Do some people not agree (physically) with a vegan diet?

[Mystic]

Yesterday I was at the organic grocer, when a man, around 50-55 years came up to me and told me I was too thin. After telling me to start eating better, he asked me if I was a vegetarian. I said yes (I am actually vegan but I couldn't be stuffed telling him that). He then told me that he had been a vegetarian for 19 years and it caused him lots of problems. Do you think that this was because he was probably eating nothing but vegetarian pizza and hotdogs, or do some people not agree (physically) with the diet? Sorry if this is in the wrong place.

[kriz]

He probably lived on junk or didn't bother to gather enough knowledge about how a well balanced vegetarian diet should look like. I was a vegetarian for most of my life- a very unhealthy one too. I used to smoke and didn't know much about nutrition in general. My low energy and depression had nothing to do with me being a vegetarian. The junk food living was the problem. I wish somebody had educated me early on how to be a veggie. Nobody seemed to have a clue, really, and you end up eating the worst of the worst. As a vegan I would have died of malnutrition!

[Roxy]

I would've told the silly old bastard to mind his own business. But that's me :p

Vegetarianism probably didn't agree with him as he was probably filling his gullet with an overabundance of cheese and milk :o

What's with some people! I mean honestly - I could never go up to some one and say "excuse me......you're too thin".

You should've told him you had worms :D

[Mystic]

LOL Roxy :D - Imagine going up to a fat person and saying - excuse me - you are too fat. Why is that rude, and telling people that they are thin isn't? Society is pathetic.

[Kiva Dancer]

I think it was just he was vegetarian in the 70s, when people didn't know much about nutrition and yea, it probably did make him sick on it.

Fortunately, this isn't the 70s and we have more information now about healthy veganism than his generation could ever dream of having, so vegetarians (and even vegans ;) ) can have healthy diets without the problems that haunted earlier vegos.

Don't let it shake you.

[Wildflower]

LOL Roxy :D - Imagine going up to a fat person and saying - excuse me - you are too fat. Why is that rude, and telling people that they are thin isn't? Society is pathetic.

I agree! I hate that.

You should have told him you were recouperating from some sort of awful disease.

My boss said he thought i must be vegetarain/vegan because i am so pale. i have red hair and freckles and am of scottish/german background. I will never tan. I asked him if he thought eating meat has something to do with tanning and he said yes...

I tried to explain the concept of melatonin but he didn't get it. :eek:

[PinkLogik]

I asked him if he thought eating meat has something to do with tanning and he said yes...

I tried to explain the concept of melatonin but he didn't get it. :eek:

LOLOLOL!!! ..... :rolleyes: Some people eh! Tsk! :confused:

[PinkLogik]

Banana, you're beautiful - don't let anyone tell you anything otherwise.

I can't believe how rude some people can be. as if it was any of his business anyway. You're right sometimes society sure is pathetic. What gives anyone the right to make such comments. I've had similar stuff said to me, and I often reply that it is because I was born 'graceful'.... :D

Besides I'm a bit of a shorty, with a size 4 shoe (UK size)....That's my excuse anyway.

[gertvegan]

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[Mystic]

Thanx guys - I feel much better. It just kind of creeped me out. If he thinks it is his business to promote anti-vegetarianism (let alone veganism) then he must have gotten terribly sick. But I take care of myself, and I don't need dead cows or calf's food to make me healthy :)

[feline01]

LOL Roxy :D - Imagine going up to a fat person and saying - excuse me - you are too fat. Why is that rude, and telling people that they are thin isn't? Society is pathetic.
You're definitely right Banana, I think it's horrible when any stranger comments on someone's appearance. It's sorta different if a very close-family person ask out of concern for one's appearance (if it is something changeable like weight) but strangers or acquaintances have no place making comments. You're beautiful, you're healthy, you're vegan so who gives a fig what this guy has to say :D .

[MzNatural]

I would never go up to a perfect stranger and tell them I thought their way of eating was unhealthy. It is really none of my business. If it was a friend and I was concerned I would have a casual chat with them before making an assumption. I would hope they would do the same for myself if they were concerned about me. I have had a few who have chatted with me when I expressed an interest in increasing my raw food intake to 100%. I did not have a problem with that I gave them a lot of information.

You can have unhealthy eating habits regardless of how you eat. I have seen, in the past, with some of my veggie friends/acquaintances. Some of them were so concerned with saving the lives of animals that they forgot to make wise choices in regards to their nutritional intake.

It might take some people longer to transition to a Vegetarian diet depending on their eating habits before making the switch. Changes can be very hard for people. One of the reasons people might fail at becoming vegetarian is insufficient knowledge about nutrition. When they become sick some might blame it on being vegetarian and not look into what they are eating.

[John]

Maybe he was genuinely concerned and had just had a few drinks before hand. Maybe he felt fatherly toward you.

I used to get pretty steamed when I was a skinny teenager and people would say I was skinny. I tried so hard to gain weight. Who would have thought that I would easily put on weight as a vegan?

[Camyle26]

Being thin doesn't mean you're unhealthy. How can you really describe "too thin?" Everyone is different and has different body types. It has nothing to do with being vegan... I get that, too. At work, people always say I am so skinny and pale because I don't eat meat.. and that I get sick because of it.

I had a COLD... everyone gets colds!!!! And I am thin, who cares?! People who eat meat are thin, too.. plus it's winter. who has a tan in winter?!

It's just that since veganism is DIFFERENT people blame it for various problems. It's ridiculous and it stems from ignorance... but you know what, who cares... let them be ignorant... and even rude, like in your case bananas (if he was in fact being rude, who knows what he had in mind right?! ;) you can never tell with people ) .... most people dont know as much about it because they arent involved.

proper nutrition is all that matters...vegan or meat eater.

[Camyle26]

in addition, to your original question, i think being vegan is a better diet, if properly researched, than a regular carnivore diet.... meat and dairy is NOT healthy by any means.

[Andie]

That would have really weirded me out too. He was probably feeling guilty because he wasn't a vegetarian any more. One of my friends who used to be a vegetarian or pescoterian has a problem with me being a vegan. She likes to talk about what cavemen ate. Some people...

[Mystic]

Andie that makes so much sense - they really feel the need to justify why they don't not eat meat/dairy (anymore) and need to preach to the world. I should have told him to go check his arteries!

[TheFirstBus]

People jump to conclucsions. Even if your a vegan you can still eat terribly unhealthy things. Oh and Andie ask you friend what they think cavemen ate before they picked up a club and killed an animal.

[veganfreak]

Andie that makes so much sense - they really feel the need to justify why they don't not eat meat/dairy (anymore) and need to preach to the world. I should have told him to go check his arteries!

this is probably my biggest problem when people ask me about veganism. I'm never preachy, I mostly just answer questions that people ask, but they seem to want to attack me personally to affirm their own choices and to keep doing what they want anyway. They project their discomfort on to me, I think.

[Haniska]

I agree! I hate that.

You should have told him you were recouperating from some sort of awful disease.

My boss said he thought i must be vegetarain/vegan because i am so pale. i have red hair and freckles and am of scottish/german background. I will never tan. I asked him if he thought eating meat has something to do with tanning and he said yes...

I tried to explain the concept of melatonin but he didn't get it. :eek:

Wow, that is how I got fired from my first job!
My boss says to me "You're so pale because you are vegetarian." I told him "You're Italian and I'm German, that is why I look pale to you."
To which he replied, rather victoriosuly "German huh? You related to Hitler?"
"No! Being as Hitler is from Austria!"

[Fuhzy]

I imagine some people would have a hard time with a vegan diet, since it is so high in fiber and soy protein. I know a few people who seem (or claim) to have trouble with too much soy intake, and I have had some troubles with too much fiber..

[Zan]

Since this man accosted you out of the bue, it's hard to decide what his motive might have been, but I have come across a certain type of omni who, when diet starts being discussed, claims that they were once veggie/vegan and how ill it made them, as a way of attempting to validate their argument. I don't believe them:) they are just argument lovers who can't stand not being right.

[Campbell]

people always say I am so skinny and pale because I don't eat meat and that I get sick because of it.

I had a COLD... everyone gets colds!!!! And I am thin, who cares?! People who eat meat are thin, too.. plus it's winter. who has a tan in winter?!


You're so right Camyle - people always seem surprised when I say I'm vegan, and tell me that vegans are supposed to look undernourished. To be honest, I did go through a phase when I was seriously underweight, mainly because of depression. But I'm a bit bigger these days. I try really hard now to keep up my weight because I don't want to perpetuate the myth that vegans are always skinny... personally, I really don't give a damn what I look like but I don't want to give people an excuse to eat animals. So many folks will try to justify eating meat by arguing that you can't stay healthy otherwise.

Actually, I think the reasons that people often get sick when they become vegetarian is because they eat more dairy. I'm not a doctor, but I've read somewhere that the calcium in milk interferes with the body's ability to absorb iron.

The reason I'm vegan is because I care about the suffering of animals. It has nothing to do with the supposed health benefits - nutrition is such a controversial subject and I don't pretend to know whether being vegan is necessarily always more healthy than occasionally eating a small piece of fish. That said, I can say what I see around me. Here in Australia, almost everyone eats meat and dairy, and lots of it, yet three quarters of the population are overweight or obese (second only to America, I think). As a population, we have astronomical rates of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and osteoperosis. Something is seriously wrong here...

So, some vegans are healthy, some vegans are not so healthy. Some omnis are very healthy, but plenty of them are obviously very sick - in mind and body. Like I said, I don't really care whether or not I can run a marathon anymore (though I could when I was 18). But I try to look after myself, if only to put an end to stupid comments like stickydate had to deal with.

[Huddy]

So, some vegans are healthy, some vegans are not so healthy. Some omnis are very healthy, but plenty of them are obviously very sick - in mind and body. Like I said, I don't really care whether or not I can run a marathon anymore (though I could when I was 18). But I try to look after myself, if only to put an end to stupid comments like stickydate had to deal with.
So true Campbell. It's all down to how you take care of yourself :) I feel and look more healthy now since going vegan, but I really try to make sure that Im eating the right balance of foods.

[paragonx]

I think balance is a key word not only in nutrition but life in general. There is so much food to choose from, it is really very easy to get a balanced diet. I feel great now. At first i was tired but after a careful review of my diet i believe it was because i wasn't eating enough. Now, i feel better than ever!

As far as the question: Do some people not agree (physically) with a vegan diet?

I am sure they don't, but the beauty of it, is that they don't have to and it can't affect you at all unless you let it.

-Ann