Hi, I’ve been following your substack for a while now. I’ve been vegan for around six years. I thought things were going fine. I feel pretty healthy and when I go to the gym I seem to have the same strength and endurance as before going vegan. I get plenty of organic vegetables and not much sugar.
However, the last year or so I’ve had some clues that maybe I’m not so healthy. I’ve had a rash that showed up at times and then would heal and go away, but lately it’s there most of the time and my hair isn’t as healthy as it always has been.
I’ve been reading up and decided that I need to cut out processed food and vegetable oils. That means no more plant based “meat”, no more earth balance vegan butter, veganaise, vegan sour cream, most of the vegan cheeses… I make some great chili with lots of veggies and beans and a few other meals that I can still eat, but I need to pack a sandwich for work and peanut butter and jelly isn’t really healthy.
I’m kinda stressing out because I can’t live with contributing to the suffering of my fellow conscious beings, but I don’t know what I’m going to eat. If you could point me to any resources that might help, I would greatly appreciate it!
first of all I would mention supplementation with B12 (cyanocobalamin) in chewable, under tongue or liquid form, 1000ug a couple of times a week- it is the only essential one for vegans, but it is essential - for making blood and nerve cells and many reactions. It's made by bacteria found in the soil, not by animals and many farmed animals have to have it supplemented too. Many vegans especially British ones, seem reluctant to take it, I had forgotten for awhile too so thanks for the reminder.
Please don't stress- easy to say I know.
I don't think organic raw peanut or almond butter- easy to get online- is unhealthy - in fact I would say it is healthy-especially as you're also exercising. I love nuts and noticed a rash recently and realised I hadn't been eating my usual tons of them- so put that right and the rash has gone.
Wholegrain bread is fine and you could add some moisture with grated apples or sliced mango instead of jelly.
You can also make humus with chickpeas (or any bean), lemon juice, black pepper and some organic tahini, add some slices of cucumber in a sandwich now you're making me hungry.
Yes I think the fake meat and cheese have to go- too salty and fatty.
My two favourite cook books are Deliciously Ella, she has a few now and How not to Die recipes.
I used to take a Tupperware of my veggie and beans and whatever and a fork and just eat out of it for work lunch but understand this may not be practical for everybody.
I know no one asked me and normally I try hard not to offer unsolicited advice but here i go, for Benjamin W I would add the following:
B12 - since I'm not a fan of supplements I get mine from nutritional yeast, bonus that it adds flavor to stuff, and according to Dr Greger's research has anti-cancer properties.
wrt 'what to eat', the whole food plant based cooking show (just put exactly that into the search bar) has tons of recipes, as does forks over knives.
I also found when I first started that keeping track of what I ate was helpful, I used Cronometer, gives a complete breakdown to make sure you get enough protein (we need 0.8grams per kg body weight), good balance of amino acids, etc etc. Free and easy to use.
for nutrition info, I love Dr Greger's site, nutritionfacts.org, you can choose to get your info by video, blogs/articles, there's a search bar to check out specific topics, videos have transcripts and references, Very handy resource.
Back when I was doing outreach/advocacy, and people would say being healthy as a vegan is really hard, I would point out that a lot of things in life are hard, but 1 - we do them anyway because they are worth it, and 2 - some things are hard initially but get easier as time goes by. Benjamin, thank you so much for putting in the effort to be vegan, and be assured that it IS very do-able to be completely nutritionally well on a whole food plant based diet. Thanks to you Jo for all the writing, the courage to be honest and say what lots of people don't always 'like' hearing, and the compassion you have for everyone, humans and non-humans alike.
thank you Jen, yes I know some of my blogs are gonna be unpopular - I love it!
Yes I love Dr G too, I've seen him twice and got my copy of HNTD signed -though he was completely wrong on vaccines and viruses of course. You're right about nutritional yeast, also meant to be good for hay fever
Yeah I was really disappointed on his take on the whole pandemic-covid thing. Where I live in Montreal, the vegan-animal-rights community got split right down the middle. There has been some 'coming together again for the common cause of animal rights", but it's one of those things where the people on opposite sides have to accept that they will never agree on 'that other topic'. So in the same way, I 100% admire Dr Greger for his nutrition work, but 100% disagree with (can't believe) his take on the 'pandemic'. But then, most (a lot at least) of the folks I admire in the pandemic fight are very anti-vegan.
Interesting to know about the hay fever benefit, I didn't know of that one :)
yes my being banned from both the substack and odyssey channel of the Bailey's for wanting to call out their comments and promotion of animal ag seems to be anti-vegan part of the no virus and health freedomy fight
Thank you SO much for the resources! I've been taking a B-complex since going vegan, but I've been adding nutritional yeast to dishes since day 1, not knowing it had B12 in it.
I truly appreciate you taking the time. Blessings to you!
I only eat organic whole grain bread and organic peanut butter with no added sugar, so that's good that I don't have to change that. I do take a B-complex to get my B12 and I also add nutritional yeast to dishes. I really like the idea of adding fresh apples or mangoes to the peanut butter sandwich to avoid jelly with all that added sugar. I'm going to check out the Deliciously Ella and How Not To Die recipes. Hoping to get some recipes to make stuff out of tofu to replace all the fake meat and cheese I've been eating. I did notice that the Daiya block cheeses are made with coconut oil, which, apparently, is the only oil that's not terrible, so if I HAVE to add cheese to a dish, I won't stress on that one. Now if I can just find a condiment to replace Veganaise. I absolutely love that stuff.
Thank you so much for the advice! I'm feeling a bit better about all this!!!
You sound like you're doing all the right things. I love silken tofu in a smoothie, but don't really cook with it much. I'm sure you find some recipes. Maybe you could add some lemon juice and soy sauce and make a sort of veganaise with it????
banana and peanut butter is also a fantastic combo. peanut butter or almond butter sandwiched between banana slices is a go-to snack for me when its available.
Also, look into ways to cook tofu as tofu. Just sauteed with soy sauce is great if done well. - As someone who grew up vegetarian and always loved tofu, its a pet-peeve of mine that everyone limits it to being a meat substitute for people who don't want to eat meat but still really do want to eat meat. Tofu is its own thing and it tastes much better when it is respected.
At this point, I put nothing past them. They’ve created such a web of lies that they probably don’t care which we believe as long as we keep running around like headless chickens.
I love the fact that you use words accurately - dead chickens. Exactly what they are. I also tend to use my words that way, when I talk to people I usually say 'dead animals' or 'dead bodies' instead the word meat. So instead of saying to someone (IF the topic comes up), 'Oh you eat meat?" I say "Oh you eat dead animals?". People don't like being reminded that meat is a dead body. I find myself very annoyed at all the news articles that report on "meat plants" being burned down or blown up. As if meat was manufactured like clothes or furniture. It drives me nuts that people think 'meat' is an object, not a piece of a dead animal. Words matter.
Yes, 100% absolutely and the possessive pronoun is almost always added - someone is trying to take away 'your' chickens was Sam Bailey's headline I think, like it's possible to own a being.
Yes animals don't seem to be involved in the production of meat and no-one is reporting on the terror of being trapped in a burning building- only worried about their food supply
Hominids have been mostly veggie for the vast majority of evolution, with some insects. Either way what was done before is not an indication of what we should do now.
I was not aware I was making a moral point. I was pointing out, (against agreed rules for the health freedom movement I know) that the animal ag industry (which is really part of big pharma as it uses the vast majority of drugs made) is massive, has massive lobbying power and has been funding deliberately misleading studies on health implications of humans eating unprecedented amounts of dead animals and their secretions for decades.
Make you it what you will. I'm not telling you what to do , just pointing this out.
Yes I too love my cats and I love the mice and birds that they occasionally kill.
I also am insulted that you think i started reading nutrition papers for myself because of Hollywood, or someone mentioned climate change or because Bill gates told me I should be plant based.
Pyschology is what they do. I suggest when someone tells you NOT to do something, such as take ivermectin, you look into ivermectin very carefully before you start taking it
Hi, I’ve been following your substack for a while now. I’ve been vegan for around six years. I thought things were going fine. I feel pretty healthy and when I go to the gym I seem to have the same strength and endurance as before going vegan. I get plenty of organic vegetables and not much sugar.
However, the last year or so I’ve had some clues that maybe I’m not so healthy. I’ve had a rash that showed up at times and then would heal and go away, but lately it’s there most of the time and my hair isn’t as healthy as it always has been.
I’ve been reading up and decided that I need to cut out processed food and vegetable oils. That means no more plant based “meat”, no more earth balance vegan butter, veganaise, vegan sour cream, most of the vegan cheeses… I make some great chili with lots of veggies and beans and a few other meals that I can still eat, but I need to pack a sandwich for work and peanut butter and jelly isn’t really healthy.
I’m kinda stressing out because I can’t live with contributing to the suffering of my fellow conscious beings, but I don’t know what I’m going to eat. If you could point me to any resources that might help, I would greatly appreciate it!
Thanks so much 🙏
Hello Benjamin,
thank you so much for reading and asking,
first of all I would mention supplementation with B12 (cyanocobalamin) in chewable, under tongue or liquid form, 1000ug a couple of times a week- it is the only essential one for vegans, but it is essential - for making blood and nerve cells and many reactions. It's made by bacteria found in the soil, not by animals and many farmed animals have to have it supplemented too. Many vegans especially British ones, seem reluctant to take it, I had forgotten for awhile too so thanks for the reminder.
Please don't stress- easy to say I know.
I don't think organic raw peanut or almond butter- easy to get online- is unhealthy - in fact I would say it is healthy-especially as you're also exercising. I love nuts and noticed a rash recently and realised I hadn't been eating my usual tons of them- so put that right and the rash has gone.
Wholegrain bread is fine and you could add some moisture with grated apples or sliced mango instead of jelly.
You can also make humus with chickpeas (or any bean), lemon juice, black pepper and some organic tahini, add some slices of cucumber in a sandwich now you're making me hungry.
Yes I think the fake meat and cheese have to go- too salty and fatty.
My two favourite cook books are Deliciously Ella, she has a few now and How not to Die recipes.
I used to take a Tupperware of my veggie and beans and whatever and a fork and just eat out of it for work lunch but understand this may not be practical for everybody.
Let me know how you get on if you like 🙏🏽
🐒
I know no one asked me and normally I try hard not to offer unsolicited advice but here i go, for Benjamin W I would add the following:
B12 - since I'm not a fan of supplements I get mine from nutritional yeast, bonus that it adds flavor to stuff, and according to Dr Greger's research has anti-cancer properties.
wrt 'what to eat', the whole food plant based cooking show (just put exactly that into the search bar) has tons of recipes, as does forks over knives.
I also found when I first started that keeping track of what I ate was helpful, I used Cronometer, gives a complete breakdown to make sure you get enough protein (we need 0.8grams per kg body weight), good balance of amino acids, etc etc. Free and easy to use.
for nutrition info, I love Dr Greger's site, nutritionfacts.org, you can choose to get your info by video, blogs/articles, there's a search bar to check out specific topics, videos have transcripts and references, Very handy resource.
Back when I was doing outreach/advocacy, and people would say being healthy as a vegan is really hard, I would point out that a lot of things in life are hard, but 1 - we do them anyway because they are worth it, and 2 - some things are hard initially but get easier as time goes by. Benjamin, thank you so much for putting in the effort to be vegan, and be assured that it IS very do-able to be completely nutritionally well on a whole food plant based diet. Thanks to you Jo for all the writing, the courage to be honest and say what lots of people don't always 'like' hearing, and the compassion you have for everyone, humans and non-humans alike.
thank you Jen, yes I know some of my blogs are gonna be unpopular - I love it!
Yes I love Dr G too, I've seen him twice and got my copy of HNTD signed -though he was completely wrong on vaccines and viruses of course. You're right about nutritional yeast, also meant to be good for hay fever
xxx
Yeah I was really disappointed on his take on the whole pandemic-covid thing. Where I live in Montreal, the vegan-animal-rights community got split right down the middle. There has been some 'coming together again for the common cause of animal rights", but it's one of those things where the people on opposite sides have to accept that they will never agree on 'that other topic'. So in the same way, I 100% admire Dr Greger for his nutrition work, but 100% disagree with (can't believe) his take on the 'pandemic'. But then, most (a lot at least) of the folks I admire in the pandemic fight are very anti-vegan.
Interesting to know about the hay fever benefit, I didn't know of that one :)
yes my being banned from both the substack and odyssey channel of the Bailey's for wanting to call out their comments and promotion of animal ag seems to be anti-vegan part of the no virus and health freedomy fight
It makes me sad beyond words that that's part of what's going on.
Thank you SO much for the resources! I've been taking a B-complex since going vegan, but I've been adding nutritional yeast to dishes since day 1, not knowing it had B12 in it.
I truly appreciate you taking the time. Blessings to you!
I only eat organic whole grain bread and organic peanut butter with no added sugar, so that's good that I don't have to change that. I do take a B-complex to get my B12 and I also add nutritional yeast to dishes. I really like the idea of adding fresh apples or mangoes to the peanut butter sandwich to avoid jelly with all that added sugar. I'm going to check out the Deliciously Ella and How Not To Die recipes. Hoping to get some recipes to make stuff out of tofu to replace all the fake meat and cheese I've been eating. I did notice that the Daiya block cheeses are made with coconut oil, which, apparently, is the only oil that's not terrible, so if I HAVE to add cheese to a dish, I won't stress on that one. Now if I can just find a condiment to replace Veganaise. I absolutely love that stuff.
Thank you so much for the advice! I'm feeling a bit better about all this!!!
You sound like you're doing all the right things. I love silken tofu in a smoothie, but don't really cook with it much. I'm sure you find some recipes. Maybe you could add some lemon juice and soy sauce and make a sort of veganaise with it????
Have fun
Jo
banana and peanut butter is also a fantastic combo. peanut butter or almond butter sandwiched between banana slices is a go-to snack for me when its available.
Also, look into ways to cook tofu as tofu. Just sauteed with soy sauce is great if done well. - As someone who grew up vegetarian and always loved tofu, its a pet-peeve of mine that everyone limits it to being a meat substitute for people who don't want to eat meat but still really do want to eat meat. Tofu is its own thing and it tastes much better when it is respected.
Thank you- sounds delicious
At this point, I put nothing past them. They’ve created such a web of lies that they probably don’t care which we believe as long as we keep running around like headless chickens.
'Doubt' as the tobacco industry advertisers used to say 'is their product'
Soooooooooooooooo evil.
Poor birds!!!
I love the fact that you use words accurately - dead chickens. Exactly what they are. I also tend to use my words that way, when I talk to people I usually say 'dead animals' or 'dead bodies' instead the word meat. So instead of saying to someone (IF the topic comes up), 'Oh you eat meat?" I say "Oh you eat dead animals?". People don't like being reminded that meat is a dead body. I find myself very annoyed at all the news articles that report on "meat plants" being burned down or blown up. As if meat was manufactured like clothes or furniture. It drives me nuts that people think 'meat' is an object, not a piece of a dead animal. Words matter.
Yes, 100% absolutely and the possessive pronoun is almost always added - someone is trying to take away 'your' chickens was Sam Bailey's headline I think, like it's possible to own a being.
Yes animals don't seem to be involved in the production of meat and no-one is reporting on the terror of being trapped in a burning building- only worried about their food supply
Hominids have been mostly veggie for the vast majority of evolution, with some insects. Either way what was done before is not an indication of what we should do now.
I was not aware I was making a moral point. I was pointing out, (against agreed rules for the health freedom movement I know) that the animal ag industry (which is really part of big pharma as it uses the vast majority of drugs made) is massive, has massive lobbying power and has been funding deliberately misleading studies on health implications of humans eating unprecedented amounts of dead animals and their secretions for decades.
Make you it what you will. I'm not telling you what to do , just pointing this out.
Yes I too love my cats and I love the mice and birds that they occasionally kill.
I also am insulted that you think i started reading nutrition papers for myself because of Hollywood, or someone mentioned climate change or because Bill gates told me I should be plant based.
Pyschology is what they do. I suggest when someone tells you NOT to do something, such as take ivermectin, you look into ivermectin very carefully before you start taking it
All Truth MS 👍
Despite what the brainwashed here believes is not