My omni. boyfriend has been questioning his animal consumption more lately (knew he'd come around if I left hiim alone about it!), and I have been doing all I can to accomodate his new choices to make it easier for him...

got me thinking that it might be easier all around for guys to go vegan than ladies. we have to adjust to new make-up (or none), beauty products, cleaning products, birth control, tampons...etc

so far we switched his soap, toothpaste, and lotion (he doesn't wear deoderant cuz he don't need it..lucky jerk!).

not fair.

well, all I had to switch was toothpaste, deodorant, shower gel, shampoo, face wash, hand wash ... I switched to the mooncup too but that's not really a 'vegan issue'.

There are probably girls who use less stuff and guys who use more stuff ... I see what you're getting at in that girls probably use more beauty stuff than guys most of the time, but some people are higher maintenance than others beauty-wise.



When I move out I'll have to buy house-cleaning-stuff that's vegan, but guys would have to do that too.

..... and then you've got the whole stupid 'you're a big pansy' thing to deal with- i think perhaps males might get more stick for not sticking with the stereotype of being a big macho hunk of manliness who rubs gillette shaving foam all over his chin, and sprays axe/lynx products all over the rest of his body.



girls are already associated to an extent with being gentle and kind and loving animals- and its veiwed in a more positive light (its apparently seen as a 'feminine thing' to 'care' for some reason)... so i'm guessing that they don't get the same level of weird looks and raised eyebrows from their mates for buying/wearing patchouli and moss deodorant, or hanging out in 'lush' stores, for example.



eta: ... not that you have to wear 'eau de hippy' to be vegan... but i'm talking about perceptions and stereotypes,

I don't know. Non-food items have usually been more of a bother for me than food insofar as it's usually easier to tell whether a food is vegan or not.



The labels of many foods in my local grocery stores often have things like "whey" or "eggs" listed in bold face, so it's easier to distinguish vegan from non-vegan products. (They often have other things like nuts or soy bolded too- for people who might be allergic to those ingredients, I think). Other times there's a spot where it lists whether something is kosher or not- if it contains dairy, it will note that, but of course the terms "kosher" and "vegan" are really concerned with different standards.

i'm thinking it'd be easier for guys if they've got girls to do their shopping for them... then they just have to remember where products are located in the bathroom, and to apply stuff.

very true! i for sure do the shopping for him (and our housemate), as well as the cleaning. from people i know and have lived with i have observed that ladies usually stick to cleaning (therefore cleaning products) not because it was once considered what we are supposed to do by society, but because we are just better at it...

to add another factor to vegan ladies may face: pregnancy.

just ended a discussion in class about cravings during pregnancy and a guy interjected that his vegan wife craved and ate big macs while she was pregnant and her doctor praised her, the instructor turns to me and says i have to be very careful if i get pregnant, and should consider at least adding milk and cheese to my diet....heck no!

Cleaning/hygeine products: not really, I'm the only one who does the cleaning.



Food: Way harder. For the girls it was almost something they got praised for, but I have a lot of insecurities sometimes about not being a real man because I can't eat steak or beef jerky anymore. But then I remember all the girly hormones and other junk in regular cow carcass and go read that thread about gladiators and legions being vegetarians and it's not that bad.

Tampons? What's not vegan about those?



Anyways, I think it really depends on the person. My younger brother is really high maintenance, in terms of beauty aids.



Me not so much.



There is also stereotype of the macho thing guys have to deal with. I still get it every now and then (even from people who know and have known since the beginning), and I've been vegan for a little over 4 years now.



I don't think I agree with that whole cleaning stereotype either (dare I say BS?). I've lived with a few females in college, and now I live with my wife. I have to say, I do and have done far more cleaning and better than any of the ones I ever lived with. That might not be saying too much though, since I like cleanliness... Although many didn't care that much.

The most popular brand is manufactured by Proctor & Gamble - otherwise known as animal testing b*stards!!!



I buy the organic ones from the health food shop.

Depends what kind of guy you are.



Some of the guys I know use just as many beauty products as the girls do.

I don't use makeup anyway

Please remind me how tampons and deodorant are not vegan? What do they contain?



Not that I need them

tampons are vegan but tampax which is the prevalent brand is owned by P&G and obviously some vegans choose to avoid all P&G stuff.

deodorant often has all the nasties found in a lot of products generally ... stearic acid, benzoic acid, etc, etc ... I'm sure there are some mainstream brands that are vegan, but I'm **** at reading (non-food) labels and there's also the animal testing issue ...

I had to start checking ingredients on food and soap. Clothing would be an issue except I replace it so rarely and will buy second hand stuff for teh cheapness.

Bah, you ladies have it so much easier. Firstly, you have all those big mega-cosmetic stores. I'll be damned if you can't find anything vegan in there. As a manly macho-man, I can't be seen in such an establishment.



Secondly: shoes. I don't know what it is about ladies and shoes, but there are ladies' shoes all over, and there are always some that are non-animal. They may be cheap & crappy shoes, but at least there is something. Again, as the manly man I have to guess sizes and order my shoes online and pay out of my nose unless I want to pay out of my nose to travel all the way to the un-macho and gay city of Brighton.




You might have to do the cleaning, but us men have to do all the beer drinking And which beers are vegan? It's a highly non-trivial question, I can assure you! Some brands are vegan, except when they come with certain types of caps. Others are vegan only when they don't come from a cask. And then sometimes lists of vegan beers on the Internet contradict eachother... It's a mess.

Ahh. Although I just remembered seeing some sea sponge tampons at the local health food store here. Those aren't vegan...

I find Holland and Barrett or any good HFS stocks plenty of soap/shower gel/toothpaste etc. that is suitable for vegans.



If I ever buy deodorant I get a cheap natural brand that is eco friendly and not tested of animals. When I used to use gel on my hair, I found the Co-op's own brand was vegan.



Definitive vegan beer lists are hard to come by though, although Grolsch (not the screw top bottles), Budweiser and Holsten Pils are vegan.

Carlsberg is a safe bet too, supposedly.

I think that generally for both males and females it's easier to be vegan when you're not part of a particular group of people. I was lucky in that I made the transition when I didn't have to be that sociable, but I'd imagine that if you are part of a community or something similar and you are the only one who is doing it, then it is going to be much harder than if you have no social responsibilities. I know that when I am in a social situation, I am quiet about veganism, although I am trying to be more confident about it.

One of the best times to make a lifestyle change such as going vegan has to be after you have left home and moved away, for instance I went vegan a few months after I had gone to University. No pressure from family and a new group of friends.

sometimes friends can be a real asset, not a hinderance though. i guess it depends who you fraternise with and how openminded and clued in they are.



a lot of my friends/collegues/associates are already of the hippy persuasion, and a fair bit older and more experienced in these matters than me- so they'd be a positive as aposed to a negative.



.... i have a few pretty decent memories of swinging aound on office chairs while snacking on organic oatmeal cookies and avocado hummus with my co-workers, discussing henna experiences, vegan products, ethics, philosophy and morality, eastern and western mysticism, heirloom tomatoes, all kindsa cool stuff- when we were supposed to be working.