]

I have seen vast difference of opinions in this forum in some other topics when it comes to 'Diet prefrences' however I think that we being humans have evolved in such a way that we can utilise almost anything as food(how efficiently our body utilises these food resources is a different topic altogether). Having said that I believe that we should eat what we feel like, and whatever it is(veg or otherwise) it should just NOT lack any vital nutrient. I agree that killing animals just to eat em is wrong somehow and its not just the suppresed guilt resurfacing, its something I have believed in all the time. I am on a meat diet more often than not coz its just the way it has been always for me. Finally I would like to say that if you wanna go for a Veg diet then just go right ahead but make sure that you DON'T miss anything, moreover a regular meat diet coupled with fruits and vegetables should make the best ever deal.

Edited January 26, 2007 by me_boxer_dude (see edit history)

[Misanthrope 0]

I recently posted a similar topic here in the "Health and Fitness" forum, and all I can say is, pity the poor soul who dares start a topic on the subject of veganism or vegetarianism. Especially in the health and fitness section - oh the irony. That is why I think it would be a good idea to put health in it's own section separate from Fitness, because folks interested in the later aren't necessarily interested in lifestyles that have spiritual underpinnings. The same goes for meditation and philosophy. They really need to be in a forum separate from Fitness. Although spirituality is obviously inter-related to all aspects of life, including fitness, for forum purposes it would be better served in it's own section where it would attract intelligent posts from folks who already have an interest in the topic, as opposed to, say, body builders who may not provide quality responses to such material. You might just as well put religion under the "gaming" forum, for that matter.

 

But back to this thread and others like it, it appears the very mention of the words, "vegan" or "vegetarian" seem to send the unenlightened into a defensive, unabashed tizzy. I've noticed specific "code" words used at this forum to flame individuals who choose different lifestyles, but the folks who use such terminology to limit the free speech and rights of others are perhaps the most intolerant of all. As much as you may disagree with "Juice," you have no right to squelch his opinion because it may offend your limited sensibilities or challenge your subjective biases. This IS a forum on Health and Fitness, is it not? Why then, can't people start threads on perfectly viable, healthy lifestyle choices without some of you reacting in an immature and needlessly defensive manner?

 

There are few things that disturb me more than witnessing the "herd" gang up on one individual who happens to hold a different viewpoint from the willfully ignorant masses. This is bully-like behavior that should not be tolerated in a forum that values individual freedom of thought. The Internet remains one of the last bastions of free speech, and I for one would like to see it stay that way.

Edited March 3, 2007 by vbritton (see edit history)

[Yratorm, LightMage 0]

Practically speaking all I can say is this - eat what keeps you healthy. If a vegan diet keeps you healthy, thats great. If a meat diet is what you thrive on, by all means go for it.

 

 

Simply put, what works for one may not work for another.

 

 

As for spirituality in relation to diet - not everyone believes that it has much significance there.

 

However, in the east we certainly have the concept of eating flesh being 'bad' karma, but then I think that such a topic doesn't, belong in a diet/health section at all but in a section on spirituality, meditations, etc.

 

Lastly, I don't think that any way of life needs to be preached to anyone else - I don't think religions need to be preached, and I don't think a way of life, or a particular culture or even a diet needs to be preached. Live and let live. Do what's best for you, and let others do what's best for them. There's no need to convert anyone to your point of view, no need to argue, and no need to flame anyone just for being different.

 

Peace, and good health, achieved in the way that works for YOU. What more could anyone possibly need??

[Misanthrope 0]

I thought this thread was on veganism. But to respond, individuals learn in different ways. Some people actually enjoy and/or take in information better if they are "preached" to, and actually become offended at more subtle forms of education. And that applies across the board to all disciplines. We should not criticize how others wish to learn. In venues that truly value free speech, these forms of intellectual flow are allowed to flourish. Further, persons who choose alternative diets such as veganism should be allowed to post under Health and Fitness without being labled "fanatic." Where spirituality is concerned, I will post such content under "Life Topics," as a receptive climate for such material has yet to be created in health and fitness.

[Yratorm, LightMage 0]

Actually there's a section being created on spirituality, and it would definitely be useful there. I myself have quite a few details as to the spiritual aspects of veganism in many cultures, and so has Opaque, (and so do you, I'm sure ) so it should be an interesting thread, indeed.

[Misanthrope 0]

Veganism is a perfectly viable, healthy dietary choice which deserves full discussion here, under the health forum, with or without reference to implied spiritual context. That said, I would hate to see members discouraged from posting further on this topic because it has been vilified on this board as a "fanatic" lifestyle. I'd also encourage members to go here for more information on this HEALTHY and humane alternative to the factory farming complex of death.

[Sprnknwn 0]

Don't know about the rest but I don't feel veganism is a fanatic way of life at all. I am always open to ways of life that don't base or even face social conventions and this one does. And it makes me sad that the main text in a topic called "Vegan Diet" talks really about what it should be called "Why not to follow a vegan diet". By the way, 6 posts... cool. Probably when I get to live on my own I will try a vegan diet (maybe I'll start a vegetarian one first but I'd like to try the vegan one) but not looking for a healthier state. If I can get at least equally healthy and no animals have to die (with more or less suffering) to keep me alive, it would be worthy, isn?t it?. And I?m not interested much in spirituality issues, by the way.

[cangor 0]

People can be vegetarian and they'll usually get all the nutrients they need. Being vegan, well, it's just hard to get all the things you need without taking all kinds of supplements, so, in my reply to a comment on the first page, humans can't rip the skin off a cow with their teeth (or maybe they can) but they can't be completely vegan either. There's a reason we use tools and stuff. My opinion is that going to one extreme or the other (total carnivore vs. obsessive vegan) is just bad for your health and you need to eat somewhere in between.

[juice 0]

Looks like this topic is dead LoL no comment