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Many, many people are really turned off if you mention veganism, though I do think it will be the diet of choice for the future. What seems odd to me is that sometimes it's characterized as a "restriction." It's not the way I would characterize it, as if vegans really want to eat meat but are restraining themselves. See:
I feel the same sentiments as others here about the religious zealotry of many diets, and that includes veganism too right along with keto, paleo, intermittent fasting etc. I was caught up with veganism to the extreme for a long time. I was down to raw fruitarian vegan for periods of time, (raw foodism is another camp all on it's own). Beyond diet I avoided every speck of animal product I could (meds, clothes, toiletries, shoes etc). I leafleted in the streets and at colleges to "educate" others about where their food came from, though looking back a lot of the material I shared was propaganda and the most extreme cases. I joined protests and looked for every opportunity online to challenge others. I was a royal pain to be around and drove my family crazy lol. And THEN other vegans accused me of not being vegan enough because I could not convert my husband to vegan, though he tried very hard to please me. And I rely on meds like Synthroid which have animal derivitives in them and likely relied on animal testing at some point. Oh, and I fed my dog a meat based diet and many vegans are against that too. After 6.5 years of this, while my health was waning and I was fighting to overcome a serious eating disorder (anorexia nervosa with binge/purge subtype) and with my obsessive compulsive tendencies, I finally broke with the vegan camp. I called myself "vegetarian" for a long time, then "pescetarian" because my only meat consumption now is fish, but I am finally moving away from labels altogether because it's just ridiculous. I absolutely needed to break away from rules and idealism and expectations in order to recover more fully from a mindset that drove me to near death. My vision of the world around me has also changed in such a way that I don't agree 100% with veganism, though I am not against it either.
I don't believe there is only one right way and everything else is wrong, immoral, unhealthy, etc. The world is large and diverse. There are too many factors that drive the way people live, what they believe etc. The world will never be perfect.
I will say that for me, I thrive on a diet that is higher carb lower/moderate fat and I just feel my best there. I have family who are the complete opposite, thrive on high protein low carb. I also work best eating four smaller meals per day most days unless I am out camping or an all day hike etc. Intemittent fasting royally messed up my body and made me crash. I get mad when people try to push this on me or tell me it will cure my thyroid issues. I am someone with a long history of restriction, rules, being underweight and the last thing I need is intermittent fasting. I also enjoy grains and beans daily and neither has made me gain weight or increased triglycerides etc (which by the way are ridiculously low). I love eating a variety of food, and yup, that even includes a little dairy, eggs, fish now. It includes a little oil, bread, even dessert occasionally lol. If I were to slap a label on myself the closest would be the Mediterranean diet, but I like a little butter every now and then, and I like coconut too which is shunned in that circle due to saturated fat. Yet my arteries are clean as a whistle according to my fasting lipid profile. All I can say is I am so sick of labels and rules about how I should live and eat.
Food HAS become religion because there is morality attached to it in some camps, and shunning and judgment of others who do not adhere to it. Even some doctors will label a patient as uncooperative if they don't follow the diet the doctor is pushing/selling as "THE" right diet. I work as a medical coder and have seen this, especially with either keto or plant based. Vegans will call you a slave supporter or murderer because you catch your own fish or consume dairy or meat. Some will refer to the original human diet as that of Adam and Eve in paradise, with no killing of animals to thrive.
I count carbs but I don't adhere to Atkins or keto.
I count calories but it's associated with a British Type 2 diabetes study, not any diet plan.
I eat whatever I want as long as it complies with #1 and #2.
I eat one meal a day (OMAD), but I don't do it every day.
I don't eat on Friday (IF), because it's the most convenient day to do it and I weigh in on Saturday.
Most important of all...
I lose weight and control my diabetes.
Pretty hard to label all of this.
And it's definitely not for everyone.
Many, many people are really turned off if you mention veganism, though I do think it will be the diet of choice for the future. What seems odd to me is that sometimes it's characterized as a "restriction." It's not the way I would characterize it, as if vegans really want to eat meat but are restraining themselves. See:
Doubt it. In order to feed 10 billion or more people on a vegan diet, there would need to be ridiculous amounts of land dedicated to farming. It's bad enough as it is. Compound that with the amount of pesticides and herbicides that would be used and it would become an environmental disaster.
Here are links to best and worst diets according to US News and World Report.
Disclaimer:
By posting these diets I not trying to make a point - I just thought some people may want to check them out.
Everyone is different so what works for some may not work for others.
Despite never having a problem with excess weight I now consider myself to be somewhat of a fanatic with what I eat-for example avoiding sugary stuff, most prepared foods and meats-but don't belong to any of the dietary groups such as vegan, Keto, etc. My experience with these people is that they mostly keep it to themselves in public settings, and usually can find something to eat at potlucks.
For all the dissing of Keto, it's given number 2 for weight loss on the link above.
Doubt it. In order to feed 10 billion or more people on a vegan diet, there would need to be ridiculous amounts of land dedicated to farming. It's bad enough as it is. Compound that with the amount of pesticides and herbicides that would be used and it would become an environmental disaster.
It think it's more likely that there is movement toward insects as a food source.
They're definitely abundant and not too many people have an issue with smiting them.
<snip>
For all the dissing of Keto, it's given number 2 for weight loss on the link above.
Keto is a fantastic option! I think the problem a lot of people have is the anti-carb fanatics. Those people who insist Keto is the only way, and they make carbs out to be evil. Can carbs be a problem, - absolutely. Are they always the problem - not at all.
That, and watching a person on Keto add more fat to their fat. Blech, so gross!
I feel the same sentiments as others here about the religious zealotry of many diets, and that includes veganism too right along with keto, paleo, intermittent fasting etc. I was caught up with veganism to the extreme for a long time. I was down to raw fruitarian vegan for periods of time, (raw foodism is another camp all on it's own). Beyond diet I avoided every speck of animal product I could (meds, clothes, toiletries, shoes etc). I leafleted in the streets and at colleges to "educate" others about where their food came from, though looking back a lot of the material I shared was propaganda and the most extreme cases. I joined protests and looked for every opportunity online to challenge others. I was a royal pain to be around and drove my family crazy lol. And THEN other vegans accused me of not being vegan enough because I could not convert my husband to vegan, though he tried very hard to please me. And I rely on meds like Synthroid which have animal derivitives in them and likely relied on animal testing at some point. Oh, and I fed my dog a meat based diet and many vegans are against that too. After 6.5 years of this, while my health was waning and I was fighting to overcome a serious eating disorder (anorexia nervosa with binge/purge subtype) and with my obsessive compulsive tendencies, I finally broke with the vegan camp. I called myself "vegetarian" for a long time, then "pescetarian" because my only meat consumption now is fish, but I am finally moving away from labels altogether because it's just ridiculous. I absolutely needed to break away from rules and idealism and expectations in order to recover more fully from a mindset that drove me to near death. My vision of the world around me has also changed in such a way that I don't agree 100% with veganism, though I am not against it either.
I don't believe there is only one right way and everything else is wrong, immoral, unhealthy, etc. The world is large and diverse. There are too many factors that drive the way people live, what they believe etc. The world will never be perfect.
I will say that for me, I thrive on a diet that is higher carb lower/moderate fat and I just feel my best there. I have family who are the complete opposite, thrive on high protein low carb. I also work best eating four smaller meals per day most days unless I am out camping or an all day hike etc. Intemittent fasting royally messed up my body and made me crash. I get mad when people try to push this on me or tell me it will cure my thyroid issues. I am someone with a long history of restriction, rules, being underweight and the last thing I need is intermittent fasting. I also enjoy grains and beans daily and neither has made me gain weight or increased triglycerides etc (which by the way are ridiculously low). I love eating a variety of food, and yup, that even includes a little dairy, eggs, fish now. It includes a little oil, bread, even dessert occasionally lol. If I were to slap a label on myself the closest would be the Mediterranean diet, but I like a little butter every now and then, and I like coconut too which is shunned in that circle due to saturated fat. Yet my arteries are clean as a whistle according to my fasting lipid profile. All I can say is I am so sick of labels and rules about how I should live and eat.
Food HAS become religion because there is morality attached to it in some camps, and shunning and judgment of others who do not adhere to it. Even some doctors will label a patient as uncooperative if they don't follow the diet the doctor is pushing/selling as "THE" right diet. I work as a medical coder and have seen this, especially with either keto or plant based. Vegans will call you a slave supporter or murderer because you catch your own fish or consume dairy or meat. Some will refer to the original human diet as that of Adam and Eve in paradise, with no killing of animals to thrive.
Great post - gave you reps. I feel the same. I don't like restrictions of any kind, and have low tolerance for those who push various WOE. They all want to "educate" others that their way is the best. Very cultish. For myself, nothing is off limits and I go through periods of less protein, less carbs or whatever. Overall I function best with three smallish meals per day from all food groups, and I love and feel best with a fairly good amount of carbs - including some type of bread with my breakfast, and grains or potatoes/pasta with other meals. I am very healthy with this regimen. I do eat red meat but not often - I eat small amounts of chicken and seafood mostly for my protein.
One size does not fit all, what is good for one, may be horrible for another.
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