Any Vegans on the Board? (page 2)

OUTLAW

I worked in the Health and Fitness industry for many years..I did not see very many healthy looking vegetarians.....Generaly the meat eaters who stayed fit,did and looked the best.......................................

Clint Eastwood ...OUTLAW

shamus100

I was the most unhealthy as a vegetarian. One day I just wanted a hamburger, and never went back.

Dave, if you can do it, it's up to you. I've only known one vegan, and she was very skinny and pale. Her diet was yucky to say the least...

All the best to you Dave.

PrimateDave

I suppose one can drink Coke and eat Fritos and call themselves "vegetarians."

Outlaw, by the same reasoning, I can say I have seen a lot of meat eaters who are extremely unhealthy. Exercise, or lack thereof, can also be a factor in health and longevity.

Shamus, I am curious what you ate and drank as a vegetarian.

Dave

beksbks

I grew up with a Vegan father. My mother and I did eat dairy, eggs, and fish. On rare occasions, we would have chicken. Getting adequate protein on a Vegan diet, takes some effort. Also there are certain B vitamins that are only available through supplements or animal sources.

As an adult I have tried both vegetarian and vegan lifestyles, health and nutrition are something of a hobby. Personally I think the optimum diet, is a diet where meat (and fish, chicken, etc.) is used as a condiment, or flavoring so to speak. Not what the meal is built around. Cheese has very healthful properties, but again, not overdone. Is there a reason you would not include fish? Or Yogurt?

I have known more than one Vegan who lived on stuff like Top Ramen, and Mac without the cheese. They emlimated meat and dairy, but still had a very unhealthy diet of mostly prepared foods. They are not healthy, nor are they at their proper weight. Are you a vegetable lover? Are you creative in your preparation? Have you thought about what your daily meals will look like? I find it all very interesting.

shamus100

I ate cheese, fish, and loads of pasta. No, I didn't eat chips or pop. It was a very awful time - I was always hungry. Not enough legumes? I don't know.

beksbks

Where were all your vegetables Shamus??

inkling

Can you point to a specific scientific study that proves that hypothesis?

Not at the moment, no. To be fair, you havn't either.

A vegan diet has an uber-healthy image, and I ask how you know that to be accurate.

Our body may easily adapt to changing lifestyles. After humans started keeping cattle a lactose gene mutated allowing adults to digest dairy products.

This is true. We can, and do, given enough time/generations, adapt to new kinds of food.

However, we cannot "think" or "will" ourselves to adapt. My interest is what is the optimal diet for
modern "model" of human, because that's the only "model" I can work with. I don't know what that
ideal diet consists of, but I'm not willing to assume that just because something has a "Whole Foods"
aura that it is necessarily better.

After all, lactose intolerant is how nature intended us to be.

Well, nature actually does not "intend" anything. All nature can "do" is create variation in a population and place that
population in an environment. At the dawn of farming/herding, the vast majority of humans we lactose intolerant. (actually,
worldwide today the majority still are) However, those few that DID have a gene that allowed them to process dairy had
a strong advantage over their "rivals", because all of a sudden (metaphorically) a whole new food source became uniquely
available them, with no competition from their lactose intolerant peers.

Hell, nature didn't "intend" for us to cook our food, but that turned out to be a really good idea. (Cooking breaks down food
in a way that much more of it's energy is accessible. Same with fermentation.)

The fact that many humans can live to old age on a Standard American Diet isn't necessarily a recommendation of said diet so much as a testament to the adaptability of the human body.

Agreed. I am not, of course, advocating the "Standard American Diet". (aside from it's effectiveness at dosing us with lovely
warm fuzzy dopamine) Americans, though being genetically diverse, don't live especially long or well, and I assume this has
something to do with diet.

However, this once again does not prove that a vegan diet will be an improvement by default.
The Japanese diet has much to be proud of, and it is obviously not vegan

Dairy... What in fact is the main cause of osteoporosus?

This is a new claim to me, and it strikes me as highly dubious.

Could you provide a reference, preferably from a less than batshit-crazy quack "doctor"?

[inkling]

shamus100

Vegetarianism is not healthy, IMO. Some people cannot digest meat, and for those people, it works. Dave, you could be one of them.

The question: Where were all my vegetables? They were grown in the ground, then consumed by me. I believe they were grown mostly locally, however, some were imported I"m sure during certain periods of time. (WINTER!)

beksbks

I believe the latest thinking on Osteoporosis, is lack of not only adequate calcium, but also vitamin D, and resistance exercise. Calcium can be got from many non dairy sources. Fish is a good one, and green leafy vegetables, beans and nuts. A little sunshine and we make vitamin D. Of course everyone is so afraid of the sun now, that's a problem.

beksbks

I was just teasing you based on what you said your diet consisted of Shamus!

Any Vegans on the Board?

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