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sermolux
Sep 15th, 2004, 08:07 AM
Hi,
I'm what you would call a typical college student. My diet consists of fast food... and more fast food. I don't cook and have very limited funds. Despite this I very much want to be a vegan... I just can't support the way animals are treated. I just don't know where to start... Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

gertvegan
Sep 15th, 2004, 09:20 AM
Hello sermolux, the first thing to do is find a great vegan forum packed with like minded people with loads of info to share. Tick that off the list then, look no further. Then send for the vegetarian starter kit from Peta, click here (http://www.goveg.com/vegkit/) , I'm led to beleive theres info on veganism to. Then check out the uk vegan society website, here (http://www.vegansociety.com/html/) . You just happened to be looking at becoming vegan in their 60th anniversary. Why not check out the L plate vegan, here (http://www.viva.org.uk/guides/l-plate/vegan/index.htm) , even though uk site. You could search Amazon for many many cheap books or better still visit your library, I guess they can transfer books in if they don't have what you are looking for. I recommend being vegan by Joanne Stepaniak.

Stick around, digest and enjoy. :)

gert

gertvegan
Sep 15th, 2004, 09:23 AM
US and San Diego based vegans may know of something more local to help, ohhhhh CC.

Mystic
Sep 15th, 2004, 10:51 AM
I am a poor uni student too...and a vegan - and good news: you don't have to cook!!! Well, not much anyway. It depends if you are interested in nutrition or not. If you are not, you can easily live on white bread, baked beans, peanut butter, spaghetti with sauce from the jar, fries and crisps. But there is so much beautiful vegan food around, why would you want to do that?
Dhal is easy to cook, and so is rice - just go onto the food thread and check out the recipe section. You can have enough for a few days as well, so less cooking time, It is cheap too. That is why I live on it. Salads and veggies are easy to prepare - and (reasonably) cheap if you buy in season. Fast food is way more expensive, bad for your body, and for purely the convenience factor, in my opinion is a waste of money.

Fresh fruit, dried fruit and nuts are great snacks, as are rice cakes, pop corn and veggie sticks (with or without dips).

If you are into dessert - vegan ice cream, choccie, cakes etc are all readily available. And cholestrol free!

Most cereals are vegan, so you can have it with soy or rice or almond milk for breakfast. Vegan meats exist as well, like sausages and burgers, so if you are into that sort of thing, it is there.

If you want to have a healthy diet, it is important to base your diet on nutritious wholefoods.
- Choose wholegrain products over white flour products
- Eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables (a wide variety)
- Make sure you include beans/legumes as a protein source (or nuts/tofu/tempeh etc...)
- Include a daily source of Omega 3 fats (from flaxseed oil or walnuts) as well as moderate amounts of other good fats, like from avocado, olive oil and other nuts
- Snack on fruit, dried fruit, nuts, seeds, soy yoghurt, rice cakes and pop corn instead of fatty, salty crisps and chocolate bars.

TAKE A B12 supplement - this cannot be emphasised enough.

As far as the money for food is concerened, invest in a good cookbook, or become familiar with a style of cooking you like and experiment. I love Indian food, so I learnt how to make all sorts of dhals and veggie and bean dishes to go with brown rice and wholewheat couscous, and now my food bills are so cheap. Sure, I have to make the effort to cook, but before when I was relying on convenience foods, not only did I feel unenergetic and sluggish, but I couldn't buy anything else!!!!

You can always ask for advice here and recipes and ways to live cheap!!!!!

veganmike
Sep 15th, 2004, 11:03 AM
Sermolux, check http://www.vegsandiego.com/. Lots of useful information (i.e. Veganism on a budget). Contact them and go to their meetings, you'll get a lot of support.

gertvegan
Sep 15th, 2004, 09:26 PM
Have a read of Veganism in a Nutshell, HERE. (http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/vegan.htm) :)

eve
Sep 16th, 2004, 09:37 AM
check out this too, sermolux: http://veganic.net/Xtra.html

wuggy
Sep 16th, 2004, 12:57 PM
Personally, I spend far less on a Vegan diet than I did before, because I have ditched the 'crap' for more fruit and veg, nuts, pulses, potatoes.
I then use what I would have spent on 'crap food' buying Vegan make-up (for work, I don't bother much otherwise!), toiletries, books, and a few edible treats, like Carob bars.
Also, I have become interested in cookery lately, but am trying to eat more raw foods, which are lovely, and so quick to prepare - and of course you can get them virtually wherever you happen to be.
Anyway, good luck with going Vegan.

cowpie
Sep 17th, 2004, 06:16 PM
Sermolux, there's a great book entitled, "Becoming Vegan" by Davis and Melina. Check out the library for a copy. Ditto to all the other advice that has been posted here....
Good luck!

Mal87
Nov 3rd, 2004, 01:49 AM
are all B-12 supplements vegan? if not, any reccomendations for in the u.s.? is that the only vitamins i should be worried about taking? 'cause i'm not taking any currently, and i want to make sure i'm getting all the vitamins and stuff that i need. thanks!:)
mallory

ConsciousCuisine
Nov 3rd, 2004, 02:09 AM
Jarrow Formulas Methyl B-12 1000 mcg (1/4 of a tablet a few times a week) is the best one I know of...

Mal87
Nov 3rd, 2004, 02:51 AM
thanks!