What type of vegetarian are you?

[paulwalkersgirl]

I thought it would be interesting to see how many Aussie vegans, l/o vegetarians etc that are. :nana:

I'm vegan! I've been one since June 1st, 2008. ;) Before that, I was l/o vegetarian for just over a year. I'm proud of my accomplishments in the past year or so. Especially since going vegan. I was absolutely in love with milk chocolate, ice cream (especially McDonalds sundaes :sealed:) & cheese. I loved vegetarian cheese. :(

Knowing how the dairy industry (and egg industry too!) treats dairy cows etc, it makes me feel incredibly at peace knowing that I'm not, in any way, associated with them. I never want to be again. :brood: :whack: LOL

[Kristen4382]

If, by 'Strict Vegetarian' you mean Vegetarian with vegan tendencies, then that is me. Soy milk, nut butter, fake parmesan which stinks as much as the real stuff... bah if anyone wants to know more click on my blog under my avatar. It's complicated! I am becoming more and more bothered by non-vegan products that I own. Researching for vegan friendly products as I find out more information. I'll get there.

[Pixelle]

I live with 3 other people who are currently vegans, so I'm eating a mostly vegan diet but officially, I'm an ovo-vegetarian.

[kali]

i live as a vegan but i call myself a strict vegetarian cuz sometimes im not that purist about it.

[VEGIHEAD]

Im vegan all the way.... :)

[Charlottejane]

Oops, I ticked the wrong box... der. I would say I'm a strict vegetarian - I am not at the point of avoiding all products that have milk powder in them but I don't eat any dairy products at home and we live a vegan life at home. I haven't graduated to total vegan yet, but am vegan-minded in most aspects.

[Smurfbabe]

I said strict vegetarian - I eat vegan at home but when I'm eating out I don't mind too much if there's a sprinkle of cheese in something, or the bread might contain some non vegan ingredient - I don't ask too many questions at restaurants, I just want to enjoy my meal. I'm pretty happy with the balance I've struck but I know overtime I'm going to want to go completely vegan. I've gone this far and it's been close to 2yrs so I'm just happy I've made the changes I have.

[vefo]

I never called myself anything but lacto ovo vego would be it, although I'm taking a little more interest in the dairy side of things since reading VB.

[erin84]

vegan if i need to be labelled, but really consider myself ecotarian - vegan is only one aspect of it.

[thefragile77]

Lacto-Ovo at the moment. I'm also a Coeliac which makes eating out quite hard as a vegan. I'd end up with a plain baked potato or a bowl of plain rice because they'd be too scared of getting it wrong.

Just wondering how many of the vegans ask about butter etc when dining out? As a Coeliac I'm pretty aware of the hidden extras in foods. My partner has a dairy intolerance but always forgets, for example, to find out if his mushrooms have been cooked in butter or oil.

[lirpa1]

l/o vegetarian at the moment, but I rarely have eggs, and am looking for an alternative to milk, OTHER THAN SOY...

[paulwalkersgirl]

Ever tried rice milk? I need to try that again.... I wanna try almond milk too. :) You can't stand soy, I gather? lol I like soy milk in my hot tea and weet bix, but I've been too much of a woos to try it in cereal like Special K and Corn Flakes LOL.

[lirpa1]

Nah it isnt that I dont like soy, Ihave just heard that it can have pretty bad health effects.

Like changing a womans oestregen levels, lowering sperm count (and if i drink soy, so will my partner, and i would like kinds ONE day), shrinking the brain in middle age, causing alzheimers and parkinsons (or raising the risk of...) so yea, I try to avoid soy a bit. I stil have my tofu (yummmm)and I have faux meats which have soy in them. so for butter, milk cheese etc id like to try something besides soy so tath I dont get soy overload i guess...

[erin84]

Nah it isnt that I dont like soy, Ihave just heard that it can have pretty bad health effects.

Like changing a womans oestregen levels, lowering sperm count (and if i drink soy, so will my partner, and i would like kinds ONE day), shrinking the brain in middle age, causing alzheimers and parkinsons (or raising the risk of...) so yea, I try to avoid soy a bit. I stil have my tofu (yummmm)and I have faux meats which have soy in them. so for butter, milk cheese etc id like to try something besides soy so tath I dont get soy overload i guess...

You might find it easier to avoid soy in tofu and faux meats and have some soy from other sources. If you are concerned about possible side affects from soy, which I don't think you need to be, aim to ingest whole soy instead of isolaetd soy protein.

I honestly don't think there is anything to worry about with whole soy. Studies into soy are usually undertaken by the meat or dairy industry and unsurprisingly are flawed.

Without hijacking the thread, just consider the Chinese and Japanese populations who have been eating soy for centuries. They have no population problems caused by infertility from soy, and I haven't read anything which indicates a significantly higher rate of mental degeneration.

[Australien]

Im lacto ovo, am aware of the dairy industry but ideally I think we could get our dairy more humanely. Have tried going vegan a couple of times but only lasted a few days. I recently found out that Peter Singer is not a strict vegetarian so I figure if the most influential person in the world on animal rights is not a vegan why should I be. For example most vegans believe they are doing the best thing possible for animals but Singer shows that spreading the message far and wide can be alot more productive than a personal diet.

[VEGIHEAD]

Im lacto ovo, am aware of the dairy industry but ideally I think we could get our dairy more humanely. Have tried going vegan a couple of times but only lasted a few days. I recently found out that Peter Singer is not a strict vegetarian so I figure if the most influential person in the world on animal rights is not a vegan why should I be. For example most vegans believe they are doing the best thing possible for animals but Singer shows that spreading the message far and wide can be alot more productive than a personal diet.

Hmmmmm Whatevvvvaaaaa

[lirpa1]

You might find it easier to avoid soy in tofu and faux meats and have some soy from other sources. If you are concerned about possible side affects from soy, which I don't think you need to be, aim to ingest whole soy instead of isolaetd soy protein.

I honestly don't think there is anything to worry about with whole soy. Studies into soy are usually undertaken by the meat or dairy industry and unsurprisingly are flawed.

Without hijacking the thread, just consider the Chinese and Japanese populations who have been eating soy for centuries. They have no population problems caused by infertility from soy, and I haven't read anything which indicates a significantly higher rate of mental degeneration.
Yea true,and isnt china/japan much more advanced technology wise than other parts of the world... yet soy makes one stupid? hmmmm, I think most of those studies were probably done by the meat industry. fundswise anyhow, and if you are a scientist and you want your next paycheck, you could easily sway a study to get what you want out of it.

I think ill go this week and get some soy milk and try it. If it doesnt float my boat, ill try almond or rice. surely one of those could be better than a poor baby calf having to die.

[thefragile77]

Hmmmmm Whatevvvvaaaaa

Not exactly constructive criticism is it?

Aside from that...
Peter Singer is the reason I became vegetarian in the first place and to be honest vegans with snotty attitudes to l/o veggies isn't really constructive for "the cause". Belittling people for the food choices is just as small minded as meat eaters having a go at veg*ns. I respect my partner's choice to eat meat and he respects my choice to exercise my ethics and choose veggie food. People choose their diets and lifestyles for different reasons and erin84's reason is just as worthy as any other.

Just my 2 cents :D

[VEGIHEAD]

Not exactly constructive criticism is it?

Aside from that...
Peter Singer is the reason I became vegetarian in the first place and to be honest vegans with snotty attitudes to l/o veggies isn't really constructive for "the cause". Belittling people for the food choices is just as small minded as meat eaters having a go at veg*ns. I respect my partner's choice to eat meat and he respects my choice to exercise my ethics and choose veggie food. People choose their diets and lifestyles for different reasons and erin84's reason is just as worthy as any other.

Just my 2 cents :D


I respect everyones decisions.... but that poster seems to have many negative post...

Not to sure what they are trying to get at..
But always talking about eating meat and dairy in small amounts etc..
I think its a TROLL

ANd I dont have a snotty nose attitude tahnks. :)

Ohand it was austaliens post I was refering too.

[erin84]

I think ill go this week and get some soy milk and try it. If it doesnt float my boat, ill try almond or rice. surely one of those could be better than a poor baby calf having to die.

I would honestly recommend getting the most expensive, organic soy milk for your first time - Bonsoy (we rave about it in another thread in the subforum). It will set you back about $4 a litre, but its a really good soy milk made of whole soy beans. Its very creamy so makes for a smoother transition. I have bonsoy in things where I taste the milk (eg, chai or with cereal), and rice milk for anything else (cooking but not baking, other tea). Then as a treat I get almond milk!

[VEGIHEAD]

If the most influential person in the world on animal rights is not vegan then why should I be is what australien wrote...

Thats crazy talk in my opinion...Thats no attitude to have at all...

[lirpa1]

I would honestly recommend getting the most expensive, organic soy milk for your first time - Bonsoy (we rave about it in another thread in the subforum). It will set you back about $4 a litre, but its a really good soy milk made of whole soy beans. Its very creamy so makes for a smoother transition. I have bonsoy in things where I taste the milk (eg, chai or with cereal), and rice milk for anything else (cooking but not baking, other tea). Then as a treat I get almond milk!

ah ok then thanks. I'm going to try and get some today anyhow and start drinking it instead of regular milk. Im just going to the local supermarket, so Ill look for Bonsoy, but they may not have much of a choice but ill go for the more expensive one anyhow. If i dont like it I can use it coffes and stuff to mask the taste.

what abt cheeses? I mean, I can cut milk out eaiser with the soy/almond/rice milk, but I stil have cheese. Are there any good kinds that I can get at say.. coles or woolies? or am i better off just getting a vegan cheese from a health food store? I am actually buying vegan cheese friday night from a freind, so hopefully that makes me make that change.

then all i have left to give up is eggs... which I have one day a week at the most so that shouldnt be too hard... I'll still b vegetarian for awhile, but giving up eggs and dairy would be such a good feeling, for me and for the animals...

[Charlottejane]

hmmmm, I think most of those studies were probably done by the meat industry. fundswise anyhow,

In my own personal researching on this topic I did find that any anti-soy campaigns tended to be funded (somewhere down the line) by companies that have a vested interest in the dairy industry. It's not hard to work out.

I choose to omit the faux meats in preference to a bit of soy milk because generally speaking the faux meats are pretty processed and jam packed with a list of ingredients as long as my arm, whereas Bonsoy is pretty straight forward.


I would honestly recommend getting the most expensive, organic soy milk for your first time - Bonsoy (we rave about it in another thread in the subforum).

Yep, I have also read that Bonsoy is healthier because, like you say Erin84, it is made with whole soybeans rather than soy isolates, there is no added sugar and they add kombu (a sea vegetable) which kind of combats the whole iodine/thyroid "concerns". And it is by far the tastiest soy milk on offer.



what abt cheeses? I mean, I can cut milk out eaiser with the soy/almond/rice milk, but I stil have cheese.

I'm sure that vegan cheeses are fine every now and then but again, they are highly processed and are mostly made from soy as well so in my mind, the same health argument exist here as they would for eating highly processed meats every day. (:eek: Waiting for the backlash on that comment!!).

However if you're priority is to be vegan then of course, do what you need to do to make life a bit more enjoyable. Maybe you will find that vegan cheese helps in making the transition to being vegan a bit easier, and if so, then that's awesome. I'm just saying that I wouldn't necessarily eat vegan cheeses every day for the same reason I hate that my parents eat processed meats every day. The more natural the state of your food the better off you're likely to be health-wise.

Other than occasionally having tofutti cream cheese (it is yum!) I have never found the need to buy any other vegan cheeses - I have adapted all my recipes by leaving the cheese out altogether and sometimes just adding savoury (nutritional) yeast for the salty taste. With the exception of pizza, I personally don't miss cheese. And, I'll just add, that I was a BIG dairy fan before my 'enlightenment'!!

As for Australien's comments, I'm sure if you are interested in learning and understanding the reason people choose to be vegan then you'd say so, but I think you're baiting for an argument. If you're happy being lacto ovo then just get on with it, as others here do. :)

[lirpa1]

In my own personal researching on this topic I did find that any anti-soy campaigns tended to be funded (somewhere down the line) by companies that have a vested interest in the dairy industry. It's not hard to work out.

I choose to omit the faux meats in preference to a bit of soy milk because generally speaking the faux meats are pretty processed and jam packed with a list of ingredients as long as my arm, whereas Bonsoy is pretty straight forward.



Yep, I have also read that Bonsoy is healthier because, like you say Erin84, it is made with whole soybeans rather than soy isolates, there is no added sugar and they add kombu (a sea vegetable) which kind of combats the whole iodine/thyroid "concerns". And it is by far the tastiest soy milk on offer.



I'm sure that vegan cheeses are fine every now and then but again, they are highly processed and are mostly made from soy as well so in my mind, the same health argument exist here as they would for eating highly processed meats every day. (:eek: Waiting for the backlash on that comment!!).

However if you're priority is to be vegan then of course, do what you need to do to make life a bit more enjoyable. Maybe you will find that vegan cheese helps in making the transition to being vegan a bit easier, and if so, then that's awesome. I'm just saying that I wouldn't necessarily eat vegan cheeses every day for the same reason I hate that my parents eat processed meats every day. The more natural the state of your food the better off you're likely to be health-wise.

Other than occasionally having tofutti cream cheese (it is yum!) I have never found the need to buy any other vegan cheeses - I have adapted all my recipes by leaving the cheese out altogether and sometimes just adding savoury (nutritional) yeast for the salty taste. With the exception of pizza, I personally don't miss cheese. And, I'll just add, that I was a BIG dairy fan before my 'enlightenment'!!

As for Australien's comments, I'm sure if you are interested in learning and understanding the reason people choose to be vegan then you'd say so, but I think you're baiting for an argument. If you're happy being lacto ovo then just get on with it, as others here do. :)

Oh thanks for all the info! many people I talk to are afraid that they are giving me way too much info, or pushing me b/c they have so much info to offer, but im stil new and the more information I can get the happier I am and the better choices I can make b/c I am being informed, and "enlightened"

I will admit taht I am also a big dairy fan :(, but then again I used to eat eggs much more often than I do now. Like I used to have eggs fro breakfast 3-4 days a week, where now I might have a couple one day a week.... just b/c I cnat just eat them without feeling guilty, knowing what some other living creature had to go through for me.

SO yea, if i can start cutting back on the dairy, I probably won't even know that it isnt there anymore... and as for the cheeses, they can be a once in awhile treat... I havent changed yet, but lets just say transitions are beginneig to take place :bobo:

[lirpa1]

well, I have soy milk. Vitasoy... made from whole soy beans and also contains kombu

Having some in my coffee.. and serioulsy, it isnt bad at all..

Score :nana: