[greenie25]

Hi guys!
I'm sure this would have been discussed at some point before but yesterday a discussion with some vegetarian friends featured the titled gem of a statement.
Apparently being vegan was 'not sustainable for long term health, for pregnant women or children, which is why there are none and have never been any documented vegan societies ' .
I assumed the answer would be something akin to 'Well, we they didn't always have b12 supplements or fortified foods' or ' Well, nutritional knowledge about balanced diets is reaching new heights' or ' Well , we're more aware of the environmental and ethical effects of what we do now/here and have choices about it ' or a combo of the three.
What are your thoughts on this?

NB. I'm currently vegan but actually thinking about including eggs , so I'm coming at this from a fairly impartial standpoint

Just curious.

 

[ohemgee]

Why do you want to include eggs?

 

[Indian Summer]

I would think the B12 issue may be responsible for it, combined with nutrition science still being a rather undeveloped discipline even today.

Quote:

Originally Posted by greenie25

Apparently being vegan was 'not sustainable for long term health, for pregnant women or children, [...]'

You know this is incorrect, right?

 

[Pirate Ferret]

So they have never heard of http://www.vegansociety.com/ ? They just sound a bit jealous that vegans can stick to something they wouldn't be able to *shrug*

 

[runnerveggie]

I would say to them that the topic is irrelevant. You can't really make historical or evolutionary arguments about diets. Our modern diets are far removed from what our ancestors ate due to agriculture. Even the typical omnivore diet is dependent on domesticated animals and new varieties of fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes that haven't existed for very long on an evolutionary time scale. And, as you implied, we don't have to base our every decision on survival these days. We can weigh options and do what we think is right.

Today, we know that a well-planned vegan diet can be just as health, if not healthier, than an omnivore diet. B12 supplementation is vital, as is eating a variety of foods. Even the American Dietetics Association and the USDA state that a well-planned vegan diet is healthy and appropriate for all stages in life (including pregnancy and early childhood).

 

[Clueless Git]

Quote:

Originally Posted by greenie25

Apparently being vegan was 'not sustainable for long term health, for pregnant women or children, which is why there are none and have never been any documented vegan societies ' .

This would be true if the 2,500 year established Jain society (100% near vegan and sizeable % vegan) were not very well documented.

 

[vincent]

Take a B12 supplement or obtain B12 from fortified vegan foods, rather than eating eggs to acquire B12.

The word "vegan" was not actually coined until 1944, so obviously no societies existed before this time.

 

[ElaineV]

greenie, you've been misinformed.

Quote:

It is the position of the American Dietetic Association that appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and for athletes.

http://www.eatright.org/about/content.aspx?id=8357

As to the society thing, there have been studies done on vegan societies. So yeah, they exist.

 

[greenie25]

I love you guys. AND ..the vegetarian friends I was debating this with were just shown this thread..and are officially vegan. As of today.

Ohemgee, Re: why eggs ( good question! ) .. it's because we have chickens and they don't seem harmed or impacted by my collecting and using their eggs, nor are they part of an earth-destroying mass production system of..being.I don't know if that's a great reason, hence still debating it, but there's definitely a question mark there.

Everybody, I'd actually like to reply to every post individually because I'm really glad to read all of them , but my response would be the same. Nodding enthusiastically, thanking you and realising I should do a bit more reading on this.