Quite often I encounter people who are interested in eating fewer animal products (whether for health or moral reasons) but feel that they can never go vegan because there are foods that they love way too much. And let me tell you, I have been there! As mentioned in my previous post, I LOVE food. Like, I really really LOVE food. I love thinking about it, making it, eating it, talking about it, planning it…you name it. I’ve never been one of those people who could just ‘skip lunch’ because they were ‘too busy.’ In fact, I have such an irrational fear of going hungry that if I find that I don’t have snacks in my handbag I have a mild panic (blame my mother; as a lifelong feeder she has always carried a multitude of snacks everywhere just in case of ‘low blood sugar.’)
Speaking of good ol’ Mama T…the other day when I was chatting to her about food (nothing new there!) she said ‘I could never be vegan, I just love eggs too much.’
Well, this declaration got me thinking. Mainly because I love eggs too (and I suddenly realised I hadn’t thought about them for quite some time). As a passionate baker, I have always had a supply in the cupboard and up until very recently I was totally convinced that you couldn’t bake a fluffy cake without them. Also, they have always been regarded as a good source of protein and full of ‘healthy fats’ (or are they?). I’m guessing what my mum was actually referring to is that she loves to eat eggs for breakfast. And yes, I agree that they are a tasty food source. Having scrambled or poached eggs for brunch was one of my favourite pastimes and no one does brunch better than the Aussies. FACT. 🙌
Eggs were one of the hardest animal products for me to let go of and I still can’t say with full certainty that I would never treat myself to eggs again (like, if I was on death row or I happened to be at a kick-ass brunch place where they were famous for having the best scramble in the world). 🤤
If you, like my mum, are turned off going vegan because you like eggs (or another non-vegan food) then that all seems a little crazy to me. It’s like saying ‘Beer is bad for me so I should give it up. But why bother? I’ll still be drinking wine!’ Or ‘I want to eat less sugar so I’m no longer going to eat biscuits with my cuppa. But why bother? I still have a teaspoon of sugar in my cup of tea!’
My point is, people get intimidated by veganism because they feel that they have to give up all the foods they love, practically overnight. This simply isn’t true! As I’ve said before, veganism is a journey, not a destination. You love eggs? Then keep eating eggs for the time being or perhaps just decide to eat less of them. Do you really need to use them in your baking? Or can you find an alternative here? Then when you do decide to treat yourself to a delicious scramble, you’ll enjoy it even more. The very act of buying one carton of eggs a week instead of two is going to have a huge impact on both your health and the environment. (I won’t bore you with the ins and outs of eggs right now but if you’re after some legit reasons to give them up, check out my post on eggs.
Still can’t kick the egg habit? Well, you could try giving up dairy instead and see how you go. Sorry, what was that? You love cheese? (Join the club!) In that case, keep eating your cheese but maybe you could try switching to plant-based milk, butter and yoghurt. I was OBSESSED with thick creamy Greek yoghurt and could eat it by the tub load. Now that I make my own coconut yoghurt (try it here) I don’t even think about the moo kind anymore. And in a land full of so many tasty alternatives to cows milk, there really is no reason not to make the switch. There is soy, oat, almond, hazelnut, cashew, coconut, rice, hemp, tiger nut and probably others I haven’t even thought of! It may take you a little while to find the one that suits you best but trust me, once you do you will never go back. It took my coffee-addicted husband approximately four days to enjoy plant-based milk in his flat whites and now he doesn’t even think about the old kind. If he can make the switch, anyone can.
Does eating a little vegan take a little more effort? Yes. At first, you do have to think about your choices, but once you have set the cogs in motion and you’re going full steam ahead it becomes habitual. Because that’s all eating is, right? It’s a habit that has been taught to us during childhood and then reinforced by family and friends throughout our life. We drink milk because our parents gave it to us; because we have always been told that we need it for calcium. But just imagine that instead of milk, you’d been told to ‘eat your almonds’ or ‘eat your beans.’ Did you know that these are also calcium-rich foods? (Because I sure didn’t!) In fact, 10 out of the 15 foods listed here are plant-based. So not only do they have the calcium we need but they have the bonus of FIBRE; a nutrient that is vital to our health and a nutrient that can ONLY be found in plants. Also, many of these foods are a fantastic source of protein as well (something that we all seem to be obsessed with having enough of even though studies have shown we all get too much!)
(For more information on protein vs fibre I can highly recommend listening to the short podcast Nutrition Facts with Dr Greger- Do Vegetarians get enough Protein?)
But I don’t want to get into the nitty-gritty of nutrition in this post. I’m still learning so much about health and over time I hope to condense my knowledge and share some of the most illuminating facts with you. But I do find that sometimes it’s an uphill battle. There is so much noise out there about what to eat and what not to eat that people just end up feeling confused. But don’t use confusion as an excuse to not make ANY changes. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing, it can be ‘all or something.’ Actually, if you’re looking for some inspiration I can recommend the book Bosh: How to Live Vegan. It’s a step by step guide which talks about how to ‘veganise’ your life and also presents some very compelling facts, which are perfect to throw around at the dinner table while you’re enjoying your nut roast. 👍
So hopefully if you are one of those lucky people teetering on the edge of veganism I have convinced you to make a change. It doesn’t matter how small it is….one change will usually lead to more and with each one your journey will become easier. But even if it doesn’t, even if you simply do ONE thing like stop eating bacon or switch to plant-based milk you are doing good. 👍 Firstly for your health but also for our dear Mother Earth. 🌎
In the wise words of Dr David Katz:
‘There are no healthy people on an uninhabitable planet’
Do you need a better reason than that?
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