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Giving up meat entirely is an option everybody has. Plant based diets are not only cheaper but healthier. I switched to a plant based diet in 2017 and it's the

Giving up meat entirely is an option everybody has. Plant based diets are not only cheaper but healthier. I switched to a plant based diet in 2017 and it's the best decision I've made in a long time. I feel better physically and mentally and feel better about the role I play on the planet too.

PostOnce 9y ago
Everyone who just switched to a new thing, vegetarianism, p90x, atkins, paleo, crossfit, standing desk, node.js, whatever, will tell you it's the greatest thing ever. You "switched in 2017", it's 2017 now. It would be more impactful if you said this 5 years on, and a lot of other people who'd been doing it for 5 years said the same. There's a lot more to not-plants than a steak, though. Fish and milk and eggs and cheese and shellfish and who knows. That is a huge variety of food, of flavors, of sources and methods for farming, giving it all up is arguably as-healthy, not healthier, and certainly much, much more boring. Also, harder to sustain, it's easy to find food with meat in it, plenty of places have few vegan/vegetarian options.
- cageface 9y ago
  Plant based diets are nothing new. We have plenty of data on the long-term health benefits of this diet from many studies and many populations. There are Olympic weight lifters, triathletes, world class tennis players etc that have followed this diet for years. It's true it can sometimes be hard to find vegan options, depending on where you live, but the situation has improved massively in the last few years. The number of vegans in the UK has almost quadrupled in the last 10 years, for example, with a corresponding rise in products, restaurants etc: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/news/number-of-vegans-in-britain-rises-by-360-in-10-years/ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/news/number-of-veg...
dizzystar 9y ago
Actually, moving entirely to plant-based diets is not feasible for everyone due to allergies and other food-related issues. For a certain subset of the population, getting the appropriate amount of protein and other nutrients would be nigh impossible since those foods could make them incredibly ill or kill them.
- cageface 9y ago
  Sure. Many people are allergic to meat or fish too. 65% of the world population is intolerant to lactose. There will never be a single diet that works every single human on the planet. But the overwhelming majority of us can not only live but thrive on a plant based diet. People also mistakenly put way too much emphasis on protein and not nearly enough on other nutrients. The average American, for example, gets way more protein than they need and not nearly enough dietary fiber.
  - dizzystar 9y ago
    My basic issue with sweeping diet generalizations is that it often excludes many people. As someone who has this very problem, I am confused by the strange diets everyone is on. If only I had that choice! (I generally dissociate myself from vegetarians and their ilk because I loathe talking about it) Regarding the topic of too much protein, nutrition doesn't quite work that way. You can't go tick-tock on your diet just because you have too much protein today; you will need protein until the day you die. You also need suger, fat, salt, and yes, fiber. It's also quite wrong to say everyone could be on a vegetarian / vegan diet because you well know that it's quite dangerous if it isn't followed correctly, and lo and behold, the average American is overweight. We can sort of blame the new trend diets for the lack of fiber.
    - cageface 9y ago
      Heart disease is the leading killer in the US right now, the risk of which is almost zero on a whole food, plant based diet. Your risk of cancer and diabetes also go way up on a diet rich in animal products. Vegans are also the only demographic with a normal body mass index, and obesity is linked to many other health issues. Which diet is dangerous again? Unless you're eating a really weird diet it's almost impossible to get enough calories but not enough protein. Eating a healthy vegan diet is easy and easier now than it's ever been with the wealth of information out there.
- anonymous5133 9y ago
  What percentage of the population suffers from these plant food allergies?

PostOnce 9y ago

Everyone who just switched to a new thing, vegetarianism, p90x, atkins, paleo, crossfit, standing desk, node.js, whatever, will tell you it's the greatest thing ever. You "switched in 2017", it's 2017 now. It would be more impactful if you said this 5 years on, and a lot of other people who'd been doing it for 5 years said the same. There's a lot more to not-plants than a steak, though. Fish and milk and eggs and cheese and shellfish and who knows. That is a huge variety of food, of flavors, of sources and methods for farming, giving it all up is arguably as-healthy, not healthier, and certainly much, much more boring. Also, harder to sustain, it's easy to find food with meat in it, plenty of places have few vegan/vegetarian options.

cageface 9y ago
Plant based diets are nothing new. We have plenty of data on the long-term health benefits of this diet from many studies and many populations. There are Olympic weight lifters, triathletes, world class tennis players etc that have followed this diet for years. It's true it can sometimes be hard to find vegan options, depending on where you live, but the situation has improved massively in the last few years. The number of vegans in the UK has almost quadrupled in the last 10 years, for example, with a corresponding rise in products, restaurants etc: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/news/number-of-vegans-in-britain-rises-by-360-in-10-years/ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/news/number-of-veg...

dizzystar 9y ago

Actually, moving entirely to plant-based diets is not feasible for everyone due to allergies and other food-related issues. For a certain subset of the population, getting the appropriate amount of protein and other nutrients would be nigh impossible since those foods could make them incredibly ill or kill them.

cageface 9y ago
Sure. Many people are allergic to meat or fish too. 65% of the world population is intolerant to lactose. There will never be a single diet that works every single human on the planet. But the overwhelming majority of us can not only live but thrive on a plant based diet. People also mistakenly put way too much emphasis on protein and not nearly enough on other nutrients. The average American, for example, gets way more protein than they need and not nearly enough dietary fiber.
- dizzystar 9y ago
  My basic issue with sweeping diet generalizations is that it often excludes many people. As someone who has this very problem, I am confused by the strange diets everyone is on. If only I had that choice! (I generally dissociate myself from vegetarians and their ilk because I loathe talking about it) Regarding the topic of too much protein, nutrition doesn't quite work that way. You can't go tick-tock on your diet just because you have too much protein today; you will need protein until the day you die. You also need suger, fat, salt, and yes, fiber. It's also quite wrong to say everyone could be on a vegetarian / vegan diet because you well know that it's quite dangerous if it isn't followed correctly, and lo and behold, the average American is overweight. We can sort of blame the new trend diets for the lack of fiber.
  - cageface 9y ago
    Heart disease is the leading killer in the US right now, the risk of which is almost zero on a whole food, plant based diet. Your risk of cancer and diabetes also go way up on a diet rich in animal products. Vegans are also the only demographic with a normal body mass index, and obesity is linked to many other health issues. Which diet is dangerous again? Unless you're eating a really weird diet it's almost impossible to get enough calories but not enough protein. Eating a healthy vegan diet is easy and easier now than it's ever been with the wealth of information out there.
anonymous5133 9y ago
What percentage of the population suffers from these plant food allergies?