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Reasons for going vegan/vegetarian?

Anyone care to share their reasons for going vegan or vegetarian?

The horrors of factory farming and animal rights in general.

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In the beginning it was strictly for health reasons.  Then I saw the PETA video narrated by Alec Baldwin.  Needless to say, the cruelty that occurs in factory farm/slaughter houses ensures that I will never go back to eating meat again.

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Health reasons - humans' digestive systems are not meant to digest meat/dairy products. Milk is for baby cows. Plus all the hormones and antibiotics in meat/dairy. Yuck. I had sky-high cholesterol before I was vegan even though I was eating a "healthy" diet of lean chicken breast, skim milk, nonfat yogurt, etc. Plus I have bad acid reflux (which unfortunately hasn't been helped by veganism, but that was the big reason I went vegan - to see if it would help.) Once I became vegan, I never wanted to go back. My body feels so much "cleaner" now.

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I had always been against eating red meat growing up, just looking at the blood made me sick and gives me a sick feeling just talking about it....i had experimented with being a vegetarian for a long time and one day just decided..slightly for health reasons...mainly for my love for animals and my 2 adorable puppies.

a funny add on...my small dog pheobe...her 2 back legs look like little chicken thighs....how could you ever eat one again?? haha i always bring that up..

i have a strong love for cooking and i love being creative with the beautiful natural colors of fruits and vegetables....i really do feel ucky to look down at my plate and seeing 5 different colors...knowing that this is how it should be for everyone. I have nothing against my family members and friends who eat meat..but i really do wish i had people around me who felt the same way...instead i do a lot of reading about the food industry in general. I would suggest the book "food politics" to anyone who wonders why the u.s is so caught up on HAVING to eat meat and meat products....its because the USDA was scared to tell them that its bad for you in order to keep from lawsuits.

well..havnt i just mumbled on....have a great day!

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The horrors of factory farming and animal rights in general.

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I recalled the cries of a pig being slaughtered that kept me up one night. After that, I decided I wanted to live a life as harmless as possible.

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Vegetarian: At first, health reasons.  But it also became apparent to me that I was never a big meat fan to begin with -  I only really liked chicken, and the whole idea of bones in meat just grossed me out - it was as if I couldn't stand any reminders that I was eating an animal.  Later, I educated myself about animal cruelty and factory farms  >:(

Vegan: Similiar.  I was vegetarian for a short time, and I became horrified at all the cheese and eggs I was eating.  I have a family history of high cholesterol/heart disease, and I was worried that my vegetarian diet may be not be too much better than the omni diet it was replacing. Later I found out about the linkage between the meat and dairy industry and how they keep cows pregnant.  I should mention that I'm still in the process of transitioning - there are still a bunch of iffy things that I do eat, but I'm most of the way there, and I'm a lot better in what I prepare at home than what I eat when out. 

Also, minor reason for going veg*n, I wanted to lose some weight - I'm not overweight, but I have a few pounds that crept up on me that I feel no reason to keep around.  And, yeah, that hasn't happened - damn you vegan cakes!!!!!!!!  :D

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For me, going vegan began with a bet.

My omni BF challenged me to a month of Veganism hoping I'd lose so that he could finally get me to play a Sony Playstation game with him...(video games make be batty, I can't stand them)... I'd been an "on again, off again" vegetarian for some time and was intrigued by the idea of a diet without dairy as well, so I took the bet.

I went into it "whole hog", as it were, reading and viewing everything I could get my hands on to more fully understand the moral/ethical issues behind the Vegan lifestyle and how to cook for myself for month. Needless to say, I was sickened, horrified and infuriated to the core by what I learned regarding the treatment of farm animals. I was one of those people who'd realized that the meat industry was bad but had NO idea just how bad...nor did I have a clue about the indescribable horrors of the dairy industry...  The first week of the bet was filled with a series of soul-deep reckonings, reality checks and deep, deep sorrow & tears for the animals I'd seen in the videos and those I knew were out there still suffering needlessly for a greedy and selfish public with their heads in the sand.

It's been two years since the bet ended and I have continued on with my Vegan diet. I can't imagine a situation or an amount of money that would make me put meat, eggs, milk, cheese, etc. back into my body...

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I'm ovolactovegetarian, purely from personal preference. I prefer non-meat foods to meat. And I never did like fish.
Another reason is simply economic--we're on a fixed income which is very low, and we're broke, since tutoring is spotty at best. Tofu is like $1 a pound here, while the cheapest meat or chicken is closer to $4--and can go as high as $15 for expensive steaks etc. Lentils, beans and grains are all like 60cents a pound!
And of course health. When I did some research and I realised that a person of my size, age and activity level (sedentary) only needs 2 oz or 50g of protien a DAY (not per meal!) a lightbulb went on over my head. The magic weight loss I imagined has not materialized but I can deal with that. I do feel better in myself on a veggie diet.
I have no moral stand on my diet, though I respect the ideas of others, but veganism isn't a place I'll be going. We're all on our own path, and are at different points on that path. My DH doesn't realise it, but he's practically ovolacto these days as well, since I cook at least 3 veggie lunches a week, and he doesn't usually have more than milk or yogurt, juice and toast for supper.
I love to cook and experiment, and Veg Web is a fantastic resource!

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My triglyceride level was through the roof when I had a routine blood test, and it scared me vegan for about a month.  When I retested at normal levels, I just didn't go back to meat... and I went back to far more dietetically reasonable levels of other animal products.

I am committed to it for environmental reasons.  I also feel morally better about it for anti-cruelty reasons, but that's not my main push-- just a beneficial side effect.

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My reasons for going veggie pretty much run the gamut!  I originally started in late high school because I didn't really like meat, and thought I could lose a few pounds by eliminating it from my diet.  For quite a while, I was a very unhealthy vegetarian...eating a lot of salad and french fries  :-[.  Anyway, over the last 10 years, I have slowly educated myself on vegetarian issues, especially in the last 2 years.  I now claim environmental concerns as my main reason for being veggie.  I get as many things as I can locally (many thanks to my AWESOME local health food market).  Anyway, as I delve deeper into this lifestyle, I constantly find new reasons that make me see the importance of a veggie lifestyle.  Like many others have stated, factory farming is a horror!  It's absolutely unconscionable and I have to believe that most meat eaters are simply ignorant of it.  I however, am not vegan.  I don't drink milk or eat eggs, but I do occasionally eat cheese and honey. 

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health reasons. lactose intolerant.

and eating meat never really made me feel too great. i always felt very heavy and weighed down after i would eat meat. like it wouldn't digest or something. like i had a rock in my stomach.

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Health Reasons.

I was not aware that my system was not 'normal' until a neighbor woman was ranting about her husband.  Apparently if he ate meat he wasn't regular and it annoyed her.  I wondered if that would calm my own intestinal issues so I went veggie.  My tummy troubles lessened and I was shocked.  My then (now ex) husband demanded I eat 'with the family' because he did not like me eating veggie and I was sick for days.  I have yet to look back.

I went vegan 5 years after that because I could.  I was living alone because my daughter was only home every other two weeks.  So the two weeks alone, I was vegan.  The two weeks she was home, I made things with dairy or egg.  Finally I had a massive tummy upset from cheese & sour cream.  I gave up all dairy and went mostly vegan over 4 years ago.

Even not being diagnosed I know that I have IBS, Lactose Intolerance and other food allergies. 

But all this aside, after so many years, the idea of compassion for all living creatures is also there.  I was just telling my daughter this morning, as we saw a dead fawn on the side of the road, that just because there are 'billions more out there' does not make the loss of one easier.  I asked her how she would feel if that was a kitten or baby.  I just hope she thinks about it a bit.

Amusingly enough, when I first found vegweb, 9 years ago, we really did not chat much about animal rights.  It was too hotly debated and not conducive to chatting about all the other questions or ideas that go along with new veggies learning.  Its interesting how this board has changed.

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for me it is largely sustainability. it takes so much less natural resources to produce plant than it does animal or animal product.
that said, i am pretty against the modern food industry in general.. i just try to lessen my consumption of those products by only eating plants.
i also am a big tree-hugger, so all the enviro stuff. and health. really, i have never come across a reason for being veg that i don't agree with...

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8. We spend 1/3 less on food than we did when we were eating meat, dairy and eggs.

While I wouldn't say that was one of my reasons FOR going veg*n, it's definitely one of the benefits.  I haven't really figured out how much my grocery bill has changed exactly, but I know I'm spending less than before. 

Growing up, I used to think that vegetarians were all rich and spent SOOOO much money on fancy stuff like tofu  ;)  I don't think there are really too many kinds of meat cheaper than tofu and beans (although I'm certainly no expert on meat prices).  Sure, soy milk is more expensive than cow milk, but I love it to death, so I'm totally willing to spend the extra dollar!!

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I went vegetarian when I was six for animal rights reasons...I have always been the "crazy activist kid!"  I went vegan about three years ago as an experiment over spring break and never went back.  I used to have really terrible seasonal allergies (pollen, etc.), which have virtually disappeared due to the removal of dairy from my diet.  I was an "unhealthy vegan" for a while, eating a lot of processed junk, etc, but am now very conscious about what I eat and where it comes from.  The environmental motives are equally important to me.  Everyone said that I would revert in college due to "peer pressure," but I am going into my junior year and could never imagine going back to being simply vegetarian or, even more horrific, omni.  :)

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Vegetarian because meat is not awesome. I was ovo-lacto for 8 years and did a vegan trial run about two years ago. I loved it and haven't gone back. Moral issues came into play after the switch to veganism and are incentive to stay on course.

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I haven't really figured out how much my grocery bill has changed exactly, but I know I'm spending less than before. 

I get that a lot from the people working at the HFS where I shop.  They say they'd like to be vegan, but they can't afford it.  I think that's because they're looking at the price of all of the pre-packaged transition foods.  Once you start cooking from scratch or near scratch (using tofu or tempeh) it gets to be a lot less expensive.

I wanted to become vegan for a while.  I tried it once, but I actually felt sick if I didn't eat meat everyday.  I would be distractedly hungry at work if I didn't have meat with lunch.  The swtich to vegan was difficult, painful, and in the end a failure.  A few years later I tried it again.  I wasn't vegetarian first or anything.  I just woke up one day and was vegan - it really wasn't a choice, it just was.  This time there was no stress and no cravings.  I had chicken and cottage cheese in my refrigerator that I had to toss.  I kept food that had dairy in it in case I was as suddenly not vegan, but it never happened, so I donated the food to a shelter.

That's the same way I gave up soda.  I was adicted to Diet Coke.  I tried to quit for three months and had a headache the whole time that quit with my first failure sip.  Then, one morning, I was drinking my soda and my body just decided to quit soda.  I didn't have a single headache.

That's one of the reasons I don't think people should beat themselves up if they "cheat."  Life is fluid and the choices you make lead you towards a goal of how you want to live.  If you continue in a forward motion, your mind and body may not be caught up to each other in any given moment - but they do all catch up eventually.

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I can't really pinpoint a reason as to why I've gone vegan. I was actually a vegan about 2 years ago, but I fell off the bandwagon (started a new job, wanted to fit in and went out drinking almost every Friday night, which led to ordering wings, nachos, all that bad stuff for you), so anyways.. I remember feeling very "light" when I was vegan, almost like I just felt lighter and healthier. So yeah, like I said, I fell off the bandwagon, and recently I have seriously become interested in giving it another go. Only, this time, it'll be for life! I just, I dunno. For me, personally, it feels "right", like it's my path to become vegan. Sounds weird, I know, but I can't really describe it. I mean, it's not that I condemn people from eating meat (I don't appreciate them pushing their meat eating habits on me, so I don't push my veganism on them), and yes, I LOVE animals and have a profound respect for them, but to me, it's so much more than just that. It's just realizing that everyone and everyTHING on earth and in life is intricately entwined with one another, and I'm just a small part of it. I find that so amazing. So yeah, I become vegan because for me and my life path, it just feels like the right thing to do.

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I feel sorry for the animals. I look it at it this way I don't want  anybody eating my flesh why should I eat someone else's.

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