what is vegan

I don't know if Vegan helps or not but if should because as you said milk has fat in it. I use 1 percent milk which has less fat. Just have to read labels to see how much fat things have.I son't think I could go Vegan because I like meat too much.

vegan means not eating animal products....

kathy, i'm vegan for ethical reasons. i used to love meat too

A true vegan eats absolutely no animal by products either. No honey, no gelatin, no dairy, no eggs...nothing that is remotely animal related at all.

My sister's family is vegan and has been for the better part of 10 plus years. It can be very expensive and protein consumption usually isn't an issue because of all of the vegan products being made up of soy...calcium is a big issue. One who follows a vegan diet should take calcium citrate supplementation daily.

Reasons for veganism vary. From g.I. Upset and intolerance to just plain old animal rights protection and beliefs.

The one thing I would caution anyone changing their diet to vegetarian or vegan...this does not give one free rights to all of the pasta and bread they can consume. It is imperative to keep your protein intake high so not to pack on extra pounds...or plateau. Carbs are not the enemy...but they must be consumed in moderation and used primarily for fuel...I.e., before workouts and stuff.

my reasons are ethical and no, calcium is not a problem.. soy milk is fortified with calcium as are most orange juices (mine is) and leafy greens have plenty. the body also absorbs calcium better from plant sources than animal sources so the body actually needs less of it.

Thanks for letting me know exactly what Vegan and I do respect why you started eating that way. I really didn't mean to insult anyone.

Good Luck to you on the vegan diet:) I hope it works out for you. I have read about it and it is not for me as I know I could not follow it.

hlks...are you getting at least 1200 units of calcium a day? And I should add...if one does take a supplement, one should add vit. d as well. They usually come in a combo. This is the standard intake dose for healthy women, regardless of the diet.

1200? not sure, but probably as i drink calcium fortified soy milk and orange juice and plenty of leafy greens. is 1200 the amount recommended for veggies or non veggies? because a study done over a period of 20+ years on 2000 vegetarians and vegans showed that, though veggies for quite a bit less calcium than non veggies, their calcium absorbancy was much better (because calcium from animal products is malabsorbed) thus they did not have any signs of bone degeneration, unlike the non veg group who did show signs despite the normal or higher amount of calcium they got. meaning, of course, that veg's need less calcium than non veg's.

katie, well, it is difficult I admit.. but it's mostly an ethical thing which makes it more necessary... otherwise I may not do it because it really is hard.