What I Like/Dislike About Veganism

Are any of you vegan and/or know people who are vegan? Veganism is certainly a a very healthy lifestyle, particularly compared to the average American diet. Having said that, there are different types of vegans, some of whom are great people who genuinely are doing it for their own personal health and/or ethical reasons and whome encourage others to be the same in non-judgmental/non-legalistic way, and some of whom say others need to do the same or otherwise they will essentially be unhealthy murderers. Here, I would like to explain a couple of the different types of vegans, and what I like and dislike about them.

The first type of vegans I want to discuss are the non-judgmental ones. A few of my good friends are that type of vegan. Actually, one of them was that type of vegan but now eats some dairy. These vegans recognize that a plant- based diet is filled with health benefits that are far better than the standard American cuisine and cooking in general. They also recognize that those who choose to consume dairy are not inherently bad people and that going plant-based does not necessarily make one healthy. For instance, they understand that vegans may need to take vitamin supplements for necessary vitamins that one cannot get from non-dairy products. Below is a video of one such vegan who correctly shares that vegans may need to take those vitamin supplements, in addition to a link to a page from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services on one of those vitamins and foods it can be obtained from, as well as the necessity of it. I like this type of vegan because even though I myself am a meat eater, these vegans are generally very honest and informed regarding what they promote. That makes it a lot easier for me to relate to them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID_2ymmvW5w

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminB12-HealthProfessional/

The other type of vegans I want to discuss are the more extreme ones who say that meat eaters and such are murderers and are inherently unhealthy people. Perhaps this type of vegan has good intentions, though they certainly have an almost conservative approach to their philosophy. As some readers of this article likely know, there is a Netflix film from last year titled "What the Health" that promotes a vegan diet. The film brings up a few decent points, such as the negative affects of pollution and that sort of thing, but the film misrepresents a lot of their scientific sources to make their points. It is honestly a bit hard for me to tell whether they do that intentionally or if they are just misinformed. One of their most inaccurate claims is that eating one egg is as bad for a person as smoking five cigarettes. Below is a link an article that explains why that claim is flawed, as well as a link to a BBC video about vegans who have gone as far as threatening farmers. I admire that these vegans often bring up important issues that need addressing, but I find that much of the science they use to make their claims is based on a misunderstanding of actual science, and the way they go about their activism is rather judgmental of others who do things differently from them.

https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/movies/new-movies/sensational-claims-by-netflix-documentary-what-the-health-slammed-by-experts/news-story/b089ead18b4547ec7d10bf79f812c744

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfLBvU8sSWw

As is true with most demographics, vegans are a fairly diverse bunch. There may even be vegans who out there who do not fit either of the descriptions I listed about above and are instead somewhere in between. Vegans overall have number good points that I think are worth talking about, but a number of the vegans I have encountered have a rigid approach to the way they go about promoting their ideas. Vegans should absolutely feel free to continue promoting their ideas, though some of them really should work on how they go about doing so. I am completely open to new ideas and information that is presented in a civil manner, and I am almost certain that most others are that way too.

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