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My Journey To Become (mostly) Vegan Part I

By Eliza Bicknell of Lotus Petal Yoga

So I have decided to become a vegan. Or at least mostly vegan, (meaning I am not going to obsess over fish sauce used in some Thai noodles I might order when eating out, or an egg that was used to make some bread I might eat, things like that.) So basically vegan but not in the strictest sense. First let me outline why I have made this decision.

- Cows, pigs and chickens are all raised in factories which cram hundreds of animals into a very small space. They are fed an unnatural mostly corn based diet and given drugs to counter the effects of this unnatural diet as well as hormones to promote growth and antibiotics to prevent disease and also promote growth. I love animals and have a hard time supporting the treatment of animals in such a manner.

- Thousands, of scientific studies done world wide have linked animal protein, not just animal fat and cholesterol, but animal protein directly to cancer, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, and a host of autoimmune diseases. After reading perhaps 20 or so books on the topic, the best one I have found is the China Study, written by the worlds leading cancer researcher, Dr. Colin Campbell over 40 years of his lifetime of work. Not only are these diseases linked directly to animal protein, but when individuals stop eating animal protein and adopt a plant based whole foods diet, they reverse and even halt/cure these diseases. This is a strong reason for me.

- Modern agribusiness is the second most environmentally damaging industry on earth. Waste from millions of cows goes untreated into our water supply. 80% of farmland is used to grow inedible (to humans) corn to feed to livestock using massive amounts of fossil fuels, pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and water to do so. The rainforest that is being cut down at an alarming rate for cheap beef, causing a whole host of issues from loss of biodiversity to global warming. Finally, billions more people could be fed on this planet, in essence world hunger could come to an end, with a plant based diet rather than a meat based one.

So there are my reasons, outlined as briefly as I could (believe me, I could write hundreds of pages on each.) Now here is where I am starting my quest to become vegan from:

I stopped eating red meat (beef and pork) 25 years ago (as a young teen) because I wanted to lose weight. In 1992 as a graduate student studying environmental science, I learned how terribly destructive to the environment our modern industrialized food system is and I became a complete vegetarian.

This lasted until 1998. I had put on some pounds and decided I needed to lose weight. I went to the gym; got a personal trainer and they put me on a high protein diet. For me this was tofu for breakfast, lunch and dinner plus snacks. I didn’t realize at the time and neither do most people even to this day, that other vegetables contain sufficient quantities of protein. (For example, when comparing equal parts tomatoes, spinach, lima beans, peas and potatoes to equal parts beef, pork, chicken and whole milk, the vegetables contain 33 grams of protein and the meats 34 grams (per 500 cal of energy.)) Anyway, on this high soy diet, I became allergic to soy protein, getting hideous welts all over my body. I have since become aware that soy is not a healthy food choice. Read The Whole Soy Story by Kaayla Daniel if you are interested in learning more on this.

With no soy in my diet I decided to eat fish again. Then, in 2005, I decided to go on another diet to lose a few pounds and was eating fish for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Having read about high levels of mercury in fish, I decided to get my blood checked. I had high mercury. So out went the fish (for 3 months until my mercury levels returned to normal) and back into the diet came chicken and turkey, organic only.

So where we start is: I do eat organic chicken and turkey as well as fish. I eat no cow dairy products other than butter and heavy cream as I am allergic to them. I do eat goat cheese and goat yogurt. I eat eggs, lots and lots of eggs, maybe 4 -5 times a week for breakfast. I eat no gluten as I am sensitive to it. I eat minimal sugar but love dark chocolate. I eat almost nothing processed (but I do have a weakness for popcorn and potato chips) no fast food, no soda, ever in my life. Compared to most Americans, my diet is already very healthy.

Perhaps you would think that with the way I already eat making the shift to mostly vegan would be pretty easy. I am finding it is not. It’s been about 7 days in my quest so far and I am taking baby steps. I realize I can’t do it all at once. I figured cutting out chicken and turkey would be an easy first step. So far it has been, but I am realizing just how dependent I had become on those foods, I was eating them all the time. Now with just those cut out, I have increased my veggie intake by multiple servings per day and I feel really good. I have seen instant results for the increase in fiber I have been consuming as well.

My biggest obstacles I think will be: Eggs, I just love them. I actually have not had them in 7 days either but I know I might soon, I can’t quite give them up just yet. Nor can I let the butter go just yet. I put it on literally everything. Now that I am watching how much butter I actually eat, it’s rather frightening. Wild Alaskan salmon will be very hard to lose as well..

Here is my biggest obstacle: My Husband! He is a gourmet chef. Cooking is his passion. He spends hours reading cook books from cover to cover. We have more kitchen utensils and equipment than I ever knew existed. He spends hours brining a turkey and cooking it slowly using the Sous Vide method (see link below if you are unfamiliar with this fancy cooking method.) He makes the best, I mean the best, sauces you have ever tasted, most of which are just different forms of butter. He already can’t stand the dietary restrictions I have and will probably kill me if I mention that I wish to become a vegan. Yup, haven’t told him yet.

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Bruce Shilander Jan 22, 2010 07:36

I'm all for a vegan diet. But I am not sure if you are aware of the long-term implications of this decision. Ultimately it depends on which is more important, your principles which prompt you to pursue veganism, or your relationship with your husband. The complexities are built around how important cooking for his family is for your husband, how much he is in agreement with your pinciples, and how understanding you are of those issues in relation to your own personal goals.

Personally, if it were (a) hard for me to stick to a diet, and (b) it would upset my spouse, then I wouldn't do it, unless I were running for the presidency of the Vegan Association of America or something like that.

you are so right about this, it may in the end cause my relationship with my husband to suffer (as it is already strained due to my already complex dietary restrictions due to allergies, belifs, etc). Cooking is very important to him indeed. I will see how things start to unfold and see if I think it can work and then decide if I need to modify to maintain the peace!

Oh gosh, Eliza... Best of luck on your quest. For myself, I can't imagine a world without a good steak or a good burger. I never was a veggie fan, except for a good salad. Tofu? Yuk... Your husband, by the way, will find out sooner rather than later. Best to break it to him gently yourself. You will need his support.
Regards, Jim

James Emery Vigh Jan 22, 2010 10:48

Interesting article. I am a little curious though about why you think vegetarian foods aren't terribly destructive to the environment too. How do you think they plant and harvest vegetarian foods?

I have a solution. A campaign to make peas, potatoes, tomatoes and carrots growing in your front lawn instead of grass a status symbol. We need to get the Joneses of the world in on the program.

Growing vegetables is also environmentally damaging, certainly things like strawberries for example, use some of the most harmful pesticides known and some crops do require large quantities of water. I think much of the environmental damage from livestock comes from the waste of the animals - one factory feedlot of cows for example gives off more waste than the entire city of Los Angeles and its not run through any kind of sewage treatment system. Millions of cows belching and farting tons of methane into the atmosphere is significant as far as green house gass emissions goes and millions of acres of rainforest are cut down every second for the grazing of cattle.

Absolutely growing vegies in your front yard is a great solution! We grow them in our back yard, my 3 year old especially loves planting and picking the vegies.

I grew up on a 300 acre dairy farm. If you ate what cows eat you would belch and fart a lot too. The corn from the silo can just about knock you over.

biblefreeorg Jan 24, 2010 03:07

Great article Eliza. My girlfriend is vegetarian and her brother is pescetarian. I admire their discipline and yours. I myself am 100 percent "meatatarian" :)! But I am cutting some meat from my diet and some days I eat completely vegan. Some reduction is better than none right?

it does seem to take a lot of discipline! some reduction is certainly better than none at all. I am sure you will see some benefits. Soon Ill write part 2. thanks for the comments :0

Hi Eliza,
great article. You could challenge your husband to prepare a set of dishes for a vegan lifestyle, that will appeal to everyone. A set of meals to provide an adequately balanced nutritious diet. Not just a vegan. Have visitors regularly so that he also gets to prepare what he loves to do and eat.
Reg

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