What is a Vegan?
As more and more people are becoming health-conscious, vegetarianism and veganism are slowly becoming popular trends. But do you have any idea what the differences between the two are? What exactly should you consider when transitioning from vegetarianism to veganism? Or do you even want to be a vegetarian in the first place? These questions are in no way easy to answer. You might be surprised, though, to know that the answers to your own questions about veganism have always been with you.
Vegetarianism vs. Veganism
Vegetarianism is commonly regarded as a choice diet, whereas veganism is considered as a lifestyle, an advocacy even. This essential difference can sound uncomfortable, especially for people who just want to be in healthy shape. For the record, a vegan diet is different from a conventional vegetarian diet. In fact, many experts agree that the ideal vegan diet is even better than a vegetarian diet. Although being vegan requires a lot more discipline and perseverance, it will ultimately pay off when you end up having an even sounder mind and body.
The Difference in Diet
As a rule, vegetarians do not consume animal products of any kind: from meat and poultry to fish. Usually though, their staple diet includes dairy products such as eggs, cheese, and milk.
The vegan diet is a lot stricter. Aside from being prevented from consuming animal products of any kind, they are also not allowed to eat its by-products. Because of certain nutrients that are difficult to come by in a vegan diet, vegans are supposed to take amino acid and vitamin B12 supplements to ensure a well-balanced diet. Both nutrients can be found in eggs and milk, which vegetarians are allowed to consume. Aside from eggs and milk, vegans are not allowed to consume honey as well. In other words, think of veganism as a more restrictive vegetarian diet.
The Difference in Philosophy
Contemporary vegetarians usually make the switch because of health reasons. It is a well-established fact that a vegetarian diet prevents the risk of hypertension, diabetes, renal disease, obesity and many other problems. Some people would even go as far as to say that it can help prevent cancer. This is because of the lower intake of saturated fat and cholesterol, among other nutrients that, when taken in excess, can cause harm to the body.
Although health is a primary tenet of veganism, it is not the only focus of vegans. Because many vegans consider veganism as an advocacy, they shed light on a variety of issues related to animal consumption as well. For instance, most vegans are also animal rights advocates. As a matter of fact, most of them are known to refrain from wearing any animal-based product—from cosmetic to clothing wear. Some of them are environment activists who are making a stand to protect nature. To many vegans, being healthy is just a value-added benefit of their firm stand to protect the environment.
The noble advocates of veganism, however, should not be construed as exclusivist. If you believe just as strongly in protection of animals and the environment, you can choose to be vegetarian before transitioning to veganism.
The Slow and Sure Steps to Being a Vegan
With your young knowledge of what veganism is all about, you must be curious: how exactly do you transition into veganism? Becoming a vegan is not something that you can do overnight, although admittedly there have been a few successful stories of overnight vegans.
There’s no single best way to go about the road to veganism. Before anything else, it’s best if you try to find out more about veganism: from the ideal vegan diet to the advocacies behind it.
Knowing similar people who are vegans as well will be of great help. Easing your way into being a vegan will be much better if you know the positive impact veganism has done to vegans themselves.
Finally, here are the three ways by which you can concretely transition into becoming a vegan:
- Start a diet plan. For those who are just starting out, a diet plan doesn’t just outline the dishes that you’ll be consuming, but also the nutritional contents of each dish. Make sure that you have well-rounded meals.
- Consult a vegan dietician. Because transitioning requires knowledge of how nutrition works, you might as well find a reliable dietician with expertise on how to make a healthy vegan-based diet.
- Check out vegan food options around your community. Eating out, especially when you’re with your loved ones, might be a problem. That’s why you should start checking out restaurants that offer vegan dishes.
As a rule, vegetarians do not consume animal products of any kind: from meat and poultry to fish. Usually though, their staple diet includes dairy products such as eggs, cheese, and milk.
The vegan diet is a lot stricter. Aside from being prevented from consuming animal products of any kind, they are also not allowed to eat its by-products. Because of certain nutrients that are difficult to come by in a vegan diet, vegans are supposed to take amino acid and vitamin B12 supplements to ensure a well-balanced diet. Both nutrients can be found in eggs and milk, which vegetarians are allowed to consume. Aside from eggs and milk, vegans are not allowed to consume honey as well. In other words, think of veganism as a more restrictive vegetarian diet.
The Difference in Philosophy
Contemporary vegetarians usually make the switch because of health reasons. It is a well-established fact that a vegetarian diet prevents the risk of hypertension, diabetes, renal disease, obesity and many other problems. Some people would even go as far as to say that it can help prevent cancer. This is because of the lower intake of saturated fat and cholesterol, among other nutrients that, when taken in excess, can cause harm to the body.
Although health is a primary tenet of veganism, it is not the only focus of vegans. Because many vegans consider veganism as an advocacy, they shed light on a variety of issues related to animal consumption as well. For instance, most vegans are also animal rights advocates. As a matter of fact, most of them are known to refrain from wearing any animal-based product—from cosmetic to clothing wear. Some of them are environment activists who are making a stand to protect nature. To many vegans, being healthy is just a value-added benefit of their firm stand to protect the environment.
The noble advocacies of veganism, however, should not be construed as exclusivist. If you believe just as strongly in protection of animals and the environment, you can choose to be vegetarian before transitioning to veganism.
The Slow and Sure Steps to Being a Vegan
With your young knowledge of what veganism is all about, you must be curious: how exactly do you transition into veganism? Becoming a vegan is not something that you can be overnight, although admittedly there have been a few successful stories of overnight vegans.
There’s no single best way to go about the road to veganism. Before anything else, it’s best if you try to find out more about the veganism: from the ideal vegan diet to the advocacies behind it.
Knowing similar people who are vegans as well will be of big help. Easing your way into being a vegan will be much better if you know the positive impact veganism has done to vegans themselves.
Finally, here are three ways by which you can concretely transition into veganism:
1.Start a diet plan. For those who are just starting out, a diet plan doesn’t just outline the dishes that you’ll be consuming, but also the nutritional contents of each. Make sure that you have well-rounded meals.
2.Find a vegan dietician. Because transitioning requires knowledge of how nutrition works, you might as well find a reliable dietician with expertise on how to make a healthy vegan-based diet.
3.Check out vegan food options around your community. Eating out, especially when you’re with your loved ones, might be a problem. That’s why you should start checking out restaurants that offer vegan dishes.
