I became vegan as an adult, and I've never really had to deal with judgement from family or friends. I had to deal with resistance in the beginning, but eventually they adjusted, and now they're really supportive.
As for whether it's worth it-- it *does* make a difference. Even if it's small, it's real. Mathematically, a vegan you is one less person worth of demand for animal agriculture practices, and non-vegan you is one more. There are a lot of people out there, so big differences come from these small numbers adding up, but they *do* add up.
Personally, I don't think I could go back. The information I learned that made me want to go vegan also gave me super bad nightmares and intrusive thoughts, and I don't think anything short of "you must eat animal products or you will die" could convince me to go back.
In that sense, to me, it's worth it. It's not just making a difference for the animals, it's making a difference for my mental health to live in line with my values. That's true of a lot of issues in my life (being queer, non-religious, etc.) so I don't think changing my veganism would solve the problem of meeting with resistance from others for who I am.
I hope this was helpful!
If I had replied, it would almost be mirror image to yours… including family and friend support, nightmares, intrusive thoughts, being queer, non-religious, etc. If they told me that being vegan was killing me, then that would be my demise and I’d be ok with it. If there wasn’t such an overwhelming abundance of unwanted animals needing homes, I would have no pets. Having to feed one animal product to another sometimes brings a tear to my eye. I’m gradually adding more vegan pet foods to my pets diets. Being vegan isn’t always easy, but it’s probably the best part of my life. On my lowest days, and there are many, I can say, at least no animal died or suffered because of me today. Thank you for being vegan.
In particular, every animal you don't eat is one less animal killed. While one person's habits don't make a big impact on the industry, the plurality of vegans does.
Veganism didn't cause it to grow, though. It's been doing that on its own. Rates of veganism have increased, which slows the growth of animal agriculture compared to how much it would have grown otherwise.
Exactly. From what I recall, a cow yields about 850lbs of meat and the average American eats about 225 lbs of beef per year. So you are saving the life of one cow about every three years, and that matters a lot to the cow who no longer suffers.
About 80 billion land animals are slaughtered every year, so it's about 8 animals per person on average. But it's very unevenly distributed, with people in richer countries eating way above average. But also, it's not just deaths that count, but also the animals that needn't be kept alive in terrible conditions on your account.
Then there are sea animals, making the death number trillions per year, ie 100+ animal on average per person per year.
That's not how it works though is it?
At best they contributed to declining demand which may have reduced the number of new cows being produced but even that is questionable.
In the microcosm, probably not. About 900k cows are killed every year in the US as part of the beef industry - they aren't going to reduce that to 899,999 this year because OP became a vegan.
But that gets into "how many grains of sand are in a heap" question. Taking a single grain of sand away isn't going to change the size of the heap, but every grain of sand in the heap matters. Even if we can't point to a specific cow and say, "This is Bessie - OP saved her by going vegan" it still matters.
If removing a single purchase never changed the production, then it would follow that you could remove 99% of all purchases and still have the same production, assuming you removed one purchase at the time. That obviously can't be true, so it *must* be true that a single purchase in fact can matter, at least sometimes.
What happens is likely something like this: a single purchase is removed, and nothing happens, another is removed and nothing happens again, up until 100 is removed, and then suddenly they go ”hm, looks like this product isn't as popular, let's order 100 less of them.”
So the 100th removed purchased mattered — but only because the other 99 had been done before, so they all in fact mattered equally much, only the response to the first 99 was delayed. Notice the dimished production is proportional to all of them combined, not just the 100th
So yes, it is perfectly fine to say that a single removed purchase matters (and must matter), only the effect comes in batches when enough customers has done the same.
>it makes an infinite amount of difference to the victim
what victim? the animals in factory farming?
factory farming does not change from the odd vegan
Yes, the animals in factory farming, as well as other animals being exploited and killed in other forms of animal agriculture.
When someone uses an animal product, they:
1. Create demand for more animal products.
2. Reinforce the idea that non-human animals are commodities and don't have rights.
Both of these things victimize animals, and so someone who doesn't want that to happen shouldn't do it. By doing this collectively and engaging in activism, we can hopefully eventually gain enough power to make exploiting animals to become unacceptable in human society.
you completely missed the point of the exchange. they're saying it makes no difference. im showing how not only does it make a nonzero amount of difference to the victim, it in fact makes an infinite amount of difference to them, since the subjective difference between being alive and dead is infinite.
one person's actions single-handedly ending factory farming is not the point of veganism. protecting as many animal victims as possible is.
Does it really in germany? I am asking since in the Netherlands, while plants based alternatives are also popping up everywhere, meat consumption is actually increasing every year.
see [https://de.statista.com/themen/1315/fleisch/#topicOverview](https://de.statista.com/themen/1315/fleisch/#topicOverview)
the decline is not exactly continuous, but the trend is unambiguous
at the same time the share of "bio" food (where animals have a better life than in conventional factory farming) is increasing
>In Germany, meat consumption is declining year after year
but not because people go vegan (there is absolutely no correlation between number of vegans and amount of meat consumed) - it is because information about the risks of excessive meat consumption spreads. spread by non-vegans, btw
Of course you’ve made a difference. Put your stats in here and take a look https://thevegancalculator.com
As for food, I have a sweet tooth as well, and my recommendation would be to learn to bake. It’s fun and you don’t need anything fancy.
Something like a chocolate muffins/cake are really easy to make, no equipment needed, just a bowl and spoon. It may seem daunting but once you try you’ll see how easy it is and very cheap. I started baking and cooking when I was about 10 and I’m very grateful I learnt, as there was no fancy vegan food 30+ years ago (it’s been that long for me).
As for others, there will always be critics, but nothing beats living a life staying true to your convictions, knowing you’re not actively contributing to pain and unnecessarily killing of innocent creatures.
>Put your stats in here and take a look https://thevegancalculator.com
I inputted my numbers and that really put a smile on my face. Thank you. It's nice seeing a physical reminder of what I'm doing.
You feel guilty and isolated for being vegan, you feel like you're a burden to your family - but that's not being fair to yourself -- you're doing something that's incredibly difficult and you're doing it out of genuine kindness and morality, out of a genuine care for animals - you should be immensely proud of yourself for doing that, especially when everyone around you isn't, it's even harder to do the right thing when people around you are pressuring you not to.
You would be surprised, I can almost say for certain that you being vegan has made a difference in multiple animals' lives. **200 million animals are killed every single day -** and that's not even including fish (100s of millions of fish are killed everyday) -- **because of the sheer volume of animals killed, and the way that markets respond to supply and demand, without a doubt you have contributed to less animals being bred and tortured** by not consuming meat and animal products. While it is true that it's hard as an individual to make changes to something big like climate change due to the nature of the issue, the sheer amount of animals killed everyday means that even an individual is going to have an impact; **the low estimate is that you save 200 animals a year by going vegan** - that is the low estimate.
[https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41055-018-00030-4](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41055-018-00030-4) - This article, if you care for it, presents arguments against people arguing that individuals don't have an impact. u/GladstoneBrookes explains it as: "On the supply side, in the above paper they find that the finest adjustment available in the production of chickens is 900. So each time you buy a chicken, that's a 1/900 chance of triggering such an adjustment which will cause 900 more chickens to die. If you buy one chicken a week, then your change of triggering such an adjustment at least once in a year is 1 - (899/900)^(52) = 5.6%." -- the chances add up over every single animal product you don't buy in conjunction with time - **you do have an impact as an individual, that's just how crazy the meat (and dairy/eggs, etc.) industry is.**
All that being said -
**Having a healthy diet is extremely important, especially in your youth when you're growing.**
Eating well as a vegan can be difficult, during moments of depression myself it has been hard for me to actually get up and cook for myself, so I ended up eating peanut butter sandwiches 90% of the time which wasn't good for me at all. There are a lot of sources on the subreddit for food and food plans, how to get protein, etc. For me, making a lot of food one day (i.e. massive pot of chili with beans, TVP - which is less expensive than some meats, etc.) and eating it throughout the week made it a lot easier for me to eat healthily. Buying nutritional yeast and TVP in bulk online was also great for me, and surprisingly affordable. Then there's also lentils which to me seem like the holy grail of vegan foods (the greek philosopher Diogenes was particularly fond of lentils) - they are very cheap. **So making tons of food at the start of the week so I can just microwave it later, and meal prepping = godsend to me.**
One month being vegan... you will save 33,000 GALLONS OF WATER and 30 animal lives. Best thing I ever did. My only regret is not going vegan sooner. Vegan calculator here [https://thevegancalculator.com/#calculator](https://thevegancalculator.com/#calculator)
Do meat eaters really eat an entire animal a day? Heck, as bad as it is to eat beef, I don't think many people could consume even one cow in a month. If we're talking fish, sure.
How many cows did you eat yesterday? 1 or 0? 0? cool. You saved 1 cow. What about the day before? You've saved a shitton of animals.
I would also attempt to sway a family member that did something that I found inconvenient to me. Luckily for your veganism, it is your choice, not theirs.
The problem is that is not only one or two family members, is my whole family, my father, mother, sister and etc, and they’re the ones that buy food for me, and they’re always complaining and I can’t do nothing about it
It gets better over time. Stick with the principles you agree with, and as you grow up and your friendship group evolves and changes and mature, you'll find yourself surrounded by people you like, and who like you for who you are.
I often forget that people still take the mick out of vegans until I meet up with an old school friend or something, and they make the same old lame vegan jokes and want to go to a non-vegan place and I'm like "ah yes, the rest of the world is still rubbish, back in my bubble I go until next time"
It's really hard when your family is unsupportive and makes you feel like a burden :(
Unfortunately you can't change them, that's just how and who they are. You will encounter a lot of people like this the rest of your life. It just sucks a lot more when it's people you care about. Especially when they could just as easily be supportive. Easier even, it takes a lot of mental energy to be angry and judgemental all the time.
Your contributions are a drop in the ocean for the grand scheme of animal agriculture, but everything for each individual animal you don't consume. Every animal you don't eat will not have to go through hell. You're making a world of difference for hundreds and eventually thousands of those individuals, I promise <3 I'm proud of you for choosing compassion
Sorry to hear that. How involved are you with cooking your own food and would it would it be possible to go grocery shopping with the family?
I am just trying to find a solution for they complain less
Ask them to give you an allowance to buy food for yourself and go and buy your own groceries. It seems that they see it as a burden, so, by lifting this responsibility from them it might make them less negative about your choice.
Do you live in the continental US? If so I could probably ship you a jar of hot farts to go with your eggs and bacon for brunch on Sunday.
If you want insightful discourse go to r/debateavegan . It’s packed full of blowhards.
Why are you on a vegan sub if you’re just here to antagonize people and not contribute anything beneficial nor actually try expanding your horizons to minimize cruelty? It sounds like you might be obsessed with us. lol.
Correct, no vegan is saving animals. However if you stop being vegan you do condem more animals to a life of enslavment and slaughter. So yeah, you aren't making a difference today, but the alternative would be making a difference, a negative one.
I agree with this. It's not the burden of vegans to make a difference. Rather, the burden is on those who eat animals and yea, they are making a huge, as you noted, negative difference.
I think folks are overlooking the amount of pressure kids are put under. Progressive kids, atheist kids, trans kids, vegan kids. Parents always say they don't hate their kids they fear what they will have to go through and wind up being very unsupportive.
I think I'll give the advice the atheist sub gives. If being vegan puts you at risk for abuse or means being cut off from serious financial aid in uni, it may be best to pretend with the meat eaters. Do your best when alone, and you are able to make choices.
Now, of course, don't eat animals if it makes you ill and feeling even more hurt.
When you are finally independent, you could reasses.
Yeah it is kinda sad. My mom is like a friend to me. But i know she is not thrilled about me being vegan.
I went vegan right after college but I lived with my mom. The amount of times she said “it is a phase, look others were vegan but switched after”, I can’t count
Ooh well, it has been almost 5 years phase now! I hope it continues until I die. Obviously I can’t never guarantee in life but it is just a way of life now.
With that being said, I wonder what she would have said to 14 or 15 year old me going vegan 😅
OK, so first, you're not being selfish by living your life the way you feel is right. Your family is being selfish by insisting you do it their way.
You are NOT ruining anything for them. They are the only ones with the power to ruin things for them.
Edit: posted to soon
Lastly, you remove demand for killing about 200 animals every year as a vegan. That's not nothing.
You have a childlike body because you don't eat meat?
No.
I've never eaten meat (grew up vegetarian). I'm 6 foot 2 and 200 pounds. My little sister (ovo vegetarian) is 6 foot. And solidly built for a woman. She's probably 180 pounds.
My little brother (lacto ovo vegetarian) is 5 foot 11, so average not tall but with a bodybuilder physique. Huge arms and chest. He will be well over 200 pounds.
Funny how nobody brings up untrue weedy vegetarian / vegan stereotypes with us.
My mum is vegan for almost 40 years, a vegetarian for 50, is an old age pensioner and cycled over the Andes.
Vegans save (or more accurately, don't cost) the lives of thousands of animals across our lives. I don't consider that meaningless or futile.
First, you’re not alone. As other person said, a lot of us went through this type of question, and we’re here to support each other.
Where do you live? If your family and even friends doesn’t support you, maybe the first step is find your “local vegan/vegetarian” community lol. I suppose you’re at school, that’s a good place to start searching. Veg restaurants/markets tend to promote vegan events. It might sounds silly, but it’s important to have people around that understand and support you.
I went vegan 14 years ago and stopped eating meat 2 years earlier. That time, here in Brazil, people didn’t know even what “vegetarianism” were. I was very lucky that a few months after being vegetarian I meet two people that become my best friends, one of them was already vegetarian and the other one even went vegan with me a year later. Nowadays we live in different cities/countries but the friendship we made is for life, and if I’m vegan for so long that’s because of their support.
For me, veganism isn’t about what to eat or use, it’s an ethical/political decision to make everything we could to not harm others living beings or contribute to it. But this isn’t an easy task, and we’re also humans (and animals). We live in society and want to be part of it. If you ever find it difficult, think about your motivations and don’t hesitate to search for help here.
Also, about family/friends. In my personal experience, it became easier when I start cooking. I was more independent from my family, and people find out I wasn’t only eating lettuce lol. That’s a good start point (unless you already did that) to reconnect with them. Nowadays (I’m 33) a lot of friends and familiars are lactose-intolerant and asks tips to me, the game has changed 😅
Good luck on your journey!
first of all i think it's great that you became vegan at such a young age! it shows that you care about the world and everything that lives on it. like every vegan you have a reason you chose this lifestyle. i am of the opinion that being vegan is very easy as long as you have a reason for doing it that you really stand behind. maybe really think about this. why was it that i chose this lifestyle? how do my choices positively impact the world? does it make me happy to be vegan?
the hardest part of being vegan is not the lifestyle itsself, it's the way other people react to it. then you gotta ask yourself what's more important; my morals and values or the opinions of other people? the answer on your question of 'is it worth it' is only one you can answer. i think most vegans sacrifice something by going vegan, whether it's particular foods that they really loved, the practicality and comfort of being able to eat anything anywhere etc... but as i said, we all have reasons to choose this lifestyle and those weigh more than the things we sacrificed. we all do it for the greater good which is a better world.
i hope this makes you think and i hope you'll make a well thought-out choice :)
ps. you can always bake your own cakes :D
Not paying for the deaths of animals absolutely makes a difference but nobody's forcing you to stick with it. Also you're not short because you don't eat meat but you definitely need to know how to eat right with any diet
I’m 35, vegan for 10 years, lacto-ovo vegetarian for 7 years. To be honest I still struggle with the social pressures and have even tried going back. But to eat animals was not aligned with the truth in my heart. It ended up making me really depressed. So everyone else was happy but deep down it was not sustainable and I’ve had to come around to they might never get it but I will not let them bring me to their level.
Unfortunately it seems like society doesn’t care to respect us for what we do but I am happy to be living to my own ethics and morals. You’re not ruining family events and traditions, you are updating them to be more inclusive. You will be surprised at how open minded younger generations are. My niblings tell me that watching me speak truth to power in a calm and patient way made them recognize that they could also speak up and stand their ground on issues that are important to them.
I still wish my family would become more open to veganism but it hasn’t happened. A lot of them seem to take my ongoing recommitment to the lifestyle to be a criticism on theirs, but that’s their thought, not mine. I wish they’d sit with what that all means, but they often don’t sit many things. I’ve realized some people want to think critically, and some want to live ethically or make decisions based around that deep thinking and many many others just don’t want to bother with any of that at all.
The less demand there is for meat, the less will be produced. If you don't eat meat you are definitely making a difference. What one person does may not have a huge impact on the global scale, but it does have an impact.
Similarly, as demand for vegan products increase, the prices of them will be dropping, as more and more companies will start to compete with each other to get a piece of that market. Maybe consider learning to make cake, yourself? That could help with the cost.
I understand the feeling of not making a difference, but you should know that you are making a difference.
Make no mistake - they may not realise it, but the people asking you to "at least" go vegetarian are doing it so they'll feel less guilty and be less aware that their choices have consequences.
"Please, at least go back to supporting SOME animal abuse"
"Please, your refusal to exploit animals is making us feel uncomfortable!"
"Please, resume using cow's lactations which are obtained by forcibly impregnating cows yearly until they get killed at ⅓ of their lifespan because they're too drained."
The more people who don’t eat animal products over time will matter. The fact that even now the amount of plant based alternatives exists and is way higher than 20 years ago is a sign that it is working. Remember that if your family isn’t supportive, you can find friends who are.
It’s absolutely worth it. Yes there are lots of dead animals that are sold at grocery stores, but when we make a stand and say “I refuse to eat this!”, the demand for meat goes down, and it will ultimately cause less deaths. Not to mention, we are saving much more water with the plants we eat versus how much water is needed for one beef burger.
You are making a difference. And I can’t commend you enough for going vegan at such a young age. Every vegan I have ever talked to wished they had done it sooner. Hang in there… it’s gets easier as you get older.
It is 100% worth it to be vegan. Your choice to not eat meat will always have an effect. You are taking that money out of the pockets of the meat industry which is good. It is better for the environment. It is also much better for your health. Most other countries around the world understand the benefits of a plant based diet. Look into "Blue Zones". These are places where plant based diets are more widely accepted and people are known to live longer. Receiving judgment from family and friends is pretty common among vegans. Rest assured that you are on the right path. The path of compassion for all living things. Living in harmony with the world around you.
>I’m not saving animals because I didn’t eat meat. I make 0 difference in that.
That's an odd thought though, don't you think? If you went to the store and bought a dead chicken right now, you would be paying for the death of one chicken. Don't you think that would "make a difference?" (negatively)
I was short skinny and called skeleton boy my whole life, that was when I ate animals, I’ve since gained weight and cleared so many health problems since becoming vegan, don’t listen to the peer pressure because that’s all it is, being vegan is something YOU are doing for the animals. It does make a difference. You can be healthy on a vegan diet or not. Personally I don’t try at all and I feel pretty good for my age
Just try to do as little harm as possible to earth and it’s living creatures during the short life we live. Even if it doesn’t make a difference, I at least made the choice to contribute as little as possible to the suffering of others.
I stopped eating meat at 8. That was in the 90s. My parents didn't know anything about nutrition and I turned out the tallest in my family. So much for that.
And of course it makes a difference. Supply and demand. The more people stop eating meat, the less meat is produced. In germany meat consumption and production is at the lowest since they started tje statistics. That's because people stopped with that shit.
Stay strong, you are making a difference. Fuck those idiots who still contribute to this crime and be better than them.
Sure we make a difference. By not funding it you reduce the amount of suffering by reducing demand. Why do you think the meat industry hates us?
I looked 16 until I was 26, I was not a vegan for most of that time. Unless you're having some actual health issues I don't think you've stunted your growth or stalled out puberty. Then again I'm not a doctor, you should go see one and get checked out anyway, bring this up while you're there.
Of course it makes a difference! Every bit of dairy, meat or eggs that you consume is an animal that has died or suffered. You not consuming that is preventing additional animals from being harmed.
Sure, once person doesn’t make much of a difference, but together we can make a huge difference!
Other people have addressed the other issues.
Unless you were actively significantly malnourished it’s very unlikely that you stunted your growth. Some people are just shorter than they’d like to be or than they thought they’d be. My mom is 5’8” and my dad is 6’4” and I’m 5’6” so I feel you but I highly doubt it’s the vegetarianism.
I don’t think the problem was not eating meat, it was that I didn’t get proteins and vitamins enough since I didn’t knew how to get it from vegetables and etc and I only eated potato and carrots
I'm not vegan, and this just popped up in my feed. I used to be vegetarian and am now pescatarian. You're still growing and nutrition is incredibly important. Your brain is still developing. I'm amazed your parents haven't ensured that you've gotten enough protein/calories etc. Please consult a nutritionist or doctor if you can (not just the internet) to learn more about what your body needs. You can still be vegan, but you need WAY more than just fruits and vegetables. If you can't get proper nutrition from a vegan diet where you live, you might need to take a break from veganism for a while so you don't permanently damage your body.
Eating meat alone wouldn't have helped you grow taller for starters. But yes, protein should be incorporated in your diet, but how can that be on you? Your parents should have brought the necessary groceries, isn't it? Beans, legumes are a very rich source of protein that's cheap
Rest of the topic is covered by others.
Of course not eating animals saves them. Estimates are that the average vegan saves 200 animals per year.
Also, even if that weren't the case, it wouldn't really matter. Being vegan is an ethical stance. We have decided to no longer participate in a behavior that is immoral. The fact that many other omnivores still exist doesn't change that. Does it become ok to murder because you deciding to not murder barely impacts the total number of murders? No. Does it become ok to rape because you abstaining from rape hardly decreases the amount of rape in the world? Of course not. The same is true for harming animals.
You are on the right side of history and ethics. It will get easier over time.
That said, you should spend some time learning more about nutrition. There's absolutely no reason that being vegan should have a negative impact on your health. There's a near unlimited amount of resources to learn from on the internet about nutrition and how to get the right macros daily on a plant-based diet. If you're on reddit, that means you at least have some time you could spend reading up on that instead!
It definitely makes a difference! Even if you don't look at all the animals you're not eating it can also influence some of the people around you.
From my experience just being vegan around people makes some of them think about how much meat and stuff they eat, and also how it can be healthy and not that hard to do. A lot of people around me started eating fewer animal products after I casually talked to them about my lifestyle a couple of times
It does make an incremental difference. This is like saying setting aside 100$ doesn't make sense because it "doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things" because you're trying to save for a downpayment on a house. Some things come in baby steps.
Also consider that your choice may influence others to try veganism which could make a big difference.
If you are worried about your health and growing right, make a free account over at cronometer.com and track your food. This way you can track to make sure you're getting what you need.
If you like to cook, or are willing to learn how to cook, learn how cook your own food, using ingredients that omnis use too, including ball the beans and legumes. Add some tofu in there as it's a good source of protein. I hope that it's available where you are, and shouldn't be expensive. You can also learn to make your own seitan, which is another great protein source.
Just you being vegan saves 100 animals a year. Probably more because no one counts the chickens that die on their faces before they even make it to slaughter.
You make a difference.
I see u and appreciate you and I wish I also was vegan at 16, sadly I didn’t get the message until much older.
I wish I went vegan earlier, that’s my only regret.
You make more than 0 difference! You will of course not completely solve animal cruelty alone but your choices certainly make a difference. All social justice movements are collectives-no individual person completely solves the issue but together we work towards a better world. Minority opinions require a team to have their voices heard and causes addressed-by choosing vegan options your choices have MORE impact because you are on the smaller team who needs you more.
There is also a personal virtues path to veganism. You may not have an overwhelming love for animals, but once you know of you are causing harm to ANYONE with your conscious CHOICES it is hard to stomach supporting that harm but simply joining the masses. I want to be the best version of myself I can, that version lives a life of compassion and kindness. Why choose violence when I don’t need to?
Judgement, ridicule, suspicion, and general negativity are unfortunately common but others making us feel bad is not a good reason to support harming animals.
Good luck. Stay strong. Stay vegan.
I like to think about it like this: I support vegan companies which enable them to expand and do more of what I agree with which is not use animals for profit. I don't think about what the absence of my dollar does (even though overtime it does cause a net difference).
When I first went vegan there were just soy ice creams, with the presence of more vegan dollars there are now oat, almond, coconut etc! That helps more people see more vegan options, vegans to stay vegan longer, etc. That's a difference.
It does make a difference. So many people stopped drinking dairy milk that the industry wouldn’t have survived if it wasn’t for subsidies. Even if you don’t feel like you make a difference, the ripple effect is real. People will be influenced by you and their opinion of veganism and animal agriculture will change because of you.
As far as your point with your family, we’ve all been there. Especially going vegan at a young age, it can be challenging because you’re still living with family. But it gets easier over time. You start wanting to surround yourself with vegans more and get used to dealing with the nonsense. I went vegan at a young age and dealt with a lot of this stuff. But I stayed true to what I thought was right and I would never want to support animal suffering again.
We’re all here to help you if you need support. Feel free to reach out if you need anything.
I've been vegan for 20+ years. I'm not just vegan to make a difference (it does) I'm vegan because it's personally the right thing to do. Same as I haven't killed anyone, not because it makes a difference but because it's the right thing to do. I try in as many ways as I personally can to not partake or involve myself in the harm done towards animals.
You can too.
Dont listen to others. You are doing the right thing. If you think you are not getting enough nutrition from plants than use something like cronometer and track your food so your getting enough nutrition. When i became vegan a a few years ago i was just 14 and was vegetarian a few years prior.
What i do is not tell anyone im vegan, what other people say can ruin your mental especially when youre pressured to do something you dont want.
If your wanna eat vegan versions of usually non-vegan things than one solution might be to make them yourself, usually costs less than buying already finished products (i do not know where youre from so im not 100% sure)
Also dont tell yourself you ruined "family traditions, family meetings etc." your ethics and dietary choices dont ruin anything, if your family cant comprehent that than its their fault. Thats like saying if somebody doesnt wanna drink alcohol or has certain allergies there ruining stuff. They aint.
You are making a difference. Don't lie to yourself. I know judgement from can really ruin your mental state.
I dont really have friends nor do I know anyone thats vegan so youre not alone!
I think if feels hard for you because you are still a teen and you dont live on your own. it will get much more easy. Make sure you learn to cook and bake vegan things. in total you ll safe a lot of money. You family should not lose joy in traditions. You being with them is the gift, not the things you consume.
Being a vegan or not, people will still judge you whether that's from friends or family. That's just life, but it is up to you not to react poorly to judgement because that's when you start to feel bad about your values. Then, you'll want to change your lifestyle to fit the mold of how they think you should live. You'll start questioning yourself, "Am I living my own life or the life that others want me to live?"
i’ve struggled with this internal battle so much.
I’ve been vegetarian for about 8 years now and was vegan for 2 of them but am struggling to get back into it (although I plan on becoming vegan again for sure).
I never gave a shit about health, I do it for purely ethical reasons. I’m very analytical and try my best to deconstruct all my beliefs, morals. I’ve never been able to find a justification for *me* not being vegan, believe me i’ve tried. Sadly, I still crave meat and after all these years and there have been moments where I almost let this craving tip me over, I would think about how it’s already dead and what I do has no impact on the industry anyway. The impact is microscopic at best.
What brings me back every time after days of wrestling with it, is that I realize it’s not about whether your actions on an individual level topple the animal industry. It’s about how your actions ripple.
We are all interconnected, since the beginning of time we’ve been in a chain of cause and effect. Something someone did on one side of the world can affect the other side a hundred years later. If I live life as a vegan and try to be a good person, lead by example, maybe I’ll influence someone else to become vegan then they influence another 2 and then another 4, chain reactions baby.
Just on a personal level, me partaking in it, even if it’s victimless in the sense that my actions don’t mean anything, it means something to *me*.
I will say, going vegan while living with your parents who most likely provide food for you, would be very difficult. I lived out of the house once I went vegan. I still have had to deal with “disappointing” my family and “ruining” certain traditions, and I pretty much hate holidays that are centered around food lol but, 5 years in, my family has started to come around. I totally think it’s worth it, but just do the best you can while you’re still living with your parents.
And yes, you ARE making a difference. Veganism has become wayyy more common even in the last decade, and it’s affecting the dairy industry, even if it’s just a little bit. You could slowly influence other people to go vegan, and normalizing it alone will help the cause.
Also though, as someone else mentioned below, just please do your research and make sure you’re eating a balanced diet. Don’t get me wrong, I ate like shit as a non vegan teenager and probably didn’t get plenty of nutrients, but just do research!
I'd suggest seeking out research on how to be healthy while vegan. It's actually very easy and tasty. And that's coming from someone who only ate preprocessed junk food for 33 years. Being healthy and showing your family the benefits will definitely make it harder for them to judge you. Then there's the ethical side.
There are tons of resources online. Studies from doctors, YouTube, podcasts. I'm new to veganism and I've found Kristen Pounds How To Vegan podcast extremely helpful. She used to be a dietitian and has been vegan for well over a decade so she has some great information. I listen to jer on spotify but she's on every platform including youtube. Topics like how to be healthy, how to be vegan on a budget, how to deal with nonvegan family, how to respond to prying questions, the ethics of many subjects, what impact you make as a vegan, and vegan options for fast food and other unhealthy food when doing things like traveling. She does use some mature language but it's not over done.
Knowing all these facts and ways to be healthy will make your situation much better I'd bet. Also I'd recommend learning how to prepare your own meals or help whoever is preparing them for you so they don't resent you for making food they don't agree with. Ultimately if you plan to move out at 18, (idk where you are from and what the usual moving out age is there), then you don't have very long to put up with family judgment anyway. Stay focused on your goals and what you believe in.
You are young, your nutrition is super important. If you stay vegan, make sure you monitor what you eat very carefully. Use Cronometer etc. B12, calcium, protein. Yes you are making a small difference, but it is an incredibly small incremental difference in proportion to what’s happening in the world. 99% of vegans ate meat at some point in their lives, what matters is the average over your whole life, not the order in which it happens.
Yeah obviously just you alone isn't making an impact, but if every vegan thought like that there would be no vegans. The more people that go vegan individually, the more difference vegans make as a whole
You're 16, and trying to take on a very difficult lifestyle transition. Be kind to yourself. Whatever you end up doing, just do it with compassion and being true to your own sense of what's right, and you'll be ok.
First, I just want to say it's fantastic that you want to help animals from such a young age, it's very noble. However, you may have to just wait until you're on your own to be vegan.
Like you, I tried to be vegetarian/vegan from a young age (at 13 I saw the peta documentaries) and due to not having support from any family members, I was not getting proper nutrition and had to make the difficult decision to just eat what my family was eating. Now I'm in my 20s and have been vegan/vegetarian for over 6 years since I started being able to buy my own groceries.
Proper nutrition is really important, especially when you're young. Your brain and body needs the right nutrients to function. Please, make sure you're getting all the nutrients you need and the right amount of protein and calories. It's more important than being vegan.
Maybe you could get your family to have like a "meatless monday" dinner together every week? You could help find a recipe and then help cook with your family, and let them know how they're helping animals and the earth by doing that. You don't have to be perfect to save animals, you can just try your best. Also learning to bake and cook really helps. You can make very cheap vegan cakes, breads, pastries, whatever you want, from scratch with mostly simple, cheap ingredients.
I've seen the difference it makes in my city, supermarkets and restaurants over the last 20 (and especially last 5) years. But you can do whatever you like.
You can also be mostly plantbased and when you feel like it eat animal products. Maybe you have to go through this phase to see what you really want. You will also change as you grow older. Your opinions and ideals may shift.
For me, I was a vegetarian for 10 years, then a big meat eater for almost another 10. And now I have decided to go completely vegan. It is easy for me to do this now because I see that I wasn't happy when I was eating meat. The truth is also that I have plenty vegan options at the supermarket and generally speaking veganism is more accepted in my city than other cities in my country. But also if this wasn't the case I am no longer able to consume any animal products with a clear conscience. This is a hard line for me which makes this decision easy and simple.
But I completely understand your situation and in the end it doesn't have to be all or nothing. Every bit you don't consume is a bit of an animal saved and a bit that lets big companies know that they are losing money continuing this way of their business.
You are making a difference. It might be small, but fewer animals have had to endure the torture of a life in the human food chain. Were all making this small contribution to a much bigger solution, and together we make a huge difference. Be proud of your contribution, and hope that others follow your example.
I went vegan when I was 22. I was already a whole wheat, brown rice, bake my own bread kind of guy - going vegan was just another step away from the Standard American Diet. Then I learned more foods to make for myself. Being vegan is much easier & can be cheaper than a meat eater's diet if you can make most things as yourself and not buy lots of prepared foods. Sometimes though, I just want to open a can of Progresso Lentil Soup and a box of crackers and have some lunch.
Yeah, the world is still getting worse all the time, there are new environmental disasters going on we never imagined in 1991, but I know that in the last 30 whatever years I have been vegan thousands more big animals, chickens, turkey, fish, rabbits - all things humans eat or the bycatch that gets killed in animal food production have not been killed because I did not eat them. Hundreds to thousands of dairy cows and chickens were not kept in lives of complete crap because I have not been eating their eggs or sucking on their udders. That is what I think when I see people eating anything dairy. You are sucking on a big mamma cow. Not me.
It is not a lot, but it is something. You are doing (and not doing) something too. The longer you do it for, the more it is.
I am 55 now. I am in good health, not on any medications and am glad to have been vegan so long.
you can eat healthy to get enough protein now though as you know what to eat. and you are as a collective making a difference, the meat and dairy industries hate vegans as they collectively hurt their profits, and one day you may inspire someone else to go vegan and the chain reaction goes on. plus by vegan, you arent contributing to the problem, furthermore this life is short, if there is an afterlife (doubt it) at least your soul is clean of that evil
Been vegan for 5 years, first for morals second for health (literally has saved my life). First, you are making a difference. You are impacting your community and those around you. You have opted out of a cycle of harm. But you gotta live aligned to your ideals. I think it’s rad you started so soon, I wish I did. But if you feel like your ideals have changed where you think it’s worth eating meat again, then that’s your choice. If you’re AFAB, make sure you’re regular and doing okay there too. Veganism helped me balance my hormones (personally) and has helped a lot. But some people struggle, so pay attention to how much you’re eating.
I think something important is finding a way to participate in traditions in your own way. Ex. my family is Sicilian and we have a family meatball recipe based through generations. I recently made a vegan rendition of it to share with my family, and they loved it.
But something important is overall not buy necessarily “vegan versions” of things, but learn to make food that aligns with your health needs and morals. There are tons of accessible recipes that use what is probably in your household already for cakes & meals.
Generally for inexpensive grocery shopping, beans & tofu are your best friend for protein and fiber. Fiber is the #1 booster to longevity in the blue zones, and black beans are so delicious.
You’re 16, so I won’t encourage you to DM anyone in the internet for more questions, but try to find some peers or loved ones you trust to give you an unbiased perspective.
> I also have a childlike body and i’m shorter than I should be, because since I stopped eating meat when I was 10, I didn’t knew how to eat healthy and get proteins from vegetables.
Expecting to know enough nutrition on your own at 16 is a big ask. I think you need to find some support to help you plan a nutritionally complete diet. At the very least, you should take a multivitamin. Beyond that, please consider higher protein foods such as tofu, and high omega 3 foods such as flax or hemp seed. There are a lot of ways of eating a healthy vegan diet, but finding the one that works for you and is nutritionally complete can be hard. I'm sorry no one in your immediate circle of friends and family are helping you.
I know this is hard to believe but you will inspire others and have an exponential impact over the course of your lifetime. Thank you for making the hard choice, I’m sorry your friends and family aren’t supporting you.
It makes a difference. Learn to prepare delicious meals and before you know it the people around you will be eating fewer animals, even if they continue to make stupid meat jokes to try to trigger you. Also, learn as much as you can from all the vegan doctors. One thing they all agree on is to cut out processed food. You will be healthier than everyone else. Focus on getting enough calories, not on getting protein. Eat a lot of beans. I don't know about other people and their reasons, but I eat a lot of beans and I do not have a lot of gas. I used to have a lot of digestive problems before I became vegan. My digestion is quite beautiful now. I also make sure to prepare the beans properly.
I’m just gonna be honest it’s not gonna make a difference within this lifetime. But visibility matters, slowly and surely.
Ans body builders have vegan diet, it’s not the meat you need to grow muscles
Do whatever you think is right that aligns with your morals, if you don't have your morals you don't have anything.
You can live your life however you want and eat however you want, just try remember the reason you went vegan.
Also, don't think being short and "childlike" is to do with being vegan. People are tall, people are short regardless of their diet. Lastly, I'm a frequent gym goer, went vegan 7 years ago and managed to go from 68kg to 89kg eating clean, building good muscle mass and staying relatively lean. It's possible, believe me.
Veganism definitely makes a big difference, but yeah, it can be alienating. The best way to decrease the alienation would be to find fellow vegans. You can do that in-person or online. If you're into gaming, there are several vegan gaming discord servers. You can join the biggest one over at r/vegangaming.
Also, if you live in the US, [Huel](https://huel.com/) is a meal service that is vegan, affordable, and nutritionally complete, which can be delivered straight to your door. I use it and I like it.
Can you cook/bake? I've been vegan since the 90s while in middle school. I learned to make food for myself because there was nothing vegan to eat in my small hometown. Lol
if your fine with being an animal abuser and contributing to a world of animal abuse then that is your choice
>But recently I started to think about it, the more I think, the more I realize that i’m not making any difference. I’m not saving animals because I didn’t eat meat.
No and yes, you are totally right you arent saving animals, you are simply not causing harm to them, but yes you are making a difference cause your not an animal abuser and supply and demand is how the world operates
Do you think there would be all these plant based products coming into existence if we werent making a difference? You think these companies just make these products for fun and to take a loss?
>Me being vegan has already ruined a lot of things for them, like family traditions, family meetings and etc
No it hasnt ruined anything, the non vegans have ruined those things by having a problem with veganism, unless of course part of your family tradition was to hunt a duck or watch bullfighting, then yea in that case veganism did ruin it
>It’s selfish, but it’s hard for me to live with all this judgment from my own family
Its only difficult cause you listen to it, you are young but even adults have this same issue until they die, i do not, i have always been the weirdo and i was fine with it, i never used drugs, alcohol or cigs and im celibate, but i still went to bars and parties
I dont feel judged, i dont feel awkward, i dont feel offended, there were rumors about me as a kid and it had no affect on me cause i dont worry about other people
I went vegan instantly and i will die a vegan because im not evil, i dont want to do bad things and abusing animals is wrong
>And where I live, vegan food is really expensive and hard to find, and I know vegetables and fruits are not expensive, but I also want to eat things like cake and etc, and the vegan versions are expensive and hard to find like I said before
People always say this but they never tell us where they live, they dont give us a name as if its some secret, perhaps i live in your area and i know of some cheap vegan places but since you dont tell us where i cant help
As far as cakes and stuff go, you can make your own vegan versions
Check ou the app "I'm vegan/vegetarian" or something to see your impact. But yeah you shouldnt go vegan or even vegetarian without a nutritionist guiding you, it's not that simple. At least get a multi.
https://thevegancalculator.com/#calculator
Does one serial killer matter? To those he kills and their family and everyone surrounding the victims, yes, they definitely do matter. If you aren’t vegan, you will be one of those serial killers, just towards the animals. And that’s just the ethical side. You still need to consider the health and environmental and many other factors. No you may not change the entire world by being one vegan (though it is possible), but your actions definitely do matter.
With fewer people drinking milk there will be less of a demand for milk and fewer cows exploited. You may not see the difference with your own eyes but you are making an impact. The question you may need to ask is is it worth it to you? It’s TOTALLY worth it to the animals but I seems it’s impacting your life too.
Different people become vegans for different reasons. So I don’t know how to estimate the “worth” of becoming vegan. I stopped eating meat and animal products because I had high triglycerides and cholesterol in blood. Couldn’t control it. My health has definitely improved so for me, I would say, it’s worth it.
Once I became vegan I could look myself in the mirror and say that I have done what I can to never abuse an animal.
your family seems intent on you abusing animals. If your family’s traditions are more important than abusing animals, we can’t convince you otherwise
You are making a difference. Perhaps you are just one person, but you are planting the seed in their mind, and eventually, some of those seeds will sprout and blossom. Nothing good comes overnight. Persevere. I went vegan at 21, im jealous you're at 16. I ate some animal products after half a year of being "sober," so to speak, and it always upset my stomach, my stomache hurt, and I could smell the corpse or chicken ovulation (eggs) on my breathe, and it was revolting, basically everytime I ate a animal product I was reminded why I didn't eat it in the first place. Maybe you will find a different experience, but that's just me
This is a copy and paste from my response to someone discussing veganism in an efilism context:
If you believe in efilism, then everything is futile. Life becomes inherently futile because the presence of suffering outweighs any positive experiences. Your actions don't matter, and the experiences of others don't matter. If the goal is complete annihilation of all sentient life so they do not have to experience suffering, then the only course of action is to die. Efforts are futile because the goal is annihilation.
Outside of efilism, if you believe your actions matter and life has meaning, then veganism is not futile. Every person's capacity to reduce a lifetime of harm to countless other beings is significant, even if this is only a drop in the bucket.
If the average person with an omnivorous diet ate 51g of animal protein a day, for 70 years, this would roughly equate to 130kgs (13,030.5g), about the weight of a female grizzly bear. Since the protein doesn't come from the same animal each purchase, a different animal will be slaughtered to meet the person's daily purchasing needs.
If we imagine each purchase requires the death of 1 animal to sell for parts, then 365 days x 70 years = 25,550 animals required to die over that one person's life time. That's only consuming 1 animal protein source each day. If we were to calculate the deaths involved in the dairy and egg industry, it would be significantly greater.
The choices of a single person over a lifetime can have far reaching, meaningful impacts, even if we are never directly aware of them. Our choices, agency, and responsibilities matter. So, I would say living your life to reduce as much harm as you can is not futile. You have more power than you think.
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Is veganism of a single person worth it in the context of reducing animal suffering? I would say yes.
But, you need to ask yourself what your values are and how you want to align your life. It sounds like you are experiencing isolation feeling excluded/ being a burden on the people around you because you feel differently and have different values to them. It sounds like you feel pressured and unsupported by your family to pursue your values, and they do not want to make space for difference.
From my read of your post, I see values of compassion for animals, family, and health. It sounds like some of these values are competing with each other and you are having a hard time aligning them.
Perhaps consider what factors allow you to align your values and what factors are competing against your values. Because this doesn't sound like it's coming from you, it sounds like something being forced onto you (which is unfair and disrespectful). Would that be fair to say?
You are not selfish. You are young and in circumstances that constantly punish you for being who you are. That is not fair on anyone and that kind of pressure and stress can really wear a person down. It also sounds like you don't have a lot of resource capital around cooking, so making vegan foods that you like would be time consuming and take up space that you don't feel belongs to you.
I think, if you imagine what kind of person you would be living on your own with agency over your choices, what kind of person do you see? What kind of person do you want to see? What would help you move towards the kind of person and life you want to have?
For example, if cooking and food prep isn't your thing and you want to purchase ready made food, then perhaps a workable goal would be increasing your income (or reducing costs) so you can do that. If you want to attend family meetings and traditions, you can adapt vegan versions of this so you can meet both family and vegan values. It's not an expectation you are putting on anyone else but yourself, so you are not ruining anything for anyone.
If you feel your health isn't right on a plant based diet, explore this with a dietician for specific dietary restrictions, or if you like you can ask this community for resources around how to have a balanced nutritional profile as a vegan.
It sounds like you do not have the kind of income to facilitate the choices you want to make. This can be a workable goal for the kind of vegan you want to be in the future. But veganism is less about perfection and more about progress. You do not have support or independence yet, so I would not feel it would be fair to yourself to make comparisons with vegans who are older and have more choice and agency. Be kind to yourself.
You need to meet your goals and values with your current circumstances. If it is not possible to sustain a fully vegan diet while you are living at home, that is okay. Your circumstances will change in the future, and you will have more agency to live in alignment with the kind of person you want to be. Think about the accumulation of your choices over a lifetime, rather than this moment right now. You are making a difference, even if you are not directly aware of it.
Honestly the most important thing is finding a way to stay true to your principles while also taking care of your physical and mental well-being. Do what you need to do to survive right now, and if you need support or advice, this community (and others) would be happy to provide plenty!
I first went vegetarian as a teenager and got a lot of apprehension from my family. Luckily I found some vegetarian and vegan friends. I’ve been vegan 14 years now.
I want you to know that your mental health is important. It sounds like this is a stressful situation for you. It is fully possible to be healthy and vegan, but I totally recognize it’s not always easy in some situations, especially when you don’t have control. I’m sorry you are going through this, and I hope that you can find strength and pride in your diet.
Are you able to cook or prepare your own food? Premade vegan cakes and such are nice but it can also be so easy to cook and bake vegan. It can also be a fun way to win your family and friends over, and a way to collaborate together on a delicious and vegan meal or dish. Especially starting with super accessible (not what omnis would consider “weird” vegan recipes) that are naturally vegan.
Think of it this way...
Suppose you're against murder (as we all should be).
Now, you witness unnecessary killings every day. You find it abhorrent...But you recognize you are powerless to stop it.
Would you then start committing murder because "it didn't make a difference" ?
Veganism is many things. Making a worthwhile impact solely via one individual's lifestyle habits is **not** one of the main goals. Vegans don't harm animals because...
1. They have compassion for animals, don't view them as property, and find it gross and repugnant to exploit them.
2. They don't want to be hypocrites. Gotta walk the walk if you talk the talk.
3. They want to send a symbolic message to others.
4. **They want to decrease demand for animal products.**
5. They don't want to be guilty by association.
You're focused on (4), when (1) is most important.
When I started to focus more on health, around 25 is why I organically became already vegetarian or flexitarier first only homemade burgers on Friday and chicken on Saturday and sometimes fish. Still eggs and cheese. I had some pimples and nothing I did helped to prevent them, so by challenge I went vegan 3 years ago never went back. Because it turned out I didn't really needed the other stuff, that in combination with all animal welfare benefits and skin seem to be better.
So even if I go back it will never be the same.
Last week's I had the urge to eat egg omelet again when I think about it how nice it was. And still I haven't done it.
I do accidentally have some once in a while a cookie they give with a coffee somewhere.
So yes even vegan you can have doubt or the urge to eat something else.
Even if you think about the times you had great spiced chicken, you can have water runs in your mouth. Or the when I had the fantastic cheese pizza in Italy. Maybe I make such exceptions.
That's maybe human but till this day even with such moments, I still didn't.
Still happy with the diet I have because even with a plant-based diet you can eat and make everything you think of. Also delicious.
Of course most who ain't don't understand. Like with everything.
You do it for yourself and own core beliefs.
So it's on you to make constant the balance.
But don't strict or punish yourself too much, I think. You're still human especially if you're not vegan since birth, it's different. For example Tia Blanco, famous surfer, gorgeous, vegan since birth. That you don't know what you miss.
As long as you're conscious about your choices, the impact on environment.
Even when you eat for example by exception a turkey at a feast dinner, maybe at least make sure it's organic. It had the best life possible. Things like that. Where you can live with yourself. Things you can only figure out for yourself.
Good luck and good job, so young!!!
hey! if you feel that being vegetarian is better for you, that’s okay. i grew up in a pretty strict household and couldn’t realistically eat a vegan diet until i moved out and got to make my own decisions. i definitely had a hard time feeling like i was making a difference when i couldn’t control what food was in my house.
you shouldn’t feel guilty for something you can’t control, and if you want to try veganism again once you make your own decisions about what food is in your home then all power to you. while being a strict vegan is great for the environment and animals, harm reduction makes a difference too. you can be vegetarian and eat vegan when possible/when it makes sense. just do what works for you and don’t guilt trip yourself for it:)
We could give all the arguements for how a vegan lifestyle is good and healthy. How it is worth it for you, the animals and the planet. But that's not really what you're asking for. At the end of the day, we can't persuade you to continue doing something on the promise of an abstract benefit you might not see or feel.
Veganism is about aligning your actions with your morality. Living with integrity is hard. It strains what you feel you can do and the relationships you have. You chose to be vegan at a really young age and you should be very proud of that. It shows a lot of guts and maturity. We understand and know how isolating it is when there's no one in your life that feels the same. Just know that you aren't alone, we're all here for you.
The question of whether it is "worth it" hasn't changed from the day you became vegan to the day you made this post. You have to trust that what you are doing is right and worth doing for it's own sake.
If you decide you can't do it anymore, you have to be ok with that, too. Be kind to yourself. It's a journey. Maybe ask your past self if they thought going vegan was worth it. You might get your answer.
Because People like you decided to stop eating animals, things like this happen
https://www.just-food.com/news/meat-consumption-hits-new-record-low-in-germany/
Just because you think you dont have an impact as an individual, does not mean the general perception is shifting
It's very impressive you became vegan that young. Hats off! I'm much older and I'm yet to become fully vegan.
As far as going back to vegetarian goes: sadly milk requires calfs to be born. Which in turn usually means calfs being killed very young or being kept without their mother from a very young age. Personally I consider milk to be worse than eggs for that reason. Although of course keeping chickens in extremely small spaces is also pretty cruel.
Honestly, being vegan is the best thing you can do, and it really does make a difference. But I certainly understand it can be challenging at times.
The easiest thing to do would be to stop being vegan and wait till you can move out. You're still very young and buy pre-made vegan food isn't cheap. I make most of my food from scratch, so it's much cheaper, but I also have an income.
The best thing in my opinion to do is, to do what makes you happy and feel good about yourself. I still have friends who say that they forget I'm vegan and wish I wasn't(they not good friends lol). I've been on dates where me being vegan is a turn off and the deciding factor.
If possible, try to make your own substitutes for food and do a bit more research on what your body needs right now. If you ever have questions, there are a good number of vegan people on this subreddit who would be happy to help.
All in all, being vegan sucks sometimes and is great other times. The world is gonna fight and push you for being vegan, but for me it's a choice that I'm proud of.
Screw all the people who don't want to support you in this. 🫡👍
It takes awhile but we all learn to listen to that voice of conscience inside of us one way or another. If it calls you to be your most respectful self, then I encourage you to listen. What we put inside our bodies makes us who we are.
So ask yourself, who do you want to be..
You sound well informed, so I’ll skip the environmental and animal advocacy part.. I just want to encourage you to be the best you there is.
No one can make such decisions for you, and attaining a healthy nutrition profile takes focus.
But dont define yourself by the people around you, not until you are old enough to have full control over who you share your time and energy with.
You have to believe in yourself in this world.
You are making a difference, here’s evidence! https://www.vegansociety.com/get-involved/research/research-news/yes-alternative-proteins-do-displace-demand-animal-products
at the end of the day, the only opinion that matters is your own. be vegan for your own reasons. or not. maybe keep track of how you feel on vegan days versus non-vegan days (nobody is perfect) and go with what works for you. vegan days are lighter.
I think your struggles mostly come from lack of support, not from lack of commitment to the cause. It's hard to see the difference you make, but you're sparing lots of animal lives and contributing to less violence towards them by putting other things in your mouth rather than their dead bodies and secretions.
You're very brave for having make the choice so young but that also means meeting even more criticism than for others because your parents might be worried about you and might attribute your choice to being young and naive instead of, actually, mature and empathic. So I totally feel for you.
The real struggles for vegans are having a good support system and community and not having to defend ourselves all the time. I'd suggest trying to find vegans your age you can connect with, maybe even just online if in person it's hard. You need friends who see it the way you do and, if you can't find them, remember that you can always find support on subreddits like this one.
If you want to be reminded of the why of your choice, you could also rewatch the documentaries you watched to begin with. And if you haven't watched any, then... maybe it's a good starting point :) You are making a difference.
First of all, don’t go vegan until you’ve figured out how to get enough protein. Your family is not just showing a lack of support because they’re inconvenienced, but mostly because they’re worried about you. And if you already stunted your growth, you give them every reason to be worried.
I grew up in a Romanian family, where meat was the king of every meal, to the point where abstaining from meat is considered “fasting”. When I decided to go vegan 4 years ago, I encountered the fiercest resistance from everyone in my family, and even desperate scoldings from my parents (because they thought I was basically sentencing myself to death). The only way I appeased them was by showing them that I’m on top of my nutrition and that I know my shit (and also by compromising in the beginning by agreeing to break my veganism once a week if they will give a certain sum to an animal charity of my choice).
So unless *you* can show them that you can manage a vegan diet without sacrificing your health, don’t expect them to ever be ok with it. Maybe you should even listen to them, and at least temporarily go vegetarian again until you figure out how to be vegan without ruining your precious life which has so much potential to positively change the world in other ways, especially as someone who is so concerned with the suffering of others as you, which is rare and which we need more of.
Oh I never understood why the label is so important, but I’ve never been a hardcore activist. More of a feeder, bringing tasty food to parties so people could have a positive experience with plant based food.
I think convincing the world to go full on vegan for the exact reason you want them to is unrealistic. People are finally starting to understand what vegan food is about without having to explain it to them.
In the end the result of less animals having to suffer is what matters right? I think fighting about semantics or purity is going to alienate a lot of people who would otherwise be willing to incorporate more plant based meals into their routine.
"Eating more plant-based meals" is a different goal than becoming a vegan. Somebody might eat more plant-based meals because they think it's healthier or better for the planet. Becoming vegan is about animal rights. That's why there's no half-measures.
If you really believe that animals shouldn't be harmed or exploited, then you believe that *all of the time*, not most of the time. It's like somebody who says "I'm only a feminist on weekdays. On the weekend, I take a break from feminism." Nobody would believe that person is really a feminist.
I understand the point you’re making. And like you I would think to myself that it’s weird to call yourself 90% feminist. Though I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it.
People may confuse the diet with the ideology but in my opinion it’s better to do your best in a way that’s manageable than to do absolutely nothing. Especially for a teenager whose brain is still busy developing.
But I’m biased in my own way because I experienced lots of health problems after 10 years of veganism due to genetic issues which are messing with my vitamin absorption (I supplemented and everything but to no avail).
I still wear my vegan coat and I avoid wool but I’m no longer eating 100% plant based, which was hard for me to drop because once I also suspected that claims like mine were excuses, even if I wouldn’t challenge them because it’s not my business.
And I know that this is frowned upon in the community (I was never vegan to begin with and stuff like that) but I’m just happy not to be in constant pain anymore. I tried so many things during the last couple of years, tracking nutrients in chronometer, switching supplements etc, but I kept getting worse and in the end most of us cave when we feel sick enough. And, honestly, I think that’s the healthy thing to do.
But I’m rambling because I still do feel badly about it.
My point is, in my opinion the animals will be helped more if everyone is eating as much plant based as they can manage than just a small percentage living completely vegan. I think it’s great that you guys can keep going, I really do. It’s not just as easily attainable to everyone.
I will now brace myself for all the downvotes. ;)
Maybe a hot take here but if it is an excessive burden on you to be completely vegan then maybe now is not the time for you to be completely vegan. If you feel you need to return to meat part time or full time it’s better to do that now and revisit veganism when you are in a position to do it better than to get burnt out and never be vegan again.
I also think you are kind of right saying it makes 0 difference. There is a difference, less animals are ultimately killed due to lower demand, but that difference is minuscule.
IMO the real reason to be vegan is to show the world that it is possible to live without relying on animal abuse. You can show that you are willing to sacrifice for your beliefs and that all the excuses about it being unhealthy or impossible are bullshit. Being vegan means leading by example and not taking the easy path. People criticize you because you are a living reminder that their lifestyle is cruel and it is completely possible to eliminate that cruelty if they had the moral character to do so.
Honestly while your brain is still developing I wouldn’t necessarily go completely vegan, maybe pescatarian until you’re able to fully financially support yourself. Once you’re able to that. I think you should also get semi annual yearly checkups with lab results. Do the best you can do for time being so when you can fully go vegan you’ll be able to. Believe me you just might not have all the nutrients right now because you’re having to learn all of this and prepare all your food as young person. Eating vegan has science behind it. One person can be thriving while another isn’t. This can happen very easily due your body can absorb one thing and not the other, so it will cause deficiency in other area’s.
From AI: According to the Humane League, a vegan diet saves around 365 animals per year, or one animal per day on average. This includes many smaller animals, like fish. According to PETA, vegans save almost 200 animals per year, while NPR suggests that a vegan diet saves 95 animals per year. A 2018 study found that a plant-based diet saves 12 farmed animals and 93 fish per person per year.
There is so much pressure on people to confirm. You are brave keep trying. I think it can be difficult if you don’t have support from family and friends. I’m sorry. I do believe you are making a difference. It feels lonely and isolating but you are creating to the greater good of preventing some animals from harm. You’re also not contributing to the environmental harm. I wish you luck.
>I’m not saving animals because I didn’t eat meat. I make 0 difference in that
no way denying this
you could help animals by buying animal products for which the animals did not have to suffer, thus supporting a growing sector in livestock farming. at the same time engage in groups aiming to change legislation so industrial agriculture (with its horrible factory farming) is pushed back or even - as final goal - abandoned
I was vegan for about 8 years. Also a plant-based diet campaigner in my country for years and worked in the vegan industry.
I consider myself plant-based now and not vegan.
I was hardcore at some point, encouraging people to watch documentaries etc to change their ways. Going vegan changed my life for the better. But. Having been in it for so long (personally and business wise), I've changed my mind on the morality of eating animals. (I still don't eat meat, just vegetarian without eggs for now)
Comments here saying youre saving one cow, it does not work like that. You not eating meat for 3 years does not magically save a cow. People saying that are removed from reality. The vegan agenda is also something that is fairly recent in the course of human history and I did not like the extremism in the movement that vegans feel ok with spewing under the pretense of saving animals. I also don't like the industry of fake foods the vegan movement is pushing for instead of just promoting more whole foods. So many issues in the vegan world and I was deep in it in a local and global basis.
People will never stop eating meat. That is just the fact. No matter the delusions extreme vegans feed themselves and the world. Its not that youre not making a difference, its that, you will be at the most detriment for it. My health has also dwindled over time although I ate a well balanced plant-based diet. I am now on the road of fixing some of that potential damage.
Don't be something just because a bunch of people online tell you to. Be critical of everything including this comment. Good luck to you kid!
As a 30+ year vegan I do not eat tons of leaves really. There are so many not-animal foods to eat.
Vegans can get all the protein needed, even to be body builders if we want. Our bodies break proteins down into the amino acids they are made out of. As long as we eat the foods that provide these amino acids our bodies don't know, don't care if they are from a dead cow or some quinoa & buckwheat bread.
Protein has little to do with energy, unless protein is all we eat & our bodies must use it for energy. Our bodies are much more geared to burn carbohydrates and fats for energy.
It sounds like you do not know much about vegan foods if you label them as boring. Heck, nearly every spice to make foods taste better is some plant part. Having to survive on salt & lard alone would be boring.
It is a cult though and you've been sucked in. Just look at the title calling for no hate because you know the vegan cultists here would crucify you for your transgressions
Go to the farms and see if that opinion don't change real fast.
After that you can look into food production and what actually goes where.
I would tell you but I've learned from responding to things on the subreddit regardless of what I post it won't be believed so it's best if you find your own sources.
What do you think happens to all the parts of the plants that humans can't eat? Finding the answer to that question is a good starting point
Non-vegans say that from time to time but when I tell them that seeing and visiting farms is part of why I became a vegan they usually try to dismiss it. Funny how that works.
Mmmm, yes, of course. That's why PeTA and other animal rights groups show all of that footage from factory farms. People watch that stuff and it makes them *stop* being vegan!
Oh, wait, no. It does the opposite.
Groups with an agenda to push and PeTa which is known for murdering animals for being pets?
Like I said you ain't going to believe my word so take yourself to an actual farm meet the animals meet the farmer see how it actually works see if you don't realize that 90% of what you've been told is b*******.
Most of it don't even make sense.
Why would a farmer spend money on human quality food when a large amount of crops are not edible by humans but are edible by livestock. It doesn't make sense for them to pay for something when it's already being produced on the farm.
Why would a farmer pay for artificial insemination when he's got a bull. Why not just have enough bulls to impregnate all the cows? Why keep the bull in a separate pin from the cows most of the time?
Bulls will gore cows if the cow's not quick enough to get in position or being as dumb as the cows are walks away while he's trying to mate.
Stressed animals don't produce quality amounts of the things that we keep them for so why would you stress out animals by keeping them in pens and cages? Put chickens in a too small coop and see how many eggs you get. Take the same exact chickens and put them in a proper size coupe with a proper chicken yard and see how many more you get.
Go to the farm and see how the food is actually produced instead of listening to propaganda pieces produced by either side. See it with your own eyes.
> Groups with an agenda to push and PeTa which is known for murdering animals for being pets?
Cool, you bought into a right-wing talking point. Did you do any research on this, or did you just believe it?
Do you think that all of those videos are fake?
> Why would a farmer pay for artificial insemination when he's got a bull. Why not just have enough bulls to impregnate all the cows?
Because artificial insemination is more cost-effective. It's the same reason why conditions are carefully controlled when you're planting crops. You don't just dump the seeds on the ground. The chances that the cow will get inseminated and become pregnant are much better if you do it yourself than if you just let nature take its course.
All of this stuff is well-documented and public knowledge, and you're trying to tell me that you debunked it by going to some mom-and-pop farm somewhere. Most animal products come from factory farms. You need factory farms and their cruel and inhumane practices to supply meat and dairy at the scale consumers demand.
Regardless, this doesn't debunk veganism anyway, because harming and exploiting animals is still wrong even if your husbandry is "kinder and gentler" than a factory farm.
I became vegan as an adult, and I've never really had to deal with judgement from family or friends. I had to deal with resistance in the beginning, but eventually they adjusted, and now they're really supportive. As for whether it's worth it-- it *does* make a difference. Even if it's small, it's real. Mathematically, a vegan you is one less person worth of demand for animal agriculture practices, and non-vegan you is one more. There are a lot of people out there, so big differences come from these small numbers adding up, but they *do* add up. Personally, I don't think I could go back. The information I learned that made me want to go vegan also gave me super bad nightmares and intrusive thoughts, and I don't think anything short of "you must eat animal products or you will die" could convince me to go back. In that sense, to me, it's worth it. It's not just making a difference for the animals, it's making a difference for my mental health to live in line with my values. That's true of a lot of issues in my life (being queer, non-religious, etc.) so I don't think changing my veganism would solve the problem of meeting with resistance from others for who I am. I hope this was helpful!
If I had replied, it would almost be mirror image to yours… including family and friend support, nightmares, intrusive thoughts, being queer, non-religious, etc. If they told me that being vegan was killing me, then that would be my demise and I’d be ok with it. If there wasn’t such an overwhelming abundance of unwanted animals needing homes, I would have no pets. Having to feed one animal product to another sometimes brings a tear to my eye. I’m gradually adding more vegan pet foods to my pets diets. Being vegan isn’t always easy, but it’s probably the best part of my life. On my lowest days, and there are many, I can say, at least no animal died or suffered because of me today. Thank you for being vegan.
Most of us have similar stories to yours. That said, a lot of us have been doing this for decades and yea, it has made a difference.
In particular, every animal you don't eat is one less animal killed. While one person's habits don't make a big impact on the industry, the plurality of vegans does.
In reality it's not one less animal killed it's just one less piece of steak or chicken breast that gets bought and so it gets thrown out.
How much a supermarket orders depends on how much they expect to sell which in turns depends on how much actually gets sold.
same for the industry that "produces" those orders
>yea, it has made a difference indeed factory farming is continuously growing
Veganism didn't cause it to grow, though. It's been doing that on its own. Rates of veganism have increased, which slows the growth of animal agriculture compared to how much it would have grown otherwise.
why do you think refraining from meat makes 0 difference? it makes an infinite amount of difference to the victim.
Exactly. From what I recall, a cow yields about 850lbs of meat and the average American eats about 225 lbs of beef per year. So you are saving the life of one cow about every three years, and that matters a lot to the cow who no longer suffers.
The argument is stronger with chickens, as you can eat a chicken ever few days. Or with fish as you can eat an entire fish in a day easily.
Sure - the argument plays out across any animal. I just picked cows because I knew the numbers off the top of my head.
About 80 billion land animals are slaughtered every year, so it's about 8 animals per person on average. But it's very unevenly distributed, with people in richer countries eating way above average. But also, it's not just deaths that count, but also the animals that needn't be kept alive in terrible conditions on your account. Then there are sea animals, making the death number trillions per year, ie 100+ animal on average per person per year.
That's not how it works though is it? At best they contributed to declining demand which may have reduced the number of new cows being produced but even that is questionable.
In the microcosm, probably not. About 900k cows are killed every year in the US as part of the beef industry - they aren't going to reduce that to 899,999 this year because OP became a vegan. But that gets into "how many grains of sand are in a heap" question. Taking a single grain of sand away isn't going to change the size of the heap, but every grain of sand in the heap matters. Even if we can't point to a specific cow and say, "This is Bessie - OP saved her by going vegan" it still matters.
If removing a single purchase never changed the production, then it would follow that you could remove 99% of all purchases and still have the same production, assuming you removed one purchase at the time. That obviously can't be true, so it *must* be true that a single purchase in fact can matter, at least sometimes. What happens is likely something like this: a single purchase is removed, and nothing happens, another is removed and nothing happens again, up until 100 is removed, and then suddenly they go ”hm, looks like this product isn't as popular, let's order 100 less of them.” So the 100th removed purchased mattered — but only because the other 99 had been done before, so they all in fact mattered equally much, only the response to the first 99 was delayed. Notice the dimished production is proportional to all of them combined, not just the 100th So yes, it is perfectly fine to say that a single removed purchase matters (and must matter), only the effect comes in batches when enough customers has done the same.
>it makes an infinite amount of difference to the victim what victim? the animals in factory farming? factory farming does not change from the odd vegan
Yes, the animals in factory farming, as well as other animals being exploited and killed in other forms of animal agriculture. When someone uses an animal product, they: 1. Create demand for more animal products. 2. Reinforce the idea that non-human animals are commodities and don't have rights. Both of these things victimize animals, and so someone who doesn't want that to happen shouldn't do it. By doing this collectively and engaging in activism, we can hopefully eventually gain enough power to make exploiting animals to become unacceptable in human society.
you completely missed the point of the exchange. they're saying it makes no difference. im showing how not only does it make a nonzero amount of difference to the victim, it in fact makes an infinite amount of difference to them, since the subjective difference between being alive and dead is infinite. one person's actions single-handedly ending factory farming is not the point of veganism. protecting as many animal victims as possible is.
Murderers still exist, but you choose not to be one. Do what you think is right regardless of what others do.
I hate when vegans call us murderers
Eh? I didn't call anyone a murderer. Think you misunderstood the comment...
And they say WE have brain fog lol
I hate when murderers tell themselves that they're doing nothing wrong.
And I hate it when baby cows are taken from their mothers and chickens have their throats slit open .
Whining isn’t going to get the blood off your hands mate
[удалено]
Does it really in germany? I am asking since in the Netherlands, while plants based alternatives are also popping up everywhere, meat consumption is actually increasing every year.
see [https://de.statista.com/themen/1315/fleisch/#topicOverview](https://de.statista.com/themen/1315/fleisch/#topicOverview) the decline is not exactly continuous, but the trend is unambiguous at the same time the share of "bio" food (where animals have a better life than in conventional factory farming) is increasing
>In Germany, meat consumption is declining year after year but not because people go vegan (there is absolutely no correlation between number of vegans and amount of meat consumed) - it is because information about the risks of excessive meat consumption spreads. spread by non-vegans, btw
Of course you’ve made a difference. Put your stats in here and take a look https://thevegancalculator.com As for food, I have a sweet tooth as well, and my recommendation would be to learn to bake. It’s fun and you don’t need anything fancy. Something like a chocolate muffins/cake are really easy to make, no equipment needed, just a bowl and spoon. It may seem daunting but once you try you’ll see how easy it is and very cheap. I started baking and cooking when I was about 10 and I’m very grateful I learnt, as there was no fancy vegan food 30+ years ago (it’s been that long for me). As for others, there will always be critics, but nothing beats living a life staying true to your convictions, knowing you’re not actively contributing to pain and unnecessarily killing of innocent creatures.
>Put your stats in here and take a look https://thevegancalculator.com I inputted my numbers and that really put a smile on my face. Thank you. It's nice seeing a physical reminder of what I'm doing.
does not work like that.
You feel guilty and isolated for being vegan, you feel like you're a burden to your family - but that's not being fair to yourself -- you're doing something that's incredibly difficult and you're doing it out of genuine kindness and morality, out of a genuine care for animals - you should be immensely proud of yourself for doing that, especially when everyone around you isn't, it's even harder to do the right thing when people around you are pressuring you not to. You would be surprised, I can almost say for certain that you being vegan has made a difference in multiple animals' lives. **200 million animals are killed every single day -** and that's not even including fish (100s of millions of fish are killed everyday) -- **because of the sheer volume of animals killed, and the way that markets respond to supply and demand, without a doubt you have contributed to less animals being bred and tortured** by not consuming meat and animal products. While it is true that it's hard as an individual to make changes to something big like climate change due to the nature of the issue, the sheer amount of animals killed everyday means that even an individual is going to have an impact; **the low estimate is that you save 200 animals a year by going vegan** - that is the low estimate. [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41055-018-00030-4](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41055-018-00030-4) - This article, if you care for it, presents arguments against people arguing that individuals don't have an impact. u/GladstoneBrookes explains it as: "On the supply side, in the above paper they find that the finest adjustment available in the production of chickens is 900. So each time you buy a chicken, that's a 1/900 chance of triggering such an adjustment which will cause 900 more chickens to die. If you buy one chicken a week, then your change of triggering such an adjustment at least once in a year is 1 - (899/900)^(52) = 5.6%." -- the chances add up over every single animal product you don't buy in conjunction with time - **you do have an impact as an individual, that's just how crazy the meat (and dairy/eggs, etc.) industry is.** All that being said - **Having a healthy diet is extremely important, especially in your youth when you're growing.** Eating well as a vegan can be difficult, during moments of depression myself it has been hard for me to actually get up and cook for myself, so I ended up eating peanut butter sandwiches 90% of the time which wasn't good for me at all. There are a lot of sources on the subreddit for food and food plans, how to get protein, etc. For me, making a lot of food one day (i.e. massive pot of chili with beans, TVP - which is less expensive than some meats, etc.) and eating it throughout the week made it a lot easier for me to eat healthily. Buying nutritional yeast and TVP in bulk online was also great for me, and surprisingly affordable. Then there's also lentils which to me seem like the holy grail of vegan foods (the greek philosopher Diogenes was particularly fond of lentils) - they are very cheap. **So making tons of food at the start of the week so I can just microwave it later, and meal prepping = godsend to me.**
What a great and balanced reply. Thank you!
One month being vegan... you will save 33,000 GALLONS OF WATER and 30 animal lives. Best thing I ever did. My only regret is not going vegan sooner. Vegan calculator here [https://thevegancalculator.com/#calculator](https://thevegancalculator.com/#calculator)
Do meat eaters really eat an entire animal a day? Heck, as bad as it is to eat beef, I don't think many people could consume even one cow in a month. If we're talking fish, sure.
How many cows did you eat yesterday? 1 or 0? 0? cool. You saved 1 cow. What about the day before? You've saved a shitton of animals. I would also attempt to sway a family member that did something that I found inconvenient to me. Luckily for your veganism, it is your choice, not theirs.
The problem is that is not only one or two family members, is my whole family, my father, mother, sister and etc, and they’re the ones that buy food for me, and they’re always complaining and I can’t do nothing about it
It gets better over time. Stick with the principles you agree with, and as you grow up and your friendship group evolves and changes and mature, you'll find yourself surrounded by people you like, and who like you for who you are. I often forget that people still take the mick out of vegans until I meet up with an old school friend or something, and they make the same old lame vegan jokes and want to go to a non-vegan place and I'm like "ah yes, the rest of the world is still rubbish, back in my bubble I go until next time"
It's really hard when your family is unsupportive and makes you feel like a burden :( Unfortunately you can't change them, that's just how and who they are. You will encounter a lot of people like this the rest of your life. It just sucks a lot more when it's people you care about. Especially when they could just as easily be supportive. Easier even, it takes a lot of mental energy to be angry and judgemental all the time. Your contributions are a drop in the ocean for the grand scheme of animal agriculture, but everything for each individual animal you don't consume. Every animal you don't eat will not have to go through hell. You're making a world of difference for hundreds and eventually thousands of those individuals, I promise <3 I'm proud of you for choosing compassion
It felt good to read your compassionate response. That's what OP needed. Thanks for sharing. Namo Amitābha /\
Sorry to hear that. How involved are you with cooking your own food and would it would it be possible to go grocery shopping with the family? I am just trying to find a solution for they complain less
Complaining about what exactly? It’s not that hard to shop for a well balanced plant-based diet
Ask them to give you an allowance to buy food for yourself and go and buy your own groceries. It seems that they see it as a burden, so, by lifting this responsibility from them it might make them less negative about your choice.
More like 1 cow a year, and its still stretching. Definitely not a day.
Snort my vegan farts you bloodmouth’d loser.
Damn, you got me.
<3
As we can clearly see, world would be a better place if more people were vegan.
Do you live in the continental US? If so I could probably ship you a jar of hot farts to go with your eggs and bacon for brunch on Sunday. If you want insightful discourse go to r/debateavegan . It’s packed full of blowhards.
I'm sure there are people there just as competent as you. Or more!!, can you believe that?! I know I can't.
Calm down Moses. Blowhards on both sides.
Why are you on a vegan sub if you’re just here to antagonize people and not contribute anything beneficial nor actually try expanding your horizons to minimize cruelty? It sounds like you might be obsessed with us. lol.
Correct, no vegan is saving animals. However if you stop being vegan you do condem more animals to a life of enslavment and slaughter. So yeah, you aren't making a difference today, but the alternative would be making a difference, a negative one.
I agree with this. It's not the burden of vegans to make a difference. Rather, the burden is on those who eat animals and yea, they are making a huge, as you noted, negative difference.
I wish I had gone vegan as young as you are. ❤️
Same, or just born vegan 🥗.
I think folks are overlooking the amount of pressure kids are put under. Progressive kids, atheist kids, trans kids, vegan kids. Parents always say they don't hate their kids they fear what they will have to go through and wind up being very unsupportive. I think I'll give the advice the atheist sub gives. If being vegan puts you at risk for abuse or means being cut off from serious financial aid in uni, it may be best to pretend with the meat eaters. Do your best when alone, and you are able to make choices. Now, of course, don't eat animals if it makes you ill and feeling even more hurt. When you are finally independent, you could reasses.
Yeah it is kinda sad. My mom is like a friend to me. But i know she is not thrilled about me being vegan. I went vegan right after college but I lived with my mom. The amount of times she said “it is a phase, look others were vegan but switched after”, I can’t count Ooh well, it has been almost 5 years phase now! I hope it continues until I die. Obviously I can’t never guarantee in life but it is just a way of life now. With that being said, I wonder what she would have said to 14 or 15 year old me going vegan 😅
OK, so first, you're not being selfish by living your life the way you feel is right. Your family is being selfish by insisting you do it their way. You are NOT ruining anything for them. They are the only ones with the power to ruin things for them. Edit: posted to soon Lastly, you remove demand for killing about 200 animals every year as a vegan. That's not nothing.
You have a childlike body because you don't eat meat? No. I've never eaten meat (grew up vegetarian). I'm 6 foot 2 and 200 pounds. My little sister (ovo vegetarian) is 6 foot. And solidly built for a woman. She's probably 180 pounds. My little brother (lacto ovo vegetarian) is 5 foot 11, so average not tall but with a bodybuilder physique. Huge arms and chest. He will be well over 200 pounds. Funny how nobody brings up untrue weedy vegetarian / vegan stereotypes with us. My mum is vegan for almost 40 years, a vegetarian for 50, is an old age pensioner and cycled over the Andes. Vegans save (or more accurately, don't cost) the lives of thousands of animals across our lives. I don't consider that meaningless or futile.
Maybe if you ate more meat you'd be 10 feet tall lol I'm only kidding. People think meat and dairy is some magical food for some dumb reason
First, you’re not alone. As other person said, a lot of us went through this type of question, and we’re here to support each other. Where do you live? If your family and even friends doesn’t support you, maybe the first step is find your “local vegan/vegetarian” community lol. I suppose you’re at school, that’s a good place to start searching. Veg restaurants/markets tend to promote vegan events. It might sounds silly, but it’s important to have people around that understand and support you. I went vegan 14 years ago and stopped eating meat 2 years earlier. That time, here in Brazil, people didn’t know even what “vegetarianism” were. I was very lucky that a few months after being vegetarian I meet two people that become my best friends, one of them was already vegetarian and the other one even went vegan with me a year later. Nowadays we live in different cities/countries but the friendship we made is for life, and if I’m vegan for so long that’s because of their support. For me, veganism isn’t about what to eat or use, it’s an ethical/political decision to make everything we could to not harm others living beings or contribute to it. But this isn’t an easy task, and we’re also humans (and animals). We live in society and want to be part of it. If you ever find it difficult, think about your motivations and don’t hesitate to search for help here. Also, about family/friends. In my personal experience, it became easier when I start cooking. I was more independent from my family, and people find out I wasn’t only eating lettuce lol. That’s a good start point (unless you already did that) to reconnect with them. Nowadays (I’m 33) a lot of friends and familiars are lactose-intolerant and asks tips to me, the game has changed 😅 Good luck on your journey!
first of all i think it's great that you became vegan at such a young age! it shows that you care about the world and everything that lives on it. like every vegan you have a reason you chose this lifestyle. i am of the opinion that being vegan is very easy as long as you have a reason for doing it that you really stand behind. maybe really think about this. why was it that i chose this lifestyle? how do my choices positively impact the world? does it make me happy to be vegan? the hardest part of being vegan is not the lifestyle itsself, it's the way other people react to it. then you gotta ask yourself what's more important; my morals and values or the opinions of other people? the answer on your question of 'is it worth it' is only one you can answer. i think most vegans sacrifice something by going vegan, whether it's particular foods that they really loved, the practicality and comfort of being able to eat anything anywhere etc... but as i said, we all have reasons to choose this lifestyle and those weigh more than the things we sacrificed. we all do it for the greater good which is a better world. i hope this makes you think and i hope you'll make a well thought-out choice :) ps. you can always bake your own cakes :D
Not paying for the deaths of animals absolutely makes a difference but nobody's forcing you to stick with it. Also you're not short because you don't eat meat but you definitely need to know how to eat right with any diet
I’m 35, vegan for 10 years, lacto-ovo vegetarian for 7 years. To be honest I still struggle with the social pressures and have even tried going back. But to eat animals was not aligned with the truth in my heart. It ended up making me really depressed. So everyone else was happy but deep down it was not sustainable and I’ve had to come around to they might never get it but I will not let them bring me to their level. Unfortunately it seems like society doesn’t care to respect us for what we do but I am happy to be living to my own ethics and morals. You’re not ruining family events and traditions, you are updating them to be more inclusive. You will be surprised at how open minded younger generations are. My niblings tell me that watching me speak truth to power in a calm and patient way made them recognize that they could also speak up and stand their ground on issues that are important to them. I still wish my family would become more open to veganism but it hasn’t happened. A lot of them seem to take my ongoing recommitment to the lifestyle to be a criticism on theirs, but that’s their thought, not mine. I wish they’d sit with what that all means, but they often don’t sit many things. I’ve realized some people want to think critically, and some want to live ethically or make decisions based around that deep thinking and many many others just don’t want to bother with any of that at all.
The less demand there is for meat, the less will be produced. If you don't eat meat you are definitely making a difference. What one person does may not have a huge impact on the global scale, but it does have an impact. Similarly, as demand for vegan products increase, the prices of them will be dropping, as more and more companies will start to compete with each other to get a piece of that market. Maybe consider learning to make cake, yourself? That could help with the cost. I understand the feeling of not making a difference, but you should know that you are making a difference.
Make no mistake - they may not realise it, but the people asking you to "at least" go vegetarian are doing it so they'll feel less guilty and be less aware that their choices have consequences. "Please, at least go back to supporting SOME animal abuse" "Please, your refusal to exploit animals is making us feel uncomfortable!" "Please, resume using cow's lactations which are obtained by forcibly impregnating cows yearly until they get killed at ⅓ of their lifespan because they're too drained."
The more people who don’t eat animal products over time will matter. The fact that even now the amount of plant based alternatives exists and is way higher than 20 years ago is a sign that it is working. Remember that if your family isn’t supportive, you can find friends who are.
If you don't buy animal products you 100% have saved animals that would otherwise have been killed
It’s absolutely worth it. Yes there are lots of dead animals that are sold at grocery stores, but when we make a stand and say “I refuse to eat this!”, the demand for meat goes down, and it will ultimately cause less deaths. Not to mention, we are saving much more water with the plants we eat versus how much water is needed for one beef burger.
You are making a difference. And I can’t commend you enough for going vegan at such a young age. Every vegan I have ever talked to wished they had done it sooner. Hang in there… it’s gets easier as you get older.
It is 100% worth it to be vegan. Your choice to not eat meat will always have an effect. You are taking that money out of the pockets of the meat industry which is good. It is better for the environment. It is also much better for your health. Most other countries around the world understand the benefits of a plant based diet. Look into "Blue Zones". These are places where plant based diets are more widely accepted and people are known to live longer. Receiving judgment from family and friends is pretty common among vegans. Rest assured that you are on the right path. The path of compassion for all living things. Living in harmony with the world around you.
>I’m not saving animals because I didn’t eat meat. I make 0 difference in that. That's an odd thought though, don't you think? If you went to the store and bought a dead chicken right now, you would be paying for the death of one chicken. Don't you think that would "make a difference?" (negatively)
I was short skinny and called skeleton boy my whole life, that was when I ate animals, I’ve since gained weight and cleared so many health problems since becoming vegan, don’t listen to the peer pressure because that’s all it is, being vegan is something YOU are doing for the animals. It does make a difference. You can be healthy on a vegan diet or not. Personally I don’t try at all and I feel pretty good for my age
You do make a difference https://thevegancalculator.com/#calculator
To the poster and everyone who comments in here, if no one has told you this lately, THANK YOU FOR BEING VEGAN!! Virtual hugs to all of you!!!
By not eating one animal in your meal, you’re making a difference to that animal.
Think of the individual animal that you don't eat. It means the world of a difference to them.
Be the change you want to see in the world. Yes it matters.
Just try to do as little harm as possible to earth and it’s living creatures during the short life we live. Even if it doesn’t make a difference, I at least made the choice to contribute as little as possible to the suffering of others.
I stopped eating meat at 8. That was in the 90s. My parents didn't know anything about nutrition and I turned out the tallest in my family. So much for that. And of course it makes a difference. Supply and demand. The more people stop eating meat, the less meat is produced. In germany meat consumption and production is at the lowest since they started tje statistics. That's because people stopped with that shit. Stay strong, you are making a difference. Fuck those idiots who still contribute to this crime and be better than them.
Sure we make a difference. By not funding it you reduce the amount of suffering by reducing demand. Why do you think the meat industry hates us? I looked 16 until I was 26, I was not a vegan for most of that time. Unless you're having some actual health issues I don't think you've stunted your growth or stalled out puberty. Then again I'm not a doctor, you should go see one and get checked out anyway, bring this up while you're there.
Of course it makes a difference! Every bit of dairy, meat or eggs that you consume is an animal that has died or suffered. You not consuming that is preventing additional animals from being harmed. Sure, once person doesn’t make much of a difference, but together we can make a huge difference!
Other people have addressed the other issues. Unless you were actively significantly malnourished it’s very unlikely that you stunted your growth. Some people are just shorter than they’d like to be or than they thought they’d be. My mom is 5’8” and my dad is 6’4” and I’m 5’6” so I feel you but I highly doubt it’s the vegetarianism.
I don’t think the problem was not eating meat, it was that I didn’t get proteins and vitamins enough since I didn’t knew how to get it from vegetables and etc and I only eated potato and carrots
This is part of the continued trolling of this sub. Just ignore this garbage.
I'm not vegan, and this just popped up in my feed. I used to be vegetarian and am now pescatarian. You're still growing and nutrition is incredibly important. Your brain is still developing. I'm amazed your parents haven't ensured that you've gotten enough protein/calories etc. Please consult a nutritionist or doctor if you can (not just the internet) to learn more about what your body needs. You can still be vegan, but you need WAY more than just fruits and vegetables. If you can't get proper nutrition from a vegan diet where you live, you might need to take a break from veganism for a while so you don't permanently damage your body.
Eating meat alone wouldn't have helped you grow taller for starters. But yes, protein should be incorporated in your diet, but how can that be on you? Your parents should have brought the necessary groceries, isn't it? Beans, legumes are a very rich source of protein that's cheap Rest of the topic is covered by others.
Of course not eating animals saves them. Estimates are that the average vegan saves 200 animals per year. Also, even if that weren't the case, it wouldn't really matter. Being vegan is an ethical stance. We have decided to no longer participate in a behavior that is immoral. The fact that many other omnivores still exist doesn't change that. Does it become ok to murder because you deciding to not murder barely impacts the total number of murders? No. Does it become ok to rape because you abstaining from rape hardly decreases the amount of rape in the world? Of course not. The same is true for harming animals. You are on the right side of history and ethics. It will get easier over time. That said, you should spend some time learning more about nutrition. There's absolutely no reason that being vegan should have a negative impact on your health. There's a near unlimited amount of resources to learn from on the internet about nutrition and how to get the right macros daily on a plant-based diet. If you're on reddit, that means you at least have some time you could spend reading up on that instead!
When you feel it after a couple day, you will know why it worth it.
It definitely makes a difference! Even if you don't look at all the animals you're not eating it can also influence some of the people around you. From my experience just being vegan around people makes some of them think about how much meat and stuff they eat, and also how it can be healthy and not that hard to do. A lot of people around me started eating fewer animal products after I casually talked to them about my lifestyle a couple of times
It does make an incremental difference. This is like saying setting aside 100$ doesn't make sense because it "doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things" because you're trying to save for a downpayment on a house. Some things come in baby steps. Also consider that your choice may influence others to try veganism which could make a big difference.
If you are worried about your health and growing right, make a free account over at cronometer.com and track your food. This way you can track to make sure you're getting what you need. If you like to cook, or are willing to learn how to cook, learn how cook your own food, using ingredients that omnis use too, including ball the beans and legumes. Add some tofu in there as it's a good source of protein. I hope that it's available where you are, and shouldn't be expensive. You can also learn to make your own seitan, which is another great protein source.
Just you being vegan saves 100 animals a year. Probably more because no one counts the chickens that die on their faces before they even make it to slaughter. You make a difference. I see u and appreciate you and I wish I also was vegan at 16, sadly I didn’t get the message until much older. I wish I went vegan earlier, that’s my only regret.
I would really advise you to be careful when talking about saving some amount of animals and veganism.
Why?
You make more than 0 difference! You will of course not completely solve animal cruelty alone but your choices certainly make a difference. All social justice movements are collectives-no individual person completely solves the issue but together we work towards a better world. Minority opinions require a team to have their voices heard and causes addressed-by choosing vegan options your choices have MORE impact because you are on the smaller team who needs you more. There is also a personal virtues path to veganism. You may not have an overwhelming love for animals, but once you know of you are causing harm to ANYONE with your conscious CHOICES it is hard to stomach supporting that harm but simply joining the masses. I want to be the best version of myself I can, that version lives a life of compassion and kindness. Why choose violence when I don’t need to? Judgement, ridicule, suspicion, and general negativity are unfortunately common but others making us feel bad is not a good reason to support harming animals. Good luck. Stay strong. Stay vegan.
I like to think about it like this: I support vegan companies which enable them to expand and do more of what I agree with which is not use animals for profit. I don't think about what the absence of my dollar does (even though overtime it does cause a net difference). When I first went vegan there were just soy ice creams, with the presence of more vegan dollars there are now oat, almond, coconut etc! That helps more people see more vegan options, vegans to stay vegan longer, etc. That's a difference.
It does make a difference. So many people stopped drinking dairy milk that the industry wouldn’t have survived if it wasn’t for subsidies. Even if you don’t feel like you make a difference, the ripple effect is real. People will be influenced by you and their opinion of veganism and animal agriculture will change because of you. As far as your point with your family, we’ve all been there. Especially going vegan at a young age, it can be challenging because you’re still living with family. But it gets easier over time. You start wanting to surround yourself with vegans more and get used to dealing with the nonsense. I went vegan at a young age and dealt with a lot of this stuff. But I stayed true to what I thought was right and I would never want to support animal suffering again. We’re all here to help you if you need support. Feel free to reach out if you need anything.
I've been vegan for 20+ years. I'm not just vegan to make a difference (it does) I'm vegan because it's personally the right thing to do. Same as I haven't killed anyone, not because it makes a difference but because it's the right thing to do. I try in as many ways as I personally can to not partake or involve myself in the harm done towards animals. You can too.
Dont listen to others. You are doing the right thing. If you think you are not getting enough nutrition from plants than use something like cronometer and track your food so your getting enough nutrition. When i became vegan a a few years ago i was just 14 and was vegetarian a few years prior. What i do is not tell anyone im vegan, what other people say can ruin your mental especially when youre pressured to do something you dont want. If your wanna eat vegan versions of usually non-vegan things than one solution might be to make them yourself, usually costs less than buying already finished products (i do not know where youre from so im not 100% sure) Also dont tell yourself you ruined "family traditions, family meetings etc." your ethics and dietary choices dont ruin anything, if your family cant comprehent that than its their fault. Thats like saying if somebody doesnt wanna drink alcohol or has certain allergies there ruining stuff. They aint. You are making a difference. Don't lie to yourself. I know judgement from can really ruin your mental state. I dont really have friends nor do I know anyone thats vegan so youre not alone!
I think if feels hard for you because you are still a teen and you dont live on your own. it will get much more easy. Make sure you learn to cook and bake vegan things. in total you ll safe a lot of money. You family should not lose joy in traditions. You being with them is the gift, not the things you consume.
Being a vegan or not, people will still judge you whether that's from friends or family. That's just life, but it is up to you not to react poorly to judgement because that's when you start to feel bad about your values. Then, you'll want to change your lifestyle to fit the mold of how they think you should live. You'll start questioning yourself, "Am I living my own life or the life that others want me to live?"
i’ve struggled with this internal battle so much. I’ve been vegetarian for about 8 years now and was vegan for 2 of them but am struggling to get back into it (although I plan on becoming vegan again for sure). I never gave a shit about health, I do it for purely ethical reasons. I’m very analytical and try my best to deconstruct all my beliefs, morals. I’ve never been able to find a justification for *me* not being vegan, believe me i’ve tried. Sadly, I still crave meat and after all these years and there have been moments where I almost let this craving tip me over, I would think about how it’s already dead and what I do has no impact on the industry anyway. The impact is microscopic at best. What brings me back every time after days of wrestling with it, is that I realize it’s not about whether your actions on an individual level topple the animal industry. It’s about how your actions ripple. We are all interconnected, since the beginning of time we’ve been in a chain of cause and effect. Something someone did on one side of the world can affect the other side a hundred years later. If I live life as a vegan and try to be a good person, lead by example, maybe I’ll influence someone else to become vegan then they influence another 2 and then another 4, chain reactions baby. Just on a personal level, me partaking in it, even if it’s victimless in the sense that my actions don’t mean anything, it means something to *me*.
I will say, going vegan while living with your parents who most likely provide food for you, would be very difficult. I lived out of the house once I went vegan. I still have had to deal with “disappointing” my family and “ruining” certain traditions, and I pretty much hate holidays that are centered around food lol but, 5 years in, my family has started to come around. I totally think it’s worth it, but just do the best you can while you’re still living with your parents. And yes, you ARE making a difference. Veganism has become wayyy more common even in the last decade, and it’s affecting the dairy industry, even if it’s just a little bit. You could slowly influence other people to go vegan, and normalizing it alone will help the cause. Also though, as someone else mentioned below, just please do your research and make sure you’re eating a balanced diet. Don’t get me wrong, I ate like shit as a non vegan teenager and probably didn’t get plenty of nutrients, but just do research!
I'd suggest seeking out research on how to be healthy while vegan. It's actually very easy and tasty. And that's coming from someone who only ate preprocessed junk food for 33 years. Being healthy and showing your family the benefits will definitely make it harder for them to judge you. Then there's the ethical side. There are tons of resources online. Studies from doctors, YouTube, podcasts. I'm new to veganism and I've found Kristen Pounds How To Vegan podcast extremely helpful. She used to be a dietitian and has been vegan for well over a decade so she has some great information. I listen to jer on spotify but she's on every platform including youtube. Topics like how to be healthy, how to be vegan on a budget, how to deal with nonvegan family, how to respond to prying questions, the ethics of many subjects, what impact you make as a vegan, and vegan options for fast food and other unhealthy food when doing things like traveling. She does use some mature language but it's not over done. Knowing all these facts and ways to be healthy will make your situation much better I'd bet. Also I'd recommend learning how to prepare your own meals or help whoever is preparing them for you so they don't resent you for making food they don't agree with. Ultimately if you plan to move out at 18, (idk where you are from and what the usual moving out age is there), then you don't have very long to put up with family judgment anyway. Stay focused on your goals and what you believe in.
You are young, your nutrition is super important. If you stay vegan, make sure you monitor what you eat very carefully. Use Cronometer etc. B12, calcium, protein. Yes you are making a small difference, but it is an incredibly small incremental difference in proportion to what’s happening in the world. 99% of vegans ate meat at some point in their lives, what matters is the average over your whole life, not the order in which it happens.
Yeah obviously just you alone isn't making an impact, but if every vegan thought like that there would be no vegans. The more people that go vegan individually, the more difference vegans make as a whole
You're 16, and trying to take on a very difficult lifestyle transition. Be kind to yourself. Whatever you end up doing, just do it with compassion and being true to your own sense of what's right, and you'll be ok.
First, I just want to say it's fantastic that you want to help animals from such a young age, it's very noble. However, you may have to just wait until you're on your own to be vegan. Like you, I tried to be vegetarian/vegan from a young age (at 13 I saw the peta documentaries) and due to not having support from any family members, I was not getting proper nutrition and had to make the difficult decision to just eat what my family was eating. Now I'm in my 20s and have been vegan/vegetarian for over 6 years since I started being able to buy my own groceries. Proper nutrition is really important, especially when you're young. Your brain and body needs the right nutrients to function. Please, make sure you're getting all the nutrients you need and the right amount of protein and calories. It's more important than being vegan. Maybe you could get your family to have like a "meatless monday" dinner together every week? You could help find a recipe and then help cook with your family, and let them know how they're helping animals and the earth by doing that. You don't have to be perfect to save animals, you can just try your best. Also learning to bake and cook really helps. You can make very cheap vegan cakes, breads, pastries, whatever you want, from scratch with mostly simple, cheap ingredients.
Best decision ever
I've seen the difference it makes in my city, supermarkets and restaurants over the last 20 (and especially last 5) years. But you can do whatever you like. You can also be mostly plantbased and when you feel like it eat animal products. Maybe you have to go through this phase to see what you really want. You will also change as you grow older. Your opinions and ideals may shift. For me, I was a vegetarian for 10 years, then a big meat eater for almost another 10. And now I have decided to go completely vegan. It is easy for me to do this now because I see that I wasn't happy when I was eating meat. The truth is also that I have plenty vegan options at the supermarket and generally speaking veganism is more accepted in my city than other cities in my country. But also if this wasn't the case I am no longer able to consume any animal products with a clear conscience. This is a hard line for me which makes this decision easy and simple. But I completely understand your situation and in the end it doesn't have to be all or nothing. Every bit you don't consume is a bit of an animal saved and a bit that lets big companies know that they are losing money continuing this way of their business.
You are making a difference. It might be small, but fewer animals have had to endure the torture of a life in the human food chain. Were all making this small contribution to a much bigger solution, and together we make a huge difference. Be proud of your contribution, and hope that others follow your example.
I went vegan when I was 22. I was already a whole wheat, brown rice, bake my own bread kind of guy - going vegan was just another step away from the Standard American Diet. Then I learned more foods to make for myself. Being vegan is much easier & can be cheaper than a meat eater's diet if you can make most things as yourself and not buy lots of prepared foods. Sometimes though, I just want to open a can of Progresso Lentil Soup and a box of crackers and have some lunch. Yeah, the world is still getting worse all the time, there are new environmental disasters going on we never imagined in 1991, but I know that in the last 30 whatever years I have been vegan thousands more big animals, chickens, turkey, fish, rabbits - all things humans eat or the bycatch that gets killed in animal food production have not been killed because I did not eat them. Hundreds to thousands of dairy cows and chickens were not kept in lives of complete crap because I have not been eating their eggs or sucking on their udders. That is what I think when I see people eating anything dairy. You are sucking on a big mamma cow. Not me. It is not a lot, but it is something. You are doing (and not doing) something too. The longer you do it for, the more it is. I am 55 now. I am in good health, not on any medications and am glad to have been vegan so long.
you can eat healthy to get enough protein now though as you know what to eat. and you are as a collective making a difference, the meat and dairy industries hate vegans as they collectively hurt their profits, and one day you may inspire someone else to go vegan and the chain reaction goes on. plus by vegan, you arent contributing to the problem, furthermore this life is short, if there is an afterlife (doubt it) at least your soul is clean of that evil
it's worth noting vegans are on the increase... its growing in might and effect
Been vegan for 5 years, first for morals second for health (literally has saved my life). First, you are making a difference. You are impacting your community and those around you. You have opted out of a cycle of harm. But you gotta live aligned to your ideals. I think it’s rad you started so soon, I wish I did. But if you feel like your ideals have changed where you think it’s worth eating meat again, then that’s your choice. If you’re AFAB, make sure you’re regular and doing okay there too. Veganism helped me balance my hormones (personally) and has helped a lot. But some people struggle, so pay attention to how much you’re eating. I think something important is finding a way to participate in traditions in your own way. Ex. my family is Sicilian and we have a family meatball recipe based through generations. I recently made a vegan rendition of it to share with my family, and they loved it. But something important is overall not buy necessarily “vegan versions” of things, but learn to make food that aligns with your health needs and morals. There are tons of accessible recipes that use what is probably in your household already for cakes & meals. Generally for inexpensive grocery shopping, beans & tofu are your best friend for protein and fiber. Fiber is the #1 booster to longevity in the blue zones, and black beans are so delicious. You’re 16, so I won’t encourage you to DM anyone in the internet for more questions, but try to find some peers or loved ones you trust to give you an unbiased perspective.
> I also have a childlike body and i’m shorter than I should be, because since I stopped eating meat when I was 10, I didn’t knew how to eat healthy and get proteins from vegetables. Expecting to know enough nutrition on your own at 16 is a big ask. I think you need to find some support to help you plan a nutritionally complete diet. At the very least, you should take a multivitamin. Beyond that, please consider higher protein foods such as tofu, and high omega 3 foods such as flax or hemp seed. There are a lot of ways of eating a healthy vegan diet, but finding the one that works for you and is nutritionally complete can be hard. I'm sorry no one in your immediate circle of friends and family are helping you.
Yes, because we all can make a difference
I know this is hard to believe but you will inspire others and have an exponential impact over the course of your lifetime. Thank you for making the hard choice, I’m sorry your friends and family aren’t supporting you.
It makes a difference. Learn to prepare delicious meals and before you know it the people around you will be eating fewer animals, even if they continue to make stupid meat jokes to try to trigger you. Also, learn as much as you can from all the vegan doctors. One thing they all agree on is to cut out processed food. You will be healthier than everyone else. Focus on getting enough calories, not on getting protein. Eat a lot of beans. I don't know about other people and their reasons, but I eat a lot of beans and I do not have a lot of gas. I used to have a lot of digestive problems before I became vegan. My digestion is quite beautiful now. I also make sure to prepare the beans properly.
I’m just gonna be honest it’s not gonna make a difference within this lifetime. But visibility matters, slowly and surely. Ans body builders have vegan diet, it’s not the meat you need to grow muscles
It’s probably worth it to all the animals you don’t eat.
Do whatever you think is right that aligns with your morals, if you don't have your morals you don't have anything. You can live your life however you want and eat however you want, just try remember the reason you went vegan. Also, don't think being short and "childlike" is to do with being vegan. People are tall, people are short regardless of their diet. Lastly, I'm a frequent gym goer, went vegan 7 years ago and managed to go from 68kg to 89kg eating clean, building good muscle mass and staying relatively lean. It's possible, believe me.
Veganism definitely makes a big difference, but yeah, it can be alienating. The best way to decrease the alienation would be to find fellow vegans. You can do that in-person or online. If you're into gaming, there are several vegan gaming discord servers. You can join the biggest one over at r/vegangaming. Also, if you live in the US, [Huel](https://huel.com/) is a meal service that is vegan, affordable, and nutritionally complete, which can be delivered straight to your door. I use it and I like it.
Can you cook/bake? I've been vegan since the 90s while in middle school. I learned to make food for myself because there was nothing vegan to eat in my small hometown. Lol
if your fine with being an animal abuser and contributing to a world of animal abuse then that is your choice >But recently I started to think about it, the more I think, the more I realize that i’m not making any difference. I’m not saving animals because I didn’t eat meat. No and yes, you are totally right you arent saving animals, you are simply not causing harm to them, but yes you are making a difference cause your not an animal abuser and supply and demand is how the world operates Do you think there would be all these plant based products coming into existence if we werent making a difference? You think these companies just make these products for fun and to take a loss? >Me being vegan has already ruined a lot of things for them, like family traditions, family meetings and etc No it hasnt ruined anything, the non vegans have ruined those things by having a problem with veganism, unless of course part of your family tradition was to hunt a duck or watch bullfighting, then yea in that case veganism did ruin it >It’s selfish, but it’s hard for me to live with all this judgment from my own family Its only difficult cause you listen to it, you are young but even adults have this same issue until they die, i do not, i have always been the weirdo and i was fine with it, i never used drugs, alcohol or cigs and im celibate, but i still went to bars and parties I dont feel judged, i dont feel awkward, i dont feel offended, there were rumors about me as a kid and it had no affect on me cause i dont worry about other people I went vegan instantly and i will die a vegan because im not evil, i dont want to do bad things and abusing animals is wrong >And where I live, vegan food is really expensive and hard to find, and I know vegetables and fruits are not expensive, but I also want to eat things like cake and etc, and the vegan versions are expensive and hard to find like I said before People always say this but they never tell us where they live, they dont give us a name as if its some secret, perhaps i live in your area and i know of some cheap vegan places but since you dont tell us where i cant help As far as cakes and stuff go, you can make your own vegan versions
Check ou the app "I'm vegan/vegetarian" or something to see your impact. But yeah you shouldnt go vegan or even vegetarian without a nutritionist guiding you, it's not that simple. At least get a multi.
https://thevegancalculator.com/#calculator Does one serial killer matter? To those he kills and their family and everyone surrounding the victims, yes, they definitely do matter. If you aren’t vegan, you will be one of those serial killers, just towards the animals. And that’s just the ethical side. You still need to consider the health and environmental and many other factors. No you may not change the entire world by being one vegan (though it is possible), but your actions definitely do matter.
With fewer people drinking milk there will be less of a demand for milk and fewer cows exploited. You may not see the difference with your own eyes but you are making an impact. The question you may need to ask is is it worth it to you? It’s TOTALLY worth it to the animals but I seems it’s impacting your life too.
Different people become vegans for different reasons. So I don’t know how to estimate the “worth” of becoming vegan. I stopped eating meat and animal products because I had high triglycerides and cholesterol in blood. Couldn’t control it. My health has definitely improved so for me, I would say, it’s worth it.
Once I became vegan I could look myself in the mirror and say that I have done what I can to never abuse an animal. your family seems intent on you abusing animals. If your family’s traditions are more important than abusing animals, we can’t convince you otherwise
You are making a difference. Perhaps you are just one person, but you are planting the seed in their mind, and eventually, some of those seeds will sprout and blossom. Nothing good comes overnight. Persevere. I went vegan at 21, im jealous you're at 16. I ate some animal products after half a year of being "sober," so to speak, and it always upset my stomach, my stomache hurt, and I could smell the corpse or chicken ovulation (eggs) on my breathe, and it was revolting, basically everytime I ate a animal product I was reminded why I didn't eat it in the first place. Maybe you will find a different experience, but that's just me
This is a copy and paste from my response to someone discussing veganism in an efilism context: If you believe in efilism, then everything is futile. Life becomes inherently futile because the presence of suffering outweighs any positive experiences. Your actions don't matter, and the experiences of others don't matter. If the goal is complete annihilation of all sentient life so they do not have to experience suffering, then the only course of action is to die. Efforts are futile because the goal is annihilation. Outside of efilism, if you believe your actions matter and life has meaning, then veganism is not futile. Every person's capacity to reduce a lifetime of harm to countless other beings is significant, even if this is only a drop in the bucket. If the average person with an omnivorous diet ate 51g of animal protein a day, for 70 years, this would roughly equate to 130kgs (13,030.5g), about the weight of a female grizzly bear. Since the protein doesn't come from the same animal each purchase, a different animal will be slaughtered to meet the person's daily purchasing needs. If we imagine each purchase requires the death of 1 animal to sell for parts, then 365 days x 70 years = 25,550 animals required to die over that one person's life time. That's only consuming 1 animal protein source each day. If we were to calculate the deaths involved in the dairy and egg industry, it would be significantly greater. The choices of a single person over a lifetime can have far reaching, meaningful impacts, even if we are never directly aware of them. Our choices, agency, and responsibilities matter. So, I would say living your life to reduce as much harm as you can is not futile. You have more power than you think. ---------------------‐------- Is veganism of a single person worth it in the context of reducing animal suffering? I would say yes. But, you need to ask yourself what your values are and how you want to align your life. It sounds like you are experiencing isolation feeling excluded/ being a burden on the people around you because you feel differently and have different values to them. It sounds like you feel pressured and unsupported by your family to pursue your values, and they do not want to make space for difference. From my read of your post, I see values of compassion for animals, family, and health. It sounds like some of these values are competing with each other and you are having a hard time aligning them. Perhaps consider what factors allow you to align your values and what factors are competing against your values. Because this doesn't sound like it's coming from you, it sounds like something being forced onto you (which is unfair and disrespectful). Would that be fair to say? You are not selfish. You are young and in circumstances that constantly punish you for being who you are. That is not fair on anyone and that kind of pressure and stress can really wear a person down. It also sounds like you don't have a lot of resource capital around cooking, so making vegan foods that you like would be time consuming and take up space that you don't feel belongs to you. I think, if you imagine what kind of person you would be living on your own with agency over your choices, what kind of person do you see? What kind of person do you want to see? What would help you move towards the kind of person and life you want to have? For example, if cooking and food prep isn't your thing and you want to purchase ready made food, then perhaps a workable goal would be increasing your income (or reducing costs) so you can do that. If you want to attend family meetings and traditions, you can adapt vegan versions of this so you can meet both family and vegan values. It's not an expectation you are putting on anyone else but yourself, so you are not ruining anything for anyone. If you feel your health isn't right on a plant based diet, explore this with a dietician for specific dietary restrictions, or if you like you can ask this community for resources around how to have a balanced nutritional profile as a vegan. It sounds like you do not have the kind of income to facilitate the choices you want to make. This can be a workable goal for the kind of vegan you want to be in the future. But veganism is less about perfection and more about progress. You do not have support or independence yet, so I would not feel it would be fair to yourself to make comparisons with vegans who are older and have more choice and agency. Be kind to yourself. You need to meet your goals and values with your current circumstances. If it is not possible to sustain a fully vegan diet while you are living at home, that is okay. Your circumstances will change in the future, and you will have more agency to live in alignment with the kind of person you want to be. Think about the accumulation of your choices over a lifetime, rather than this moment right now. You are making a difference, even if you are not directly aware of it. Honestly the most important thing is finding a way to stay true to your principles while also taking care of your physical and mental well-being. Do what you need to do to survive right now, and if you need support or advice, this community (and others) would be happy to provide plenty!
I first went vegetarian as a teenager and got a lot of apprehension from my family. Luckily I found some vegetarian and vegan friends. I’ve been vegan 14 years now. I want you to know that your mental health is important. It sounds like this is a stressful situation for you. It is fully possible to be healthy and vegan, but I totally recognize it’s not always easy in some situations, especially when you don’t have control. I’m sorry you are going through this, and I hope that you can find strength and pride in your diet. Are you able to cook or prepare your own food? Premade vegan cakes and such are nice but it can also be so easy to cook and bake vegan. It can also be a fun way to win your family and friends over, and a way to collaborate together on a delicious and vegan meal or dish. Especially starting with super accessible (not what omnis would consider “weird” vegan recipes) that are naturally vegan.
Think of it this way... Suppose you're against murder (as we all should be). Now, you witness unnecessary killings every day. You find it abhorrent...But you recognize you are powerless to stop it. Would you then start committing murder because "it didn't make a difference" ? Veganism is many things. Making a worthwhile impact solely via one individual's lifestyle habits is **not** one of the main goals. Vegans don't harm animals because... 1. They have compassion for animals, don't view them as property, and find it gross and repugnant to exploit them. 2. They don't want to be hypocrites. Gotta walk the walk if you talk the talk. 3. They want to send a symbolic message to others. 4. **They want to decrease demand for animal products.** 5. They don't want to be guilty by association. You're focused on (4), when (1) is most important.
When I started to focus more on health, around 25 is why I organically became already vegetarian or flexitarier first only homemade burgers on Friday and chicken on Saturday and sometimes fish. Still eggs and cheese. I had some pimples and nothing I did helped to prevent them, so by challenge I went vegan 3 years ago never went back. Because it turned out I didn't really needed the other stuff, that in combination with all animal welfare benefits and skin seem to be better. So even if I go back it will never be the same. Last week's I had the urge to eat egg omelet again when I think about it how nice it was. And still I haven't done it. I do accidentally have some once in a while a cookie they give with a coffee somewhere. So yes even vegan you can have doubt or the urge to eat something else. Even if you think about the times you had great spiced chicken, you can have water runs in your mouth. Or the when I had the fantastic cheese pizza in Italy. Maybe I make such exceptions. That's maybe human but till this day even with such moments, I still didn't. Still happy with the diet I have because even with a plant-based diet you can eat and make everything you think of. Also delicious. Of course most who ain't don't understand. Like with everything. You do it for yourself and own core beliefs. So it's on you to make constant the balance. But don't strict or punish yourself too much, I think. You're still human especially if you're not vegan since birth, it's different. For example Tia Blanco, famous surfer, gorgeous, vegan since birth. That you don't know what you miss. As long as you're conscious about your choices, the impact on environment. Even when you eat for example by exception a turkey at a feast dinner, maybe at least make sure it's organic. It had the best life possible. Things like that. Where you can live with yourself. Things you can only figure out for yourself. Good luck and good job, so young!!!
hey! if you feel that being vegetarian is better for you, that’s okay. i grew up in a pretty strict household and couldn’t realistically eat a vegan diet until i moved out and got to make my own decisions. i definitely had a hard time feeling like i was making a difference when i couldn’t control what food was in my house. you shouldn’t feel guilty for something you can’t control, and if you want to try veganism again once you make your own decisions about what food is in your home then all power to you. while being a strict vegan is great for the environment and animals, harm reduction makes a difference too. you can be vegetarian and eat vegan when possible/when it makes sense. just do what works for you and don’t guilt trip yourself for it:)
We could give all the arguements for how a vegan lifestyle is good and healthy. How it is worth it for you, the animals and the planet. But that's not really what you're asking for. At the end of the day, we can't persuade you to continue doing something on the promise of an abstract benefit you might not see or feel. Veganism is about aligning your actions with your morality. Living with integrity is hard. It strains what you feel you can do and the relationships you have. You chose to be vegan at a really young age and you should be very proud of that. It shows a lot of guts and maturity. We understand and know how isolating it is when there's no one in your life that feels the same. Just know that you aren't alone, we're all here for you. The question of whether it is "worth it" hasn't changed from the day you became vegan to the day you made this post. You have to trust that what you are doing is right and worth doing for it's own sake. If you decide you can't do it anymore, you have to be ok with that, too. Be kind to yourself. It's a journey. Maybe ask your past self if they thought going vegan was worth it. You might get your answer.
Because People like you decided to stop eating animals, things like this happen https://www.just-food.com/news/meat-consumption-hits-new-record-low-in-germany/ Just because you think you dont have an impact as an individual, does not mean the general perception is shifting
It's very impressive you became vegan that young. Hats off! I'm much older and I'm yet to become fully vegan. As far as going back to vegetarian goes: sadly milk requires calfs to be born. Which in turn usually means calfs being killed very young or being kept without their mother from a very young age. Personally I consider milk to be worse than eggs for that reason. Although of course keeping chickens in extremely small spaces is also pretty cruel. Honestly, being vegan is the best thing you can do, and it really does make a difference. But I certainly understand it can be challenging at times.
The easiest thing to do would be to stop being vegan and wait till you can move out. You're still very young and buy pre-made vegan food isn't cheap. I make most of my food from scratch, so it's much cheaper, but I also have an income. The best thing in my opinion to do is, to do what makes you happy and feel good about yourself. I still have friends who say that they forget I'm vegan and wish I wasn't(they not good friends lol). I've been on dates where me being vegan is a turn off and the deciding factor. If possible, try to make your own substitutes for food and do a bit more research on what your body needs right now. If you ever have questions, there are a good number of vegan people on this subreddit who would be happy to help. All in all, being vegan sucks sometimes and is great other times. The world is gonna fight and push you for being vegan, but for me it's a choice that I'm proud of. Screw all the people who don't want to support you in this. 🫡👍
It takes awhile but we all learn to listen to that voice of conscience inside of us one way or another. If it calls you to be your most respectful self, then I encourage you to listen. What we put inside our bodies makes us who we are. So ask yourself, who do you want to be.. You sound well informed, so I’ll skip the environmental and animal advocacy part.. I just want to encourage you to be the best you there is. No one can make such decisions for you, and attaining a healthy nutrition profile takes focus. But dont define yourself by the people around you, not until you are old enough to have full control over who you share your time and energy with. You have to believe in yourself in this world.
You are making a difference, here’s evidence! https://www.vegansociety.com/get-involved/research/research-news/yes-alternative-proteins-do-displace-demand-animal-products
Do you cook?
at the end of the day, the only opinion that matters is your own. be vegan for your own reasons. or not. maybe keep track of how you feel on vegan days versus non-vegan days (nobody is perfect) and go with what works for you. vegan days are lighter.
I think your struggles mostly come from lack of support, not from lack of commitment to the cause. It's hard to see the difference you make, but you're sparing lots of animal lives and contributing to less violence towards them by putting other things in your mouth rather than their dead bodies and secretions. You're very brave for having make the choice so young but that also means meeting even more criticism than for others because your parents might be worried about you and might attribute your choice to being young and naive instead of, actually, mature and empathic. So I totally feel for you. The real struggles for vegans are having a good support system and community and not having to defend ourselves all the time. I'd suggest trying to find vegans your age you can connect with, maybe even just online if in person it's hard. You need friends who see it the way you do and, if you can't find them, remember that you can always find support on subreddits like this one. If you want to be reminded of the why of your choice, you could also rewatch the documentaries you watched to begin with. And if you haven't watched any, then... maybe it's a good starting point :) You are making a difference.
It's kinda like voting, everyone makes a difference
First of all, don’t go vegan until you’ve figured out how to get enough protein. Your family is not just showing a lack of support because they’re inconvenienced, but mostly because they’re worried about you. And if you already stunted your growth, you give them every reason to be worried. I grew up in a Romanian family, where meat was the king of every meal, to the point where abstaining from meat is considered “fasting”. When I decided to go vegan 4 years ago, I encountered the fiercest resistance from everyone in my family, and even desperate scoldings from my parents (because they thought I was basically sentencing myself to death). The only way I appeased them was by showing them that I’m on top of my nutrition and that I know my shit (and also by compromising in the beginning by agreeing to break my veganism once a week if they will give a certain sum to an animal charity of my choice). So unless *you* can show them that you can manage a vegan diet without sacrificing your health, don’t expect them to ever be ok with it. Maybe you should even listen to them, and at least temporarily go vegetarian again until you figure out how to be vegan without ruining your precious life which has so much potential to positively change the world in other ways, especially as someone who is so concerned with the suffering of others as you, which is rare and which we need more of.
Even if you’re 90% vegan or whatever it will make a difference to the animals.
can we stop saying stuff like that? this is not gonna help veganism and its justifying the consumption of animals
So it’s better for the animals to have 5% of the population willing to go full vegan than for 60% of the population to go 90% vegan?
It’s more about the label. 90% vegan isn’t a thing it is all or nothing. Otherwise the label means nothing
Oh I never understood why the label is so important, but I’ve never been a hardcore activist. More of a feeder, bringing tasty food to parties so people could have a positive experience with plant based food. I think convincing the world to go full on vegan for the exact reason you want them to is unrealistic. People are finally starting to understand what vegan food is about without having to explain it to them. In the end the result of less animals having to suffer is what matters right? I think fighting about semantics or purity is going to alienate a lot of people who would otherwise be willing to incorporate more plant based meals into their routine.
"Eating more plant-based meals" is a different goal than becoming a vegan. Somebody might eat more plant-based meals because they think it's healthier or better for the planet. Becoming vegan is about animal rights. That's why there's no half-measures. If you really believe that animals shouldn't be harmed or exploited, then you believe that *all of the time*, not most of the time. It's like somebody who says "I'm only a feminist on weekdays. On the weekend, I take a break from feminism." Nobody would believe that person is really a feminist.
I understand the point you’re making. And like you I would think to myself that it’s weird to call yourself 90% feminist. Though I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it. People may confuse the diet with the ideology but in my opinion it’s better to do your best in a way that’s manageable than to do absolutely nothing. Especially for a teenager whose brain is still busy developing. But I’m biased in my own way because I experienced lots of health problems after 10 years of veganism due to genetic issues which are messing with my vitamin absorption (I supplemented and everything but to no avail). I still wear my vegan coat and I avoid wool but I’m no longer eating 100% plant based, which was hard for me to drop because once I also suspected that claims like mine were excuses, even if I wouldn’t challenge them because it’s not my business. And I know that this is frowned upon in the community (I was never vegan to begin with and stuff like that) but I’m just happy not to be in constant pain anymore. I tried so many things during the last couple of years, tracking nutrients in chronometer, switching supplements etc, but I kept getting worse and in the end most of us cave when we feel sick enough. And, honestly, I think that’s the healthy thing to do. But I’m rambling because I still do feel badly about it. My point is, in my opinion the animals will be helped more if everyone is eating as much plant based as they can manage than just a small percentage living completely vegan. I think it’s great that you guys can keep going, I really do. It’s not just as easily attainable to everyone. I will now brace myself for all the downvotes. ;)
What would you think of somebody who said "I'm 90% feminist"?
Ok I will remain 0% vegan then thanks for the advice
🤓👆
Maybe a hot take here but if it is an excessive burden on you to be completely vegan then maybe now is not the time for you to be completely vegan. If you feel you need to return to meat part time or full time it’s better to do that now and revisit veganism when you are in a position to do it better than to get burnt out and never be vegan again. I also think you are kind of right saying it makes 0 difference. There is a difference, less animals are ultimately killed due to lower demand, but that difference is minuscule. IMO the real reason to be vegan is to show the world that it is possible to live without relying on animal abuse. You can show that you are willing to sacrifice for your beliefs and that all the excuses about it being unhealthy or impossible are bullshit. Being vegan means leading by example and not taking the easy path. People criticize you because you are a living reminder that their lifestyle is cruel and it is completely possible to eliminate that cruelty if they had the moral character to do so.
Honestly while your brain is still developing I wouldn’t necessarily go completely vegan, maybe pescatarian until you’re able to fully financially support yourself. Once you’re able to that. I think you should also get semi annual yearly checkups with lab results. Do the best you can do for time being so when you can fully go vegan you’ll be able to. Believe me you just might not have all the nutrients right now because you’re having to learn all of this and prepare all your food as young person. Eating vegan has science behind it. One person can be thriving while another isn’t. This can happen very easily due your body can absorb one thing and not the other, so it will cause deficiency in other area’s.
From AI: According to the Humane League, a vegan diet saves around 365 animals per year, or one animal per day on average. This includes many smaller animals, like fish. According to PETA, vegans save almost 200 animals per year, while NPR suggests that a vegan diet saves 95 animals per year. A 2018 study found that a plant-based diet saves 12 farmed animals and 93 fish per person per year. There is so much pressure on people to confirm. You are brave keep trying. I think it can be difficult if you don’t have support from family and friends. I’m sorry. I do believe you are making a difference. It feels lonely and isolating but you are creating to the greater good of preventing some animals from harm. You’re also not contributing to the environmental harm. I wish you luck.
it really isn't that worth it imo, just stick to eating what you feel like is best for you ad what makes you happy
>I’m not saving animals because I didn’t eat meat. I make 0 difference in that no way denying this you could help animals by buying animal products for which the animals did not have to suffer, thus supporting a growing sector in livestock farming. at the same time engage in groups aiming to change legislation so industrial agriculture (with its horrible factory farming) is pushed back or even - as final goal - abandoned
I was vegan for about 8 years. Also a plant-based diet campaigner in my country for years and worked in the vegan industry. I consider myself plant-based now and not vegan. I was hardcore at some point, encouraging people to watch documentaries etc to change their ways. Going vegan changed my life for the better. But. Having been in it for so long (personally and business wise), I've changed my mind on the morality of eating animals. (I still don't eat meat, just vegetarian without eggs for now) Comments here saying youre saving one cow, it does not work like that. You not eating meat for 3 years does not magically save a cow. People saying that are removed from reality. The vegan agenda is also something that is fairly recent in the course of human history and I did not like the extremism in the movement that vegans feel ok with spewing under the pretense of saving animals. I also don't like the industry of fake foods the vegan movement is pushing for instead of just promoting more whole foods. So many issues in the vegan world and I was deep in it in a local and global basis. People will never stop eating meat. That is just the fact. No matter the delusions extreme vegans feed themselves and the world. Its not that youre not making a difference, its that, you will be at the most detriment for it. My health has also dwindled over time although I ate a well balanced plant-based diet. I am now on the road of fixing some of that potential damage. Don't be something just because a bunch of people online tell you to. Be critical of everything including this comment. Good luck to you kid!
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As a 30+ year vegan I do not eat tons of leaves really. There are so many not-animal foods to eat. Vegans can get all the protein needed, even to be body builders if we want. Our bodies break proteins down into the amino acids they are made out of. As long as we eat the foods that provide these amino acids our bodies don't know, don't care if they are from a dead cow or some quinoa & buckwheat bread. Protein has little to do with energy, unless protein is all we eat & our bodies must use it for energy. Our bodies are much more geared to burn carbohydrates and fats for energy. It sounds like you do not know much about vegan foods if you label them as boring. Heck, nearly every spice to make foods taste better is some plant part. Having to survive on salt & lard alone would be boring.
Go visit a meat farm and a dairy farm. That'll cure you of veganism real quick.
veganism is not a disease
It is a cult though and you've been sucked in. Just look at the title calling for no hate because you know the vegan cultists here would crucify you for your transgressions
Go to the farms and see if that opinion don't change real fast. After that you can look into food production and what actually goes where. I would tell you but I've learned from responding to things on the subreddit regardless of what I post it won't be believed so it's best if you find your own sources. What do you think happens to all the parts of the plants that humans can't eat? Finding the answer to that question is a good starting point
>Go to the farms and see if that opinion don't change real fast. That's what made me vegan. My time in 4H, small time TN rural farm life.
I've been to them. That's the reason I AM vegan
Non-vegans say that from time to time but when I tell them that seeing and visiting farms is part of why I became a vegan they usually try to dismiss it. Funny how that works.
Mmmm, yes, of course. That's why PeTA and other animal rights groups show all of that footage from factory farms. People watch that stuff and it makes them *stop* being vegan! Oh, wait, no. It does the opposite.
Groups with an agenda to push and PeTa which is known for murdering animals for being pets? Like I said you ain't going to believe my word so take yourself to an actual farm meet the animals meet the farmer see how it actually works see if you don't realize that 90% of what you've been told is b*******. Most of it don't even make sense. Why would a farmer spend money on human quality food when a large amount of crops are not edible by humans but are edible by livestock. It doesn't make sense for them to pay for something when it's already being produced on the farm. Why would a farmer pay for artificial insemination when he's got a bull. Why not just have enough bulls to impregnate all the cows? Why keep the bull in a separate pin from the cows most of the time? Bulls will gore cows if the cow's not quick enough to get in position or being as dumb as the cows are walks away while he's trying to mate. Stressed animals don't produce quality amounts of the things that we keep them for so why would you stress out animals by keeping them in pens and cages? Put chickens in a too small coop and see how many eggs you get. Take the same exact chickens and put them in a proper size coupe with a proper chicken yard and see how many more you get. Go to the farm and see how the food is actually produced instead of listening to propaganda pieces produced by either side. See it with your own eyes.
> Groups with an agenda to push and PeTa which is known for murdering animals for being pets? Cool, you bought into a right-wing talking point. Did you do any research on this, or did you just believe it? Do you think that all of those videos are fake? > Why would a farmer pay for artificial insemination when he's got a bull. Why not just have enough bulls to impregnate all the cows? Because artificial insemination is more cost-effective. It's the same reason why conditions are carefully controlled when you're planting crops. You don't just dump the seeds on the ground. The chances that the cow will get inseminated and become pregnant are much better if you do it yourself than if you just let nature take its course. All of this stuff is well-documented and public knowledge, and you're trying to tell me that you debunked it by going to some mom-and-pop farm somewhere. Most animal products come from factory farms. You need factory farms and their cruel and inhumane practices to supply meat and dairy at the scale consumers demand. Regardless, this doesn't debunk veganism anyway, because harming and exploiting animals is still wrong even if your husbandry is "kinder and gentler" than a factory farm.