To be...or not to be

[ClayMeow]

The teeth say it all.

 

As do our eyes. They are hunters eyes, not prey. Look at lions, tigers, cheetahs, leopards, bears and other meat-eating hunters. Eyes at the front of the head together. Now look at typical "prey". Gazelle, rabbits, antelope, deer etc etc ... eyes are further apart and on the sides of the head mostly. This is mother nature evolving us to hunt and evolving "prey" to have better eyesight (to maintain a supposed equilibrium)

 

Vegan to me is a bit extreme. It is also quite limiting and hypocritical, seeing as plants and pulses were all once upon a time living, much like eggs, milk and steaks. Vegetarian, I can deal with that. Lots of protein can be obtained from dairy products, while iron can be sought through the likes of spinach.

 

Your call really, but it is a fact that humans are omnivorous.

QFT.

[CelticaFLM]

Our teeth aren't near as sharp as most animals that hunt their pray......we aren't as fast....and my claws aren't as sharp ....but anyway...

 

There's nothing in meat that I can't get from veggies....nuts...etc. The only problem I may face....is not getting vitamine D......but I can always get out in the sun for a while and that'll take care of that ::hisses::

 

I have nothing against hunting meat....I have much respect for how native americans use to live...they hunted animals...and they used every part of them....wasted nothing. That is NOT a slaughterhouse. Trust me....I won't go into detail...because it makes me sick to my stomach.....it's really a shame how animals are treated. I could go on for days about it :-|.

 

I'm still debating on the whole fish thing.....I love...LOVE..baked salmon....a major issue with fish is increased mercury levels....it all depends on where the fish comes from of course. Also.....meat....is pretty much...just protein.....have you ever heard of anyone having a protein defeciency? I eat lots of almonds....seeds...etc.....so i'm not so worried about that. Most people get too much protein in their diet.

 

I'm also cutting out refined sugars.....white flour and all that yummy stuff. Everything just has too many additives...and chemicals.....formaldehyde....I mean.....seriously....

 

 

Anyway.....my MAIN concern is that I have a major sweet tooth....I can't live without chocolate...and I need new food ideas.....so .....help me :-)

 

 

The teeth say it all.

 

As do our eyes. They are hunters eyes, not prey. Look at lions, tigers, cheetahs, leopards, bears and other meat-eating hunters. Eyes at the front of the head together. Now look at typical "prey". Gazelle, rabbits, antelope, deer etc etc ... eyes are further apart and on the sides of the head mostly. This is mother nature evolving us to hunt and evolving "prey" to have better eyesight (to maintain a supposed equilibrium)

 

Vegan to me is a bit extreme. It is also quite limiting and hypocritical, seeing as plants and pulses were all once upon a time living, much like eggs, milk and steaks. Vegetarian, I can deal with that. Lots of protein can be obtained from dairy products, while iron can be sought through the likes of spinach.

 

Your call really, but it is a fact that humans are omnivorous.

 

Vegan is no animal products.....not "no living...anything" lol. I'm not eating dirt :-|. And....sure I feel bad when I kill a houseplant....but plants don't scream (I swear I didn't hear anything).........and they don't look at you with big kind eyes.

 

I'm only on day 3 btw

Edited August 7, 2007 by CelticaFLM

[CoolMaster]

Our teeth aren't near as sharp as most animals that hunt their pray......we aren't as fast....and my claws aren't as sharp ....but anyway...

 

There's nothing in meat that I can't get from veggies....nuts...etc. The only problem I may face....is not getting vitamine D......but I can always get out in the sun for a while and that'll take care of that ::hisses::

 

I have nothing against hunting meat....I have much respect for how native americans use to live...they hunted animals...and they used every part of them....wasted nothing. That is NOT a slaughterhouse. Trust me....I won't go into detail...because it makes me sick to my stomach.....it's really a shame how animals are treated. I could go on for days about it :-|.

 

I'm still debating on the whole fish thing.....I love...LOVE..baked salmon....a major issue with fish is increased mercury levels....it all depends on where the fish comes from of course. Also.....meat....is pretty much...just protein.....have you ever heard of anyone having a protein defeciency? I eat lots of almonds....seeds...etc.....so i'm not so worried about that. Most people get too much protein in their diet.

 

I'm also cutting out refined sugars.....white flour and all that yummy stuff. Everything just has too many additives...and chemicals.....formaldehyde....I mean.....seriously....

Anyway.....my MAIN concern is that I have a major sweet tooth....I can't live without chocolate...and I need new food ideas.....so .....help me :-)

Vegan is no animal products.....not "no living...anything" lol. I'm not eating dirt :-|.

 

 

dont worry about mercury in the water with fish, think about how many people just eat fish out in the islands and such and back in the day, they lived like FOREVER, like the tribes on african islands and such they live to be very old. Mercury levels in the water is like a nonissue, especially in the ocean,

and if not fish, what about crustaceans and such? crabs, lobster, they are quite good for you!

 

the mercury thing is just a scare, because fish are an EXCELLENT source of protein!

 

and you'll miss out on more than vitamin d btw, theirs some other minerals that alot of ppl dont know about if you go vegan or vegetarian, so u will have to take vitamins.

 

so fish.....ftw

[CelticaFLM]

I take a multi vitamin(prenatal) anyway......but food wise i'm eating a balance of everything.......I dun know what I could be missing

 

I'm also trying to eat organic...to avoid pesticides etc.

 

Also....in regards to milk.....there have been studies done that show some of the additives in milk actually leech calcium from our bones...milk doesn't do a body good...calcium does.....the milk we drink has too much crap (for lack of a better word) in it. Which brings me to another point.....no other mammal continues to drink milk after infancy.....why do we? It would look pretty silly for us to still be breastfeeding....so we find another animal to take milk from.......kinda odd if you think about it .

 

Don't get me wrong...I love cheese...butter...and icecream just as much as th next person.....i'm just looking for alternatives....and i've found a few good ones.

Edited August 7, 2007 by CelticaFLM

[Silverfox]

We may not be as fast or quite as pointy-sharp toothed, but we are nonetheless designed to eat both meat (incisors) and chew on green (molars). Our molars are like cows teeth - round and ideally flat, but from the diets we enjoy, this isn't quite perfect. Our incisors are wider than that of other mammals, but they are probably actually a lot sharper than people give them credit for. Same for canines - I know mine are seriously sharp really - my tongue would tell you that!

 

As for vegan accuracy, I apologise. I hear too many vegans talk garbage about not eating animals and by-products. Okay, but plants and whatnot are still living. How do you think a carrot feels (or potato) when it is happy growing in a field when some underpaid jerk comes and rips it out of the dirt by its hair? I bet apples feel similar when they are wrenched from their happy lives on the tree. In fact, I'd hazard a bet that they would have lived much longer back on that tree we could go on ...

 

In the same way that we quickly categorise mammals, vertebrae, endo/exoskeleton, amphibians etc ... using the same methodology we can generally class hunter and the hunted sorry if I'm going on a bit, but I often find that people do such things for the wrong reasons. May I ask why you feel that you are unhealthy? I bet I can suggest more enjoyable ways of eating healthily without giving up the things you like (or at least appear to! I assume you like meat?).

 

edit: I'd be interested to see your source for those studies btw! Remember that we are meant to get 6 pints of water a day too? Studies proved it. What "they" omitted though, was that the same reports said that 75% of the required water is in our food. I should imagine that there is a logical explanation or misguided truth to that one. I agree that it is strange that we drink milk, but if a cow doesn't get milked and continues to eat grass, what happens to it? That's right - it dies (eventually and painfully). Also, note that cats, dogs and birds all like milk, but the first two can't deal with it well. Cats are lactose intolerant, but still love it .. hilarious.

[bigred]

Yes we are....but that wasn't mother natures intention....that was our decision. That's what's great about being on top of the food chain....we can eat whatever critter we want to......but we don't HAVE to. There's plenty of tasty..healthier options.

 

If you can give me meat that's free of hormones....steroids....antibiotics....that wasn't killed in a nasty slaughterhouse....then I might eat it....if i'm really hungry

 

 

sorry I can't help it.

 

 

 

the two at the bottom relate directly to the quote. the other one was just funny and was in the same folder.

Vegetarians.bmp

Protein_shakes.bmp

[CelticaFLM]

Now...you are making me pet the apple I have sitting on my desk...STOP!!!!

 

 

Actually I was never big on meat.....sure every once in a while I want a chunk of cow and I would gladly bite someones head off in order to get it.....but...same goes for chocolate....and well....we won't go there.....

 

The stuff that is added to our meat is poison and the conditions in slaughterhouses are shameful.....even so called "free range" is still questionable.

 

I love fresh veggies and fruit....I could live on them happily. Fish and seafood...i'm still debating on. They don't have all the "junk" added...so that's a maybe.

 

My main health issue was the need for caffiene in order to get going....i've quit coffee. Also.....i've quit pop....there's nothing beneficial in soda...NOTHING.

 

Also, Silverfox....I don't believe everything I read....but I have visited some of these places and have seen things first hand...also...I have friends who work in the industry.....the horror stories are just that...horrific. Anywho....you are supposed to drink lots of water....it's our "lifeforce"....you DON'T get 75% of your required water if you eat "crap". Also....drinking extra amounts of water won't hurt you...you aren't killing little water droplets......it flushes toxins from your body..it's great....just don't be an idiot and drink it nonstop for a whole day....you can get water "poisoning"...throw your electrolites off etc etc.

 

Also...cow's are fed hormones etc to make them produce milk longer than they normally would. Cow's feed their young until they are weened....then they stop. They don't explode after this process....they don't fill up with milk....their udders dry up until they are pregnate again.....just like humans....mostly. We invented the never ending milk cow :-p. Also....dairy farms....the way they milk the cows....by hooking nozzles up to their udders....the nipples get infected....puss and all gets pumped on through.....it's disgusting...and terrible for the cows.

 

 

This thread...wasn't supposed to be an "explain why I want to be a vegan and back it up with research". It's a "find others that are" or "get recipe ideas" etc etc thread. Everything I do is based on opinions i've formed based on things I have learned...experienced...etc.

 

 

 

 

Bigred...you silly man

 

 

 

 

 

 

I've cut out junk....sugar...caffiene....red meat...and alcohol....and just in a few days I feel awesome. It's about getting healthy and getting all the toxins out of my system.....secondly....comes my "beef" with how animals are treated in meat "farms".

 

 

I just need some new interesting ideas for meals.

Edited August 7, 2007 by CelticaFLM

[oblivescence]

Just please dont go all peta on us if you can. They get rather annoying at times.

 

anyways, I dont really know any vegan meals or anything like that, but what about growing your own garden? That could help offset the cost of it all, and you would know exactly where your food is coming from.

 

Kicking caffeine and other things is great, as far as I am concerned, once I kick something like that, If I get to the point where I can have it in moderation and still be disciplined enough not to go overboard I will do that. I cant imagine giving up meat for the rest of my like though. Meat is the major food group upon what every other food group is built off of.

[CelticaFLM]

Just please dont go all peta on us if you can. They get rather annoying at times.

 

anyways, I dont really know any vegan meals or anything like that, but what about growing your own garden? That could help offset the cost of it all, and you would know exactly where your food is coming from.

 

Kicking caffeine and other things is great, as far as I am concerned, once I kick something like that, If I get to the point where I can have it in moderation and still be disciplined enough not to go overboard I will do that. I cant imagine giving up meat for the rest of my like though. Meat is the major food group upon what every other food group is built off of.

 

 

MEAT IS MURDER!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Just kidding :-p

 

The problem is we are eating what the cow/pig/chicken has been given.....steroids...to make it bigger.....I don't know about you...but I don't want to be bigger....hormones....I have enough of those thanks....antibiotics....NO.

[Silverfox]

Well they say you should stick to your diet (as in slimming diet) 80% of the time. This prevents you being unrealistic and giving up completely. I'm now cutting back on pop/soda/fizzy drinks, though the odd one is okay. I'm eating roasted peanuts instead of potato chips/crisps (bad, but not AS bad). I have toast dry instead of with butter. I don't add butter to my pasta. Most importantly, I've been eating a piece of fruit once a day at least - which is a big thing for someone who's not a fan of fruit. I don't drink tea or coffee (tastes awful), but when I am about to fall asleep, an espresso (or double) helps. I keep my brain active (Dr Kawashima's Brain Training is actually VERY good for you mentally, more so as your brain burns off a MASSIVE amount of calories in an active day) and also do sit-ups and press-ups 3 times a day (not masses - just enough to feel the burn).

 

Of course, I let slip occasionally. Beer is my weakness -it's where all my weight and bad diet stems from

 

The best way to feel better is to do some exercise. Once you get past the initial "this sucks and I'd rather be a fatty" stage (I get that a lot), you find that your body wants to do MORE exercise and in turn you have loads more energy. Best way to get "toxins" out is to not put them in. Find a GOOD local butcher. Find a GOOD local farmers market. You will certainly pay a premium, but it will taste nicer. Hell, grow your own. I'm sure you must have a small plot of land to cultivate a little, right? Oh and fish very often has preservatives added to keep it "fresher", seeing as it loses freshness quickly

 

You see, I think people blame health on what they are eating, as in, "hidden" ingredients. I can eat ANYTHING that pleases me in any volume and not put on a pound, raise/lower my blood pressure or even go near an average cholesterol level ... so long as I am doing regular exercise. If I stop, I put on weight quickly, but lose it with exercise just as fast. I can bet you that the majority of people would be the same if they could be bothered to find out!

[oblivescence]

MEAT IS MURDER!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Just kidding :-p

 

The problem is we are eating what the cow/pig/chicken has been given.....steroids...to make it bigger.....I don't know about you...but I don't want to be bigger....hormones....I have enough of those thanks....antibiotics....NO.

 

yeah, I know, honestly though, I dont see much of a choice, if you are going to eat meat, you have to deal with all that crap. Though also keep in mind, they do similar stuff to all the plants we grow now. They have what is called "roundup beans" which are soybeans that are not affected by roundup, good for farmers so they don't lose crops. heres the link. http://ard.unl.edu/rn/0900/bean.html

 

I would prefer to eat non-drugged-gene-manipulated-steroided-hormoned-irradiate-foods, but its too much trouble to be worth it to me. Plus, I exercise, and that does help one stay a little healthier.

[CelticaFLM]

I'm healthy as a horse....blood sugar...pressure....everything...perfect...hearing...vision...etc etc. That's not the point. I could eat a big mac or two every day....exercise....and still look healthy....doesn't mean I am. Yes exercise is a must no matter what you eat....but you should still eat healthy....you don't have to be a vegan to be healthy....nor a vegetarian for that matter....it's just what i'm attempting to do. I don't want all the added "poisons" in my body...plain and simple. My weekness = chocolate.....I can have dark chocolate....but i'm going to limit myself.

 

I do plan on growing my own veggies. I have a couple acres....but I don't have the time to get that started untill next year. We have a "Fresh Market".....fresh fish..meats etc.....but still....I don't know where they come from...you have to be careful.