Author: slithers

or Why vegans should come out of the “veg” closet and stop claiming parity with vegetarians.

When I was a child, I loved animals and dreamed of becoming vegetarian, though my parents forbade it. I knew that vegetarians were peaceful folks who lived in harmony with animals. Eventually, I was able to realize this dream, at 16 (on my first day of college). I was a typical lacto-ovo-vegetarian (I ate milk, egg and plant products, but no “meat”), thought nothing of animal parts used in non-food materials. Gradually, my childhood dream dissipated as I began to realize that my limited steps did not entirely coincide with a peaceful world.

While shopping one school break, I bought a real pair of blue suede shoes at a thrift store, but my middle sister pointed out that leather, like beef, comes from slaughtered cows (and I sadly returned them). Not long after, I asked a vegan friend in college why she didn’t eat eggs or dairy & she patiently explained her reasons. This got me to thinking, but I wasn’t sure I could make such radical changes; I did some experimenting and ended up going vegan some time later. Yet I still considered myself vegetarian, albeit a “pure” or “100%” vegetarian. I felt myself to be part of the larger family of vegetarians, including all who declined to eat animal flesh. Continue reading “Veg, Vegetarian, Veg*n VS. Vegan”

To the best of my knowledge, there are 2 major vegan magazines, available at Whole Foods and some newsstands, Vegan Health & Fitness (VHF) and VegNews (VN); I am going to do a little comparison of the two.

Disclaimers: I used to be a subscriber to VegNews, so I’m basing my knowledge of VegNews on the memory of the many issues I read some years back (so some of the items I mention may have changed); I started reading Vegan Health & Fitness more recently (last year), so the comparison may be a bit unbalanced.  Also, I’m considering only print content, not online content.

Appeal

• VN has a relatively wide appeal, to many with an interest in vegan, vegetarian or “veg” lifestyle, even those with no interest in health.
  Content spans recipes, food product reviews, nutrition, travel tips, animal news, celebrity news, veg weddings/relationships, humor and occasional social issues, all with a “veg” spin.
  Target audience seems to be primarily white, well-to-do vegetarians and vegans with disposable income (e.g., to travel).
• VHF has a relatively narrow appeal, to those with an interest in physical fitness [exercise], health and veganism.
  Content is mainly interviews with and articles on health-conscious vegans and fitness professionals, along with some recipes, nutrition info and occasional other tidbits.
  Target audience seems to be health-conscious vegans of all backgrounds, but primarily those in “prime” of life (20s-40s).

Continue reading “Vegan Mags: VH&F VS VN”

Generally speaking, plant foods are less “calorie dense” than animal foods and if you’re trying to lose weight, reducing animal products can help.  Recently, I’d tried pointing this out to a friend who is trying to lose weight and they said something along the lines that “seitan” is roughly the same as “steak” (in terms of calories).  This got me wondering about the nutritional comparison of meat substitutes and other vegan “faux” products with the various animal products they’re meant to mimic, so I did a little research:

Seitan vs. Steak

• • Seitan  (3 oz) , Michael’s Savory, uncooked  {source}
    • Calories: 70 (may be more after cooking)
      • Cal. from fat: 0
    • Protein: 10g
    • Fat: 0
      • Saturated fat: 0
    • Cholesterol: 0
  • Sirloin Steak (3 oz), cooked   {source}
    • Calories: 210
      • Cal. from fat: 130
    • Protein: 20g
    • Fat: 14g
      • Saturated fat: 6g
    • Cholesterol: 70mg

Continue reading ““Faux” Plant products are better for diet”