How do I become vegan? [Guide]

[Saetas]

Forgive me for asking but the initial post says to make sure you are not being vegan as a diet choice but solely as a moral one. Wouldn't it be fair to say that no matter your reason for going vegan it is at least a step in the right direction? Since it is healthier (if done correctly and managing nutrition) can't someone go to a vegan for personal health reasons? Or are they not considered (At least by some) not true vegans?

[brimstoneSalad]

Since it is healthier (if done correctly and managing nutrition) can't someone go to a vegan for personal health reasons?

That could be the predominant reason, but not all animal products are unhealthy. Somebody could eat vegan and buy fur coats, for example, and wouldn't generally be considered vegan.
Although it's still a step in the right direction, certainly.

[miniboes]

Since it is healthier (if done correctly and managing nutrition) can't someone go to a vegan for personal health reasons?

That could be the predominant reason, but not all animal products are unhealthy. Somebody could eat vegan and buy fur coats, for example, and wouldn't generally be considered vegan.
Although it's still a step in the right direction, certainly.

I would still disagree with the idea that "fighting for animal rights" has to be at least one of the reasons to go vegan. Would an environmentalist vegan not also avoid fur, wool, etc.?

[Lightningman_42]

I would still disagree with the idea that "fighting for animal rights" has to be at least one of the reasons to go vegan. Would an environmentalist vegan not also avoid fur, wool, etc.?

For someone to be truly vegan (avoiding clothing, not just food, from animals), their motivations would have to be either environmental, ethical (for animals), or both. Health motivations alone are not enough to become fully vegan, because they don't compel anyone to avoid animal-derived clothing. So yes I agree that someone could go vegan for only environmental reasons, but not for only health reasons.

[brimstoneSalad]

So yes I agree that someone could go vegan for only environmental reasons, but not for only health reasons.

Of course, environmental reasons kind of are ethical reasons. We often (and probably should, to avoid confusing people) list them separately to make a distinction, but when somebody is caring about the environment, that person is essentially caring for others and making an ethical choice to do less harm.

[boyjenius]

this guid helped me a little on my transition on being vegan a few months ago when i was slowly making the switch.

my motive was really simple, i want to live as long as possible to enjoy life as much as possible and being vegan will help that to happen

making vegan alternatives of my favorite foods really helped too

[miniboes]

This post may seem a bit out of the blue; i'm just typing out some lightly moderated thoughts. Perhaps this should be it's own topic. Oh well, this is like, the fourth edit, people might already be reading it.

I don't think this is an issue with vegans on this forum, but I think it is important for many vegans to realize that adopting a vegan diet for health can in fact be an ethically driven choice in many ways. A distinction between eating vegan for personal and public health might be useful here. By decreasing the demand for meat, we can eventually make it more expensive, maybe even hard to find. Also, by being an example of health, we can help educate people on how to prevent dietary diseases. I personally stopped consuming meat, dairy and eggs in the first place because I was outraged at the animal food industry for being the worlds #1 provider of heart attacks, strokes, diabetes and perhaps even Alzheimer's. Another person might eat vegan because he does not want his kids to live without a father. It seems to me many of the more dogmatic vegans, perhaps types like Francione, are not very open to this option. An all-or-nothing attitude can be very harmful here.

I was lucky enough to end up in a community like this, with rational vegans encouraging any kind of progress towards less consumption of animal products. I often see people come to other vegan forums, saying "I stopped eating meat, dairy and eggs, it feels great!" and people telling them they can't be vegan if it's not for the animals. That is not helpful.

A side-note: I've been thinking about starting a blog for a while, perhaps just as a place to send people to rather than having to explain the same thing over and over again; do you guys think this topic would make for an interesting article?

[Lightningman_42]

...and people telling them they can't be vegan if it's not for the animals. That is not helpful.

Yes I agree that this would not be helpful, and I hope I did not come across that way. What I was discussing with BrimstoneSalad in this thread was mostly about semantics. I insisted that since the definition of "vegan" necessarily includes avoiding animal-derived clothing, that it's not but possible to be vegan with only health as a motivation. A person only interested in the health aspect of veganism can, however, still have a vegan diet, and this is already a very good thing for them to do for animals and the environment. A friend of mine decided to adopt a vegan diet for health reasons and I of course expressed encouragement and offered advice.

A side-note: I've been thinking about starting a blog for a while, perhaps just as a place to send people to rather than having to explain the same thing over and over again; do you guys think this topic would make for an interesting article?

I would visit your blog.

[miniboes]

...and people telling them they can't be vegan if it's not for the animals. That is not helpful.

Yes I agree that this would not be helpful, and I hope I did not come across that way.

No, you did not. I just associated what you wrote with vegans elsewhere and just started writing off of the train of thought that follows.

[ThatNerdyScienceGirl]

I agree with most points, but to be honest, telling Vegans to go to a specified health food store just makes Veganism sound really expensive. Just buy vegan at your local Kroger/Walmart/Target/Food4Less/Strack Van Til/etc. I found a few wonderful vegan food items from my local Dollar Tree

But yeah, Kroger has some vegan meat alternatives, alongside almond and cashew milk, rice milk, lentils, dried and canned beans, frozen and fresh veggies, vegan breads, Bagels, Nuts, crackers, etc.