[auggie]

I went to a new doctor (who I will never see again) because I've been experiencing flu and allergy symptoms after running and lifting weights...it's been going on for about 6 months.

I had tests done and everything was normal.He inquired about my diet and absolutely flipped out when he heard I was vegan:

"You don't eat any animal products at all,not even shrimp?No milk?You need to do yourself a favor and have a rare steak.If your tests are normal,you have to look at what's different from you and the rest of the population...the fact that you don't eat any meat is probably a major factor in how you feel;you can't live off of tofu and supplements!" (I don't).

"You NEED animal protein in your body,everything in moderation is fine!!" I just sat there and let him spazz;then I walked out.

I asked my pathology professor,a seemingly intelligent person,his opinion:

"Your body needs animal protein,plant protein isn't as well assimilated in the body.You're missing out on nutrients..."

Personally,I think I have chronic fatigue syndrome because I'm under a lot of stress with paying a student loan and going to school full time...yet they don't want to hear it.Their solution is for me to eat rare steaks and cholesterol ridden shrimp for health and vitality...probably with a block of cheese as a side.

Has anyone else gotten really ignorant comments like this?Especially from doctors...you'd think they'd be more with it nutrition wise.

 

[Diana]

They are like that because if everyone went vegan, a lot of illnesses would disappear and then a lot of doctors would be out of a job. (And a lot of shareholders in pharmaceutical companies would lose out on their dividends as well, as less medicine would be sold).

Veganism is WAY too good for one's health to satisfy a doctor.

 

[hnybny91]

How can doctors say that eating steak, a rare steak at that, is healthy? How can we POSSIBLY be denying ourselves nutrition when we probably get FAR more nutrients from food than someone who eats a diet of fat-laden meat? Unbelieveable!

 

[Medesha]

Maybe they're grumpy because people stereotype them? Not all doctors and professors are jerks, just apparently two that you met.

 

[auggie]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diana

They are like that because if everyone went vegan, a lot of illnesses would disappear and then a lot of doctors would be out of a job. (And a lot of shareholders in pharmaceutical companies would lose out on their dividends as well, as less medicine would be sold).

Veganism is WAY too good for one's health to satisfy a doctor.

This is exactly what I think but no one is interested in my 'conspiracy theories'.That doctor also suggested putting me on antidepressants and I refused because hey,I'm not depressed.

Another instructor of mine is completely for the FDA and radically against supplements-all because the drugs have scientific trials to PROVE how good they are for treating certain conditions...and that the lowly supplements are tested via independent studies.Also,they are placebos!

 

[saborm]

Usually the problem is that doctors simply get the absolute minimum in nutritional training and even that is influenced by all the promotional stuff that industry groups put out.

 

[ketivnilloc]

i wasn't seeing him as a patient, but i met a doctor and he thought it was really cool for a kid to take charge in their diet. he also thought that vegetarianism has many good aspects that the general population should know....maybe it was just luck.

 

[GhostUser]

My advice to you is to get a better, more educated doctor.

You mentioned that you are dealing with stress. Stress can weaken our immune systems and make us sick. It can also cause long term damage. This may be what is, especially since your tests have come out as normal. Try talking to a different doctor and in the meantime, find ways to lower your stress level.

 

[Elena99]

There ARE vegetarian and vegan doctors out there. Try calling your local medical society and ask if they know of any vegetarian doctors that are accepting patients.

I had a dentist that is vegetarian.

Unfortunately, he retired a couple of years ago.

 

[Lord Hillyer]

In the 18th and 19th centuries, physicians 'knew best' and were 'scientific experts'. Yet they did all sorts of appalling things that we now know often made things worse. Some of the horrors, like bleeding people of 'bad blood', were, at the time, cutting-edge medical technique (no pun intended).

Why, then, should we think today that our physicians are much different? The most dangerous place in the world is still inside a hospital. Hospitals have been dangerous places for as long as they have existed - and this hasn't changed, nor does it appear to be changing.

The Institute of Medicine - which is likely to underestimate, rather than overestimate these things - estimates that between 50,000 and 100,000 people die in US hospitals every year from malpractise alone (that's one about every five minutes - the equivalent of an entire Vietnam War every year) - and most of that is due to easily avoidable bacterial infection. Why? Look at this:

'In one Australian medical study, doctors self-reported their hand-washing rate at 73 percent, whereas when these same doctors were observed, their actual rate was a paltry 9 percent.'*

Even though we know that good nutrition, reasonable exercise, and sanitation/cleanliness are responsible for almost all the increase in our lifespans this century, too many people still eat rubbish food, stay sedentary, and don't wash their hands, smoke, and have unsafe sex, etc. We still have a reaction based sick-care system - and so very few physicians seem concerned with the basics of health that human beings supposedly 'mastered' decades ago. This is a huge mistake.

A vegan lifestyle is sadly simply off the radar for most physicians. They didn't learn about it in medical school, or as undergraduates, or in secondary or primary school, or pre-school. And if they have no vegan friends or family, they probably don't even understand what it is precisely that vegans eat - even though it is their sworn responsibility to be informed of precisely these things.

They are human beings - most of them very ordinary and well-meaning chaps, who are in a profession that still largely has its collective head deep in the sand. Virtually everyone they see is a sick omnivore. They themselves are almost certainly going to be, statistically, omnivorous.

So if possible, find a physician who caters to holistic medicine for your regular doctor visits. But more importantly - educate yourself as much as possible about proper nutrition, sanitation, and exercise. Those, along with family history of disease, are going to be your primary variables in health. Eating steak has nothing to do with it. Tweak your vegan diet to best fit your nutritional needs. And, for God's sake, find a physician who predominately breathes through his nose.

*(Statistic from http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/24/ma...erland&emc=rss)

 

[TreeManEarthSteward]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diana

They are like that because if everyone went vegan, a lot of illnesses would disappear and then a lot of doctors would be out of a job. (And a lot of shareholders in pharmaceutical companies would lose out on their dividends as well, as less medicine would be sold).

Veganism is WAY too good for one's health to satisfy a doctor.

That is really not far from the truth, anyway, (although doctors would say its absurd of course)... but anyway Love the last line in particular.

Also, just in passing I'd like to say sympathies to the OP.

(no can comment a lot as I don't visit my doctor enough but is that so bad, of me?

I wish I could comment more though, but... not much access time to the web just now.)

 

[Elena99]

I honestly don't think most doctors think that way, Diana, but I'm not going to argue with you.

In reality, there are always people who are sick, or who accidentally hurt themselves, do something stupid, go for a vice too much and now have complications because of it, etc. And there's also all the genetic and birth disorders to think about that veganism wouldn't touch.

 

[meatless]

Great post lordhillyer.

I have two vegan friends locally who have each run 100 mile ultramarathons within the past year. They are constantly informed that vegans cannot be athletes, let alone run ultras...not only by ordinary people, but so-called nutrition experts, doctors, running experts, etc. And they keep proving the idiots wrong.

 

[Quincy]

my grandfather is a retired doctor and he's made it clear that he's strongly against the vegan diet. he basically said that we HAVE to eat fish to be healthy.

It will be interesting to see how he acts at Thanksgiving...my first vegan Thanksgiving...

 

[auggie]

I just wanted to say that I don't mean to generalize.I'm sure there are doctors who acknowledge the benefits of a veg diet but I have only met one and I'm not sure he counts due to being a naturopath.He is vegetarian and said something along the lines of "There's absolutely no need to eat dead animals to be healthy." That's pretty much the way I feel.If I feel run down after exercising I don't see how eating meat and dairy products are going to help.

I went running yesterday,felt fine the whole way through and now I'm sitting here feeling achey and run down like I'm getting a cold.It really is bizarre.

Good luck with your grandfather,Quincy.

 

[Tom]

It is irritating to hear a doctor put veganism down, particularly when most people in our culture get sick from going way too far the other way (too much animal-derived fat, etc.). I can't live without animal protein? OMYGAWD lemme check my pulse... Huh! strong and steady. Go figure.

Although we don't need animal protein, of course we do need B-12. Some of us might benefit from supplements such as calcium; I'm not sure, but I think that is partly why wild herbivorous animals sometimes go to salt licks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by auggie

I went to a new doctor (who I will never see again) because I've been experiencing flu and allergy symptoms after running and lifting weights...it's been going on for about 6 months.

I'm sorry you're having these problems. I don't run, but I have been training with Cybex/Nautilus type machines. I sometimes get sore if I push myself too hard, but I've never had any symptoms like you describe. Is there something in the gym where you work out or where you run that might be causing your symptoms?

Oops- I read your last post just above. I'm not a doctor, but that sounds to me like you're overdoing it.

 

[epski]

Welcome to the dark ages.

Fortunately, with vegan athletes winning competitions and more vocal than ever about speaking on behalf of veganism, there's a possibility that people will start paying attention.

 

[cftwo]

Auggie - maybe you just need a break. Take some time to just recharge your batteries. Feeling run down happens to all of us. IMO, feeling run-down is often just your body's way of saying "HEY! PAY ATTENTION!" Eat healthy foods, and take it easy for a while.

<<<<< - - - a professor who isn't a cr******* about veganism

 

[colorful]

Doctors are trained to diagnose and treat diseases and injuries. They are medical doctors. They are not trained dieticians or nutritionists (or parenting experts! - sorry OT but I hear of so many people getting bad parenting advice from their doctors). It would be nice if doctors didn't give advice on stuff that they aren't trained on, like nutrition. If they think there is a nutritional problem with a patient, they should refer that patient to a registered dietician or nutritionist! But since many doctors give out nutritional advice anyway, we should just remember to take it with a BIG grain of salt.

That said, I'm not anti-doctor at all! My dad is a doctor (pediatrician), and a great one at that. He really keeps up with the most recent studies and pours over his monthly pediatric journals. And, ever since I went vegetarian, he has done his research on that and now is one of those great doctors that will assure parents that their vegetarian child CAN be perfectly healthy on a vegetarian diet.

Auggie - hope you start feeling better soon, and find a diagnosis for your problem! It wouldn't hurt to look up a vegetarian nutritionist in your area and see if they can advise any improvements to your diet, just in case that is part of the problem. Trust your instincts though, if you know you are eating a stellar diet, be confident in that.

 

[VegAnna]

What you experience sounds like something I've experienced before, but I don't know your circumstances (what you eat, how much you weigh, etc.). For me, it mostly went away when I exercised less, gained weight, and drank more water, but it really depends...

And I have heard things like that from doctors and other professionals as well, but thank god, most of them stay back and recognize that they don't have the educational background to judge me.