I want to become Vegan?

Question

I strongly beleive that the cruelty to animals is wrong. I'd like to become vegan and show others what I beleive. I'm fully aware that I will have to give up some of my favorite foods but I beleive the cause is more than worth it. After seeing some videos on how animals are killed in factories, I never really looked at meat with the same pleasure again. Although I'm willing to give up meat, dairy and other animal foods, the only thing standing in my way is my parents. My Dad strongly beleives that animals were put on this Earth to eat. My Mom beleives that it's not healthy to cut out animal foods because she doesn't know what could substitute them. They say that going to restraunts would be hard along with going to family cookouts. If I tell them what kinds of foods could substitute, they get angry and say that they are not going to make a second grocery list because I want to "Help the animals". Do you think there is any way to get through to them and become vegan?

Answer 1

Babysit, have car washes, help older people with house work for a job and then buy your own food and prove to your parents you are committed and then they might approve.

Answer 2

Your follow up " I am 13 live with my parents and can't get a job" pretty much limits your options at this point.

You are a minor living at home therefore your parents have total respopnsibility and authority over you. You can talk to them and explain why you want to do what you want to do but they have the last word on it. If you don't eat what they prepare and you get sick, they have the authority to take you to a hospital and have you force fed. Your health is their respionsibility and the authorities will in factg help them if you choose to gnore what they say.

It will boil down to how you are at home and and wqhat kind of relatonship you have with your parents. If they have experoenced some kind of fad that you went through before, then you can expect them to feel the same way about this. You can ask your Mom to go with you to the doc or a nutrritionist and perhaps get some professional opinion about health and the lifestyle. But again, your mother and father's word is final.

Answer 3

When our daughter was 14 she said she wanted to be a vegetarian. We took her to the doctors had them set up a diet and told us what vitamins and things she neede to take. She is 26 and still a vegetarian. We made her pay for her vitamins. She babysat, washed cars. mowed lawns and earned the money her self for her vitamins. We made her make her own grocery list and when I did the shopping she got everything on her list. We paid for her food but she had to help prepare her special foods. Maybe suggest something like this to your parents. If they know you are willing to work hard for it they might be willing to let you. Good luck

Answer 4

Hey.

Good to hear your committed.

Let your parents know all the good things like where your getting your protein and nutrients, and that you feel strongly about this.

Finding vegan food is easier than it's ever been. You can now buy vegan cheese, vegan chocolate, vegan ice-cream, vegan mayonnaise, vegan sausages, vegan yoghurt, vegan haggis...the choices are endless.

It'l be good to cook your own meals to, and try and cook a vegan meal for your mum and dad, and get them supporting you on your way.

Most vegan meals, are easy

I mean... chips and gravy quilifies as a vegan meal, but you can have this every night, lol.

Most vegan food comes cheap (pasta, rice, fruit and vegetables, breads, pulses, grains, etc.) Theres a great range of vegan foods in your local health store (Holland and Barrett, Fodder etc), and vegan foods can also be found in supermarkets (veggie burgers, veggie sasuages etc), they have a good range in the "free from" section to. Sainsburys and co-op label their own vegan foods suitable.

If you show your mum where your getting your protein:

Vegan Sources of Protein

The foods which commonly supply the most protein in a vegan diet are pulses (peas, beans, lentils, soya products), grains (wheat, oats, rice, barley, buckwheat, millet, pasta, bread), nuts (brazils, hazels, almonds, cashews) and seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, sesame).

Examples of amounts of foods providing 10g of protein

Type of food Quantity providing 10g protein (g)

Soya flour 24

Peanuts 39

Pumpkin seeds 41

Almonds 47

Brazil Nuts 50

Sunflower seeds 51

Sesame seeds 55

Hazel Nuts 71

Wholemeal bread 95

Whole lentils dried & boiled 114

Chickpeas dried & boiled 119

Kidney beans dried & boiled 119

Wholemeal spaghetti boiled 213

Brown rice boiled 385

And all the other important nutrients -

http://www.vegansociety.com/food/nutriti...

Try and show them some vegan sites to(recipes, nutrition, lifestyle, food, drink etc):

http://www.vegansociety.com/home.php

http://www.veganvillage.co.uk/

http://www.vegsoc.org/info/vegan-nutriti...

http://www.veganfamily.co.uk/chocolate.h...

http://www.happycow.net/

Hope this helps and best of luck to you.

Answer 5

It's hard to go against opinions about whether eating meat is right or wrong from a moral standpoint, but it's a more logical argument that a vegetarian diet can be very healthy.  Explain to your mom that a vegetarian diet can be just as healthy as a meat-eating diet; show her websites (not only vegetarian websites, but the official stance of prominant researchers that say that vegetarian diets can be nutritionally complete for all stages of life).

Tell them that eating vegetarian can be cheaper than eating meat.  You don't have to go for the expensive meat substitutes like soy burgers; you can eat very inexpensive protein-rich foods that are high in nutrients like beans.  Beans don't have to be boring; there are many delicious, different recipes for them.  (Google "bean recipes" on the internet).  Not just pinto beans-- also garbanzo beans, black beans, navy beans, and lentils.  I see that you don't have the option of getting a job, so don't worry about offering to buy your own food-- rather, show them that they don't have to buy extra food for you, or spend more money on feeding you than they would have to if you ate meat.

Another reason they might be hesitant is not only buying other food, but PREPARING other food.  Your mom might be worried you'll be expecting her to prepare an extra meal for you.  Don't let that happen.  Tell them that you will prepare your own food.  Even offer to make dinner for the whole family, a vegetarian recipe.  Most meat-eaters don't desire meat at EVERY meal; they might enjoy a vegan meal once a week, and your mom will probably be happy that you offered to cook for them and she didn't have to prepare a meal.

Above all, be mature and responsible, and show that you are willing to do what you can so that your diet choices don't affect your parents.

Answer 6

I kow it sounds radical but simply refuse to eat what they give you that is non-vegan. You can bring a horse to water but you cant make him drink. Eventually they will have to cave in.

Answer 7

Get a job, and buy your own food. By you doing it yourself, shows them that you are committed to it.