I have been vegaterian for 5months now, im ready to switch to veganism. Is there any tips or help for me?

Question

im aware of the vitamins i'll have to take but i dont know which ones to be specific. but also what are the sort of side-effects that are going to come along with the change over? anything i do to let the people in my life not become concerned that im doing this for the wrong reasons? any and all help is thankful.

Answer 1

At first it was hard to eat out, but now that I am more confident in being a vegan, I realize that there are so many options. And its just a matter of creativity.

Plus sometimes I had vegetarian days and I realized that I am not bad vegan, but just human so the next day I would continue being a vegan.

Plus your mental attitude towards things becomes more spiritual. – Example I became kinder, not just to animals but people that were having a hard time too. I am not sure if that was due to my own maturity or the change in diet influencing my own journey in life.

Edit: for people ,just tell them that you going be healthy, research all your health needs and just try your best for your own decision.

Answer 2

purchase plenty of toilet paper

Answer 3

There are no side effects of becoming vegan if you meet all of your nutritional needs with what you eat.

Soy milk is your friend.  If you drink 16 ounces of soy milk a day you will meat your requirements for B12 and much more.  You can have half of that on fortified breakfast cereal which is a must.  The cereal is where you will get a wealth of other important nutrients.

In the beginning you may want to take a vegan friendly vitamin, but it isn't necessary.  

I get my protein from faux meat at dinner and sometimes at lunch if I eat leftovers.  I also eat peanut butter everyday.  Nuts are also a great snack.  A few nuts and you feel renewed and re-energized.

Faux meat comes in many varieties from many brands.  There is ground, which is like ground beef.  There is chick'n, smart dogs, meatless meatballs, beefless strips...You name it...

We also eat soy cheese macaroni every week.  All you need is one pound of your fave pasta (whole wheat is healthier) and 1 pound of cheddar flavored soy cheese.  Cut the cheese into tiny cubes and place it in a pan over high heat with about 1/4 cup of soy milk.  Constantly stir as it heats to boiling.  Then turn it off.  When the pasta is aldente and drained, pour the cheese sauce over it and stir.  You can time it out once you try it out a few times.

I hope everything works out for you and find this info helpful.  E-mail me if you need anymore info :)

Answer 4

I would recomment taking a supplement that is high in protein and B-12. I took Klamath Blue Green Algae and it really helped me, and it was the highest protein supplement that I could find. Heres a link, I hope that helps.

Answer 5

Be diagnosed with about thirty food allergies. That's what did it for me :-D

Well, soy milk is a great alternative to regular milk. And great egg substitutes that you can make and put in foods you make are:

1 tsp. baking powder + 1 Tbsp liquid + 1 Tbsp vinegar

1.5 Tbs. water + 1.5 Tbs. Oil + 1 tsp. baking powder

1 Tbs. Pureed fruit (like bananas or apricots...but my favorite is applesauce)

Look up different things like Milk and Egg allergies, because a lot of times they list ingredients to look out for if you have food allergies, so you'll know to avoid them too because you're a vegan.

It's really easy, once you find some good snacks to keep around, and recipes you really like. Just stick with it, and congratulations!

http://www.kidshealth.org/teen/misc/milk...

http://www.kidshealth.org/teen/misc/egga...

Answer 6

Yea know that when yo first switch over your gonna have to go to the bathroom. alotttt. It takes a while for your digestive system to get used to it.

And your parents kinda have to be willing to buy soy milk(silk is the best), and egg substitutes for baking( you can make your own or energ-e egg replacer is a good one..or somehting like that), maybe soy cheese, tofu, veggie burgers, and other things like that.

Also watch out for gelatin, mono and diglycerides, caseine, whey, lard, carmine(made from crushed up bugs=p)etc.

Most breads have mono and  diglygerides(which are fats from animals) and that was my main problem. I eat a lot of pita bread now, mostly father sams brand if you can find that. also father sams tortillas are vegan.

I eat a whole lot of nuts like almonds, cashews, things like that for protein. I also eat soooo much fruit, probably more than i should haha.

You can find some good tofu recipes out there although you cant have tofu that much, its not a replacement for meat and should be eaten sparingly.

You should also try some hummus, its really good.

For margerines and butter umm i know light smart balance is vegan and i think light blue bonnet margerine.

If you go to a whole foods store there are tons of things there. Also you should definitely defintely take a vitamin every morning, and just try to avoid sodas, energy drinks, and coffee even if they are vegan.

Its not that hard to get used to, good luck!!

Answer 7

I think milk is the hardest thing to give up. It has opiates in it and is somewhat addictive. I had panic attacks for a while when I went vegan, but my nutritional intake was probably not good at the time because I had no knowledge. I would say eat as many fruits and veggies as you care for, organic if possible and base your diet around that. I don't take any vitamins except for B-12 occasionally. Get in the sun as much as you want but don't overdo it. It is the best form of vitamin D. After that, have fun with it. There are many great ethnic dishes from around the world that are vegan or can easily be made vegan. My favorites are Thai, Middle Eastern, Mexican and sometimes Indian. Get some recipes online or in a good cookbook and start experimenting. I discovered a lot of great food after I went vegan that I might not have tasted otherwise if I had remained on the pizza-pasta-burger diet.