Um. No. I don't. If you haven't heard of this book already, and you're considering veganism, I highly recommend it. The book is "Skinny Bitch: A no nonsense, tough-love guide for savvy girls who want to stop eating crap and look fabulous!" This book spurred my first (month long) foray into the world of veganism. And their not kidding about the tough love part. In the book, the authors point out this seemingly overlooked fact. Have you ever heard of anyone dying from a lack of protein? I definitely haven't. At least not in the good ol' U.S.A.
By far my biggest hurdle in my transition into veganism will be giving up cheese, but their are some pretty strong incentives to give the crap up all together. Firstly, cheese does not make you thin. Unless you live in France, walk everywhere and snack lightly on fresh, locally cultivated shit, you will not be doing your physique any favors by eating it. Secondly, the cheese industry is tied in with the cattle industry, causing deforestation, o-zone depletion (via cow farts) and the mistreatment of hundreds of thousands of bovines. But its in EVERYTHING! After going through the vegan lifestyle once already in this life, I can tell you now that making your own vegan food at home is not the hard part. The hard part is socializing in grown up society when you don't eat dairy or meat. The hard part is saying no to your grandmothers delicious stuffed shells, when she made them especially for you! Or skipping out on ALL the platters being passed around the party. But still, in a country where obesity is an epidemic, and where double bacon cheese burger reign supreme (as well as nacho bell grandes) cheese is killing us.
The reasons for giving it up are there, but knowing why you should stop, and actually stopping are two very different things. Something to postulate on.
-GoingGreenGirl
