Sarah J. Blige

It’s not uncommon to encounter vegans in Vancouver, but when I talk about veganism to people back home (the good ol’ Albertan prairies), I’m usually met with looks of bewilderment. The most common response I get is, “But…what do you eat?” Most people regard vegetables as those pesky plants that fill in the remaining one-third of the plate that isn’t covered with meat. They couldn’t possibly imagine entirely eliminating meat from their diet – and dairy? What am I, CRAZY?!

The answer is no, I’m actually quite sane. And healthy, for that matter. Veganism is not unnatural, oppressive, or unhealthy, contrary to popular belief. The wonderful truth about veganism is that you can still eat delicious food (I enjoy cooking and eating far more now than I did in my omnivorous days), you’ll feel much healthier (I have way more energy and get sick much less frequently), you’ll look great (guaranteed weight-loss, since you’ll be eliminating all those nasty trans and saturated fats), and you’ll be doing your part to save the planet (did you know that the United Nations has declared livestock the greatest threat to the environment?).

Humans are the only species that drink the milk of another species. Gross.

My motivation for becoming vegan was purely ethical; I had always struggled with the idea of eating animal carcass, as well as the brutish treatment of animals raised for food, but upon doing a bit of research into the practices of the dairy industry I was equally appalled by what I found. My biggest concern was with a particular ingredient in cheese, a microbial enzyme known as rennet, which comes from the stomachs of slaughtered new-born calves.  I would never eat veal, so it just made sense to cut cheese out of my diet as well, as utterly heart-wrenching as this idea initially seemed to me. ( I love cheese, and giving it up has been my greatest struggle with veganism.)

I could talk endlessly about the cruelty of factory farms and the arguments for becoming vegan, but I wanted to dedicate this post to simplifying the matter for those who are a little confused about what we vegans actually eat, as well as what we don’t eat.

Obviously, we don’t eat meat in any form. That means no chicken/beef/pork stock, which, unnervingly, is found in a lot of vegetable soups. That would also include any product containing fish or fish-derivatives, like some curries and Worcestershire sauce.  We don’t eat eggs, or anything containing eggs. This means we’re unable to eat many baked goods since eggs are almost always used as a binding agent. We don’t eat butter, milk, buttermilk or cream. (Again, this means avoiding most baked goods.) And as I mentioned above, we don’t eat cheese.

There are also a few sneaky ingredients that most people aren’t even aware belong to the meat or dairy families. They include:

Whey: a cheese by-product; the liquid that remains from curdled and strained milk. Now that just sounds grody. Most margarine contains whey, so choose the yummier, vegan-friendly alternative Earth Balance instead.
Casein: a milk protein; casein is almost always found in soy cheese, so you may think you’re being a vegan superstar by going for the soy cheese alternative at the grocery store, but unfortunately casein is still a dairy product.
Gelatin: found in Jell-O, Gummi Bears, Jujubes, marshmallows and Island Farms Yogurt (to name a few), gelatin is a by-product of the meat and leather industries. It is derived from the collagen inside the bones and skins of animals, predominantly pigs and cows.
Pepsin: a digestive enzyme derived from the mucous membrane of pigs’ stomachs; sometimes used in the manufacture of cheese as a milk-curdling agent.

Yves veggie chicken burgers - totally vegan and free of preservatives!

There’s a wide array of meat-alternatives on the market that can help you to make the switch to a vegan diet, most of which are actually quite tasty. Head to the vegan/vegetarian section of your local supermarket and you’re sure to find veggie sausages, ground round, sandwich “meats” and burgers galore. There’s even such a thing as veggie “chicken” nuggets! The lovely thing about these meat-free alternatives is that they won’t clog your arteries and raise your cholesterol, or expand the circumference of your booty.

Many omnivores claim vegan diets lack protein, but the truth is that protein from vegetables, soy products, grains, legumes and fruits is far healthier than meat protein, and it is incredibly rare for vegans to develop protein deficiency, assuming they have a varied and balanced diet. Some fantastic meat-free sources of protein include tofu, tempeh, chickpeas, soybeans, lentils, kidney beans, wheat, rye, brown rice, broccoli, yams, zucchini, spinach, cauliflower, grapefruit, orange, melon and cauliflower.

When making the switch to veganism, it is crucial that you do some research to educate yourself and make sure you’re getting enough essential vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin B, calcium and iron. Fortunately, these are easily found as supplements at your local pharmacy or grocery store. You’ll also need to read labels very carefully to be sure you know what’s in your food.

There is also the matter of veganism as it applies to clothing, make-up and hair products, but that’s another topic for another day.

Check out http://www.goveg.com/ for information and tips on becoming vegan.
http://www.milksucks.com/index2.asp is a great site that illustrates the problems with a dairy-inclusive diet.