Giving up animal products can definitely improve your health. It can help you lose weight. It can reverse certain types of diseases. But it's not a magic bullet and I'm not going to tell you that it is. There are overweight vegans just like there are skinny people who eat tons of sugar and processed foods. That's life. But if you revolutionize your diet to exclude not only animal products but also processed foods, you have a much better chance of improving your health, the environment, and preventing more cruelty on factory farms. Kathy Freston's new book, The Lean, helps people move from animal products and processed food to a whole foods, plant-based diet in a step-by-step, gradual way. I learned a few dirty tricks that you may want to be aware of as your transition:
- Some restaurants coat items at their salad bars with oil so they are heavier and you pay more. If your greens are shiny, you might want to pass.
- If you're trying to wean yourself from soda, it might help you to realize that there's added salt in soda to make you thirstier so you drink more.
This made me angry but sometimes anger can be an ally when trying to make a change - don't let the saboteurs win! And make sure you are prepared for hungry moments. I ran into a colleague today who's leaning into being vegan - he was upset that he could only have lettuce and tomato at the salad bar because everything else was gone. If this is a possibility, bring your lunch that day! You can easily freeze something you cooked and warm it up in the microwave at work. Much better than being hungry, angry or tempted.
It's a process and it's not about being perfect. It's about living your values, loving yourself, and those who love you.
