The Ex-Vegan Movement

There is this page I follow on Facebook called the Fat, Gay, Vegan.  The guy who runs it is pretty groovy!  This morning, he posted a link to a blog post from an ex-vegan (who really sounds more plant based than vegan) in which she talks about how, over the past few weeks, she has become a meat eater again.  The lady who runs the blog goes by Erika Awakening, and is, in addition to now being very anti-vegan, also a pick up artist who teaches men how to attract women.  That's right - she's an MRA.  (But that's not something I am going to delve into on this blog.)

Throughout Erika's anti-vegan blog posts (yes, she now has multiple anti-vegan posts), Erika talks about many "issues" that she experienced while being vegan.  She talks about how:

*Vegans are so angry all the time
*She started losing hair on a vegan diet (yes, she refers to it as a vegan diet throughout all her posts)
*She apparently looked like an emaciated bag of bones (her description of how all vegans look)
*Her hair started going gray at an alarming rate
*She was having chronic headaches and pain

These sound like pretty serious issues - but I would certainly not attribute them to following a plant based diet.  (See what I did there?  Plant based diet!  Yep - being vegan is a lifestyle, plant based is a diet.)  In the blog post titled My Break-up with Veganism, Erika mentions all the issues she had with her diet.  But, she never actually talks about what she was eating while plant based.  Was she actually eating plants or was she a junk food vegan?  Also, was she getting enough calories each day, or was she consuming a near starvation diet?

The average sedentary female burns roughly 1600 calories a day.  Active females burn more than that.  It is recommended that every female, regardless of their activity level consume at least 2000 calories a day.  This ensures that they will have enough calories to want to be active, and to meet their nutritional needs.  If Erika was consuming less than 1600 calories per day (and she may have been, but I can only speculate) this could have caused a lot of health issues for her.  Also, if she were surviving mainly on vegan junk food, this could have caused health issues as well.  (One only needs to look at Morgan Spurlock and his infamous month long experiment with McDonald's to know what an unhealthy diet can do to us.  I know - Spurlock was consuming animal products during that experiment, but unhealthy food is unhealthy food whether it's vegan or not.)

Erika also talks a lot about how vegans are angry all the time.  She has a very low opinion of vegans, and genuinely believes that they are angry and have cognitive deterioration and emotional imbalance.  Erika full heartedly believes that vegans brains are deteriorating because they are not eating animal products.  I find this to be diametrically different to everything I know about vegans - all the vegans I know are some of the kindest, most level-headed and most intelligent people I have ever met.  One of my close friends recently graduated as a straight A student and passed her NCLEX - she's now a nurse.  Her husband is equally intelligent.  So are other friends I have that are vegan.  They, contrary to what Erika seems to believe, show no sign of being angry, short tempered, or of lesser intelligence than meat eaters.

A lot of what Erika talks about on her blog are the nutritional deficiencies that she believes vegan are experiencing because they follow a plant based diet.  She talks about omega-3 and omega-6 deficiencies, vitamin B12 deficiency, vitamin K1 and K2 deficiency and just an overall concern for vegans health.  Since nutritional deficiency seems to be a huge concern for Erika, let's take a minute to talk about it.

Vitamin K1: This is found in largest amounts in leafy greens - you know: lettuces.  If you eat lettuce on a regular basis, you have nothing to worry about.

Vitamin K2: most commonly found in cheeses and fermented foods like natto.  Obviously, consuming dairy is out for vegans, but you can take supplements.

Vitamin B12: This can be a concern for vegans because B12 is most commonly found in animal products.  However, there are many foods that are fortified with B12 (including soy and almond milks, veggie burgers, chik'n burgers, and other fortified foods) and there are vegan supplements one can take as well.  If you eat enough fortified foods, or take a vegan supplement, you''ll be fine.

Omega-3 and Omega-6: Commonly found in fish, omega's help keep your cells healthy and can stave off inflammation.  Keep in mind that consuming MORE omega-6 than omega-3 can inhibit your bodies ability to turn DHA into EPA.  The following foods can help you get enough omega-3 and keep your omega-6 low enough that the omega-3's actually help your body: Flax seeds, chia seeds, hemp seeds, mustard oil, seaweed, beans, winter squash, leafy greens, cabbage family, berries, wild rice, herbs and spices, mangoes, and honeydew melon.  Visit this website if you want to know more.

I'm not going to turn this into one big nutritional lesson.  Let's just say: With a properly balanced diet full of lots of veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, and other healthy foods, people on a plant based diet can lead healthy, productive lives.

Overall, I find that Erika is just grasping at straws and searching for any way she can to justify eating animal products again.  I found, after reading through some of her blog posts and many of her replies to readers comments, that she sounded very bitter and angry towards vegans - that's just my perspective though.  I hope she can work through her issues towards vegans and realize that we are not the enemy and we are not out to get anyone.  Peace!

Circuses and Zoos VS. Sanctuaries

There are so many people who love going to zoos and circuses.  Here's the thing, though.  In circuses and zoos, the animals are often there against their will - they have been taken out of a natural environment and brought there for humans entertainment, or have been bred in a captivity that is abusive and enslaving.  The animals in these places are treated as commodities.  They are kept in cages or environments that are not large enough for them to be able to roam around, and are fed on a schedule that suits their trainer or handlers.  This also extends to places like SeaWorld that have whales in captivity in small swimming pool that are much smaller than, you know, the ocean.

There are other options though.  I would much rather have animals be in a sanctuary than a zoo or circus.  Generally, in a sanctuary the animals will have more space to roam and play, will not be abused or forced into performing for the public, and will generally be treated better than in a zoo or circus.

Don't just take my word for it, though.  Read the following articles and do some searching around on your own as well.

http://animalrights.about.com/od/animalsinentertainment/fl/Whats-the-Difference-Between-a-Zoo-and-a-Sanctuary.htm

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/03/140320-animal-sanctuary-wildlife-exotic-tiger-zoo/

http://www.veganpeace.com/animal_cruelty/zoos.htm

http://www.aspca.org/fight-cruelty/circus-cruelty

http://www.paws.org/get-involved/take-action/explore-the-issues/circus-cruelty/

Make your own {stir fry} Sauce

Hi gang!  You all figured out after my post the other day that I love spicy hot food and stir fry.  Occasionally, I will make my own stir fry sauce.  Here is one of my favorite recipes!  This is very easy to make and doesn't take a lot of time.

You need:
1 Cup Soy sauce
1/2 C Brown Sugar
1/2 TBSP Cayenne Pepper
2 cloves of garlic

Directions:  Chop the garlic up finely.  Then, mix everything together in a bowl (a small bowl is fine.)  There is enough here to mix with one serving of stir fry veggies.  You can adjust the cayenne pepper based on how spicy you want your sauce to be!

Once it's all mixed up, pour the sauce over your veggies, fry them up and eat!

Enjoy!

Vegan {Super Spicy} Stir Fry

Hi all!  For those of you who know me in person, you know that I love spicy food.  In this case, I am not talking about food that is just flavorful, though.  I am talking about spicy hot - food that feels like it is burning your tongue out when you eat it because it is so spicy hot!  I.  Love.  Spicy hot!  Another not so secret: I love stir fry's.  This one is one of my faves!  It's Yuuuumy.

You need:

1 large russet potato
1 large carrot
A head of broccoli
1 to 1.5 C rice (you can pick what kind of rice you want to use - brown or white)
1/2 a bottle of House of Tsang Szechuan Sauce (vegan!!!!)

Directions:

Put the rice and water in a pan and cook it while slicing the veggies.  While the rice is cooking, cut the veggies up.  (I cut the potato into slices, then cut the slices into slivers.  Peel carrot, then either peel it into thing slices or chop it up.  Chop broccoli.)  Once the rice is done, put it aside (or put it on a plate) and fill up a pan or wok with the veggies.  Pour the sauce over the veggies and cook until tender.  (Variation: You may cook the veggies with an oil, then pour the sauce over them.  I like to cook the veggies with the sauce, because it gives them a nice flavor.)

Serves: 2 (But truth be told, I usually save this and eat it for two to three meals all by myself!)

Enjoy!

Recipe Books - Veganomicon

I probably don't need an entire blog post to talk about the book Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moscowitz.  But I am doing one anyway.  That's okay!

So, if you've heard of and have this book - awesome!  And if you don't have it, you need to get it.  If you've never heard of it, I am glad to open your eyes, because this book is amazing.

If you've ever passed by this book at a library or bookstore, you've probably noticed that it looks rather big.  Don't be fooled, all that bigness is worth it.  This book is full of crazy good, awesome recipes that every person, whether they are vegan or not, should have at their disposal.  And the way that Isa writes is just awesome!

So, if you are looking for a good book full of great recipes, get out and get this one - you won't regret it.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Some of you may have noticed that I changed the name of this blog from The Thrifty Vegans to The Vegan Life.  Well, here's why.

I like the idea of being able to help people save a little money while being vegan.  But, we all know that there is so much more to the vegan lifestyle than just saving money.  So, I changed the name of this blog in order to better represent everything that comes with being vegan.  I will still talk about money saving tips for vegans, but will also be blogging about shopping tips, holiday feast tips, and so much more.  I hope that you enjoy the vegan journey with me, and if there is ever any topic you would like to see me blog about or any questions you have, please share them!

The V Word

Hi everyone!  It's time for a lesson.  This lesson is not for the vegans.  This is for the people who think they are vegan even though they aren't.  I am sure I am not the only person who has written a blog post about what a vegan is.  And I am sure I won't be the last.  But here it is: my talk about what it is to be a vegan.

Here's the reason for the lesson on what a vegan is: over the past few years, there have been an increasing number of people who say they are vegan, but then say that they eat eggs or wear leather, etc.  I have even heard of people saying they are vegan part time, but then eat meat on the weekends.  But here's the thing - if you are engaging in any of those activities, you are not a vegan.  In the last case, you aren't even a vegetarian.

Let's break down some things:

Vegetarian: A vegetarian is one who doesn't eat meat.  Yes, that includes chicken, fish, turkey and shellfish.  If it was at one point an animal, vegetarians don't eat it.  If you eat eggs, milk or dairy you are still a vegetarian.

Strict vegetarian (also called plant-based diet): A strict vegetarian, or person who follows a plant based diet, does not eat any meat, eggs, dairy, or other animal ingredients in any way shape or form.  Their diet revolves around fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and other plant based foods.  However, they will still use animal products in their clothes, makeup, hair care products and other aspects of daily life.

Vegan: Simply put, a vegan is one who does not eat any animal products and doesn't wear fur or leather or any other item made out of animals.  They use makeup, hair care products and other items that are free from animal products and that are not tested on animals.  Vegans are ethically opposed to the use of animals in the forms of circuses, zoos and other areas where animals are seen as property instead of sentient beings.  Vegans believe that all non-human animals deserve to be treated with love, respect and dignity.


So, if you are reading this post and wondering what a vegan is, hopefully that clears it up.  If not, talk to me.  Ask me questions.  I want to help people learn everything they can about being vegan, and hopefully educate people enough that they wish to transition to veganism.  Because, really, the more vegans there are in the world, the better.